Agbekor Society concert livens the atmosphere

Low echoes and deep vibrations penetrated the minds and bodies of the crowd gathered in the Alumnae Hall on Wednesday. Students, faculty, friends, and children assembled to hear the striking rhythms and beats of traditional West African drumming performed by the Agbekor Society and special guest, Dolsi-naa Abubakari Luna.

Dolsi-naa was a teacher of Professor David Locke, the associate professor of music at Tufts. Locke traveled to Ghana in 1974, where he met Dolsi-naa. While there, Locke learned African drumming, which he brought back to Tufts by founding and directing the Agbekor Drum and Dance Society in 1979.

Dolsi-naa led the group of seven with his luna, a wooden, hourglass-shaped "talking drum," with ropes made of antelope skin joining the two goatskin heads. The drums were slung from one shoulder by a silken, traditional cloth and beat with a cane-shaped drum-stick made out of wood. The pressure on the ropes allowed for the drummer to change the drum's pitch, causing it to sound much like the intonation patterns of their vernacular language, Dagbani.

Five members played the luna while two others hit a larger, lower-pitched drum called a gun-gon. The ensemble had three musical roles: the leading luna by Dolsi-naa, the answer luna from the five luna players, and the background gun-gon. The group dressed in African garb, each wearing a hat shaped like a night-cap called a zipiligu, a decorative, striped robe called a Gbinma, and leather boots with intricate designs made out of brightly-colored thread.

When they began to play, it was as if the small room itself was transformed into the kingdom of the Dagomba people from Ghana. Forces of energy from the drum beats and the audience surged forth and enlivened the atmosphere, causing much toe- and hand-tapping. The actual sound was a mix between drum beats, a buzzing from the antelope ropes, and a low snare drum. The music was very fast and the beats correlated to the African words in the program. For instance, the song, "Damba Sochendi," had a translation in English, "naa wum- naa wum- naa wum," depicting how the beats would sound when performed. The rhythms were catchy and the performers moved in circles across the floor, captivating their audience. It was apparent that they had a lot of fun while they were playing.

One of the members of the Agbekor Society, Joe Galeota, a professor at Berklee College of Music, said that throughout his fifteen years of playing, "It became more exciting for me with every year. The music is very complex and it has to do with their language. Musically, there is a lot of call and response as if there is dialogue between the leader and the supporting players."

During the performance, some of the audience placed dollar bills on Dolsi-naa's forehead to show a sign of gratification for his music. There was one woman who even threw a mass of bills in the air, showing her immense appreciation.

"It made me feel like just getting up and dancing," sophomore Aaron Phillips said.

The group was evidently passionate about the traditional music. Locke feels that music can even be therapeutic.

"The music is healing energy of the universe," he said. "At times like these, we are glad to put soothing vibrations into the cosmos."

It is essential to find happiness during these difficult moments in the world. The Agbekor Society was able to free the mind of the barrage of chaos it is so used to nowadays, and provided a rich and entertaining evening.