Addy was born into the Ga ethnic group in Accra, the capital city of Ghana. He was one of the 55 children of Jacob Kpani Addy, a wonche or medicine man who integrated rhythmic music into healing and other rituals. Obo Addy's earliest musical influence was the traditional music of the Ga people, but he was also influenced as an adolescent by popular music from Europe and the United States, and performed in local bands that played Westernized music and the dancemusic of Ghana known as highlife.[2] The Kronos Quartet commissioned a string quartet from Addy for their 1992 album Pieces of Africa.
Addy was employed by the Arts Council of Ghana in 1969, and played his native Ga traditional music in the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, Germany. He moved to London, England, and began touring in Europe. In 1978, he moved to Portland, Oregon in the United States, where he taught at Lewis & Clark College. He also led weekly drumming workshops at Portland's Lincoln High School.[3]
In 1989, he founded the Homowo African Arts and Cultures organization, a non-profit which sponsors the annual Homowo Festival of African Arts in Oregon.[4] The organization was later renamed as the Obo Addy Legacy Project.[2]
After a long battle with liver cancer, Addy died on September 13, 2012.[5][6]
"Addy vs. Addy". Zach Dundas. Willamette Week Online. February 26, 2003.
from Lewis & Clark College site
Obo Addy page
Oregon Art Beat: Drummer Obo Addy
December 15, 2023
addy, january, 1936, september, 2012, ghanaian, drummer, dancer, first, native, african, musicians, bring, fusion, traditional, folk, music, western, music, known, worldbeat, europe, then, pacific, northwest, united, states, late, 1970s, taught, music, lewis, . Obo Addy January 15 1936 September 13 2012 was a Ghanaian drummer and dancer who was one of the first native African musicians to bring the fusion of traditional folk music and Western pop music known as worldbeat to Europe and then to the Pacific Northwest of the United States in the late 1970s He taught music at Lewis amp Clark College in Portland Oregon 1 Obo AddyAddy in 2009Background informationBornJanuary 15 1936Accra GhanaDiedSeptember 13 2012 2012 09 13 aged 76 Portland Oregon U S GenresWorldbeatOccupation s Musician dancer professorInstrument s DrumYears active1969 2012Websiteoboaddylegacyproject org Contents 1 Biography 2 Awards and honors 3 Recent albums 4 References 5 External linksBiography editAddy was born into the Ga ethnic group in Accra the capital city of Ghana He was one of the 55 children of Jacob Kpani Addy a wonche or medicine man who integrated rhythmic music into healing and other rituals Obo Addy s earliest musical influence was the traditional music of the Ga people but he was also influenced as an adolescent by popular music from Europe and the United States and performed in local bands that played Westernized music and the dance music of Ghana known as highlife 2 The Kronos Quartet commissioned a string quartet from Addy for their 1992 album Pieces of Africa Addy was employed by the Arts Council of Ghana in 1969 and played his native Ga traditional music in the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich Germany He moved to London England and began touring in Europe In 1978 he moved to Portland Oregon in the United States where he taught at Lewis amp Clark College He also led weekly drumming workshops at Portland s Lincoln High School 3 In 1989 he founded the Homowo African Arts and Cultures organization a non profit which sponsors the annual Homowo Festival of African Arts in Oregon 4 The organization was later renamed as the Obo Addy Legacy Project 2 After a long battle with liver cancer Addy died on September 13 2012 5 6 Awards and honors editHe was awarded a Master s Fellowship from the Oregon Arts Commission and Regional Arts amp Culture Council and the Oregon Governors Award for the Arts 2 In 1996 he became the first native African 7 to win a National Heritage Fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts which is the highest honor in the folk and traditional arts in the United States 8 6 Recent albums editAfieyeOkropong Alula Records Wonche Bi Alula Records Let Me Play My Drums Burnside Records The Rhythm Of Which A Chief Walks Gracefully Earthbeat Records Okropong Santrofi Records References edit Obo Addy Ghanian American Drummer www arts gov National Endowment for the Arts n d Retrieved December 17 2020 a b c Baer April September 13 2012 Obo Addy Loses Battle With Liver Cancer Oregon Public Broadcasting Archived from the original on September 16 2012 Retrieved January 26 2021 Obo Addy 1936 2012 www oregonencyclopedia org Retrieved 2023 07 22 Wyden Ron 2000 Portland s Homowo Festival lcweb2 loc gov Retrieved 2023 07 22 Singer Matthew September 13 2012 Obo Addy Has Passed Away Willamette Week Retrieved January 1 2013 a b In memoriam Obo Addy Drummerszone Retrieved July 22 2023 O Monica 2015 05 08 Celebrating Traditional Music With Obo Addy GhanaShowBiz com Retrieved 2020 05 24 NEA National Heritage Fellowships 1996 www arts gov National Endowment for the Arts Archived from the original on May 19 2020 Retrieved December 17 2020 External links editObo Addy at IMDb Obo Addy The Oregon Encyclopedia Obo Addy Master Drummer home page Addy vs Addy Zach Dundas Willamette Week Online February 26 2003 Obo Addy page from Lewis amp Clark College site Obo Addy page Article about Addy family Oregon Art Beat Drummer Obo Addy Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Obo Addy amp oldid 1166761071, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
