Okyerema Asante
Encyclopedia
Okyerema Asante is a master drummer
from Ghana
, famous for performing all parts of a traditional five-person drum group by himself. He attaches percussion
instruments to various parts of his body and simultaneously plays drums
, a balafon
, and many other instruments. He has as many as 85 instruments in one performance. Coming from a family of drummers, Asante is an expert of traditional Ghanaian talking drums.
Asante is also known for playing with Paul Simon
on his Graceland
album.
Asante's own albums include Ohene Kesee A Ebin and Crabs in a Bucket and Bringing The Flame Home: From Havana to Africa (with Benito Gonzalez).
Master drummer
In African drumming, the title of master drummer is given to a drummer who is well known by other masters for his high skill and knowledge. It is a title passed down from a master to his pupil, after he has learned all there is to know about the African drum....
from Ghana
Ghana
Ghana , officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country located in West Africa. It is bordered by Côte d'Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, Togo to the east, and the Gulf of Guinea to the south...
, famous for performing all parts of a traditional five-person drum group by himself. He attaches percussion
Percussion instrument
A percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound when hit with an implement or when it is shaken, rubbed, scraped, or otherwise acted upon in a way that sets the object into vibration...
instruments to various parts of his body and simultaneously plays drums
Drum kit
A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
, a balafon
Balafon
The balafon is a resonated frame, wooden keyed percussion idiophone of West Africa; part of the idiophone family of tuned percussion instruments that includes the xylophone, marimba, glockenspiel, and the vibraphone...
, and many other instruments. He has as many as 85 instruments in one performance. Coming from a family of drummers, Asante is an expert of traditional Ghanaian talking drums.
Asante is also known for playing with Paul Simon
Paul Simon
Paul Frederic Simon is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist.Simon is best known for his success, beginning in 1965, as part of the duo Simon & Garfunkel, with musical partner Art Garfunkel. Simon wrote most of the pair's songs, including three that reached number one on the US singles...
on his Graceland
Graceland (album)
Graceland was Paul Simon's highest charting album in the U.S. in over a decade, reaching #3 in the national Billboard charts, receiving a certification of 5× Platinum by the RIAA and eventually selling over 14 million copies, making it Simon's most commercially successful album...
album.
Asante's own albums include Ohene Kesee A Ebin and Crabs in a Bucket and Bringing The Flame Home: From Havana to Africa (with Benito Gonzalez).
External links
- artist page from Mapleshade RecordsMapleshade RecordsMapleshade Records is an American jazz based record label.Mapleshade was founded in 1989 by Pierre Sprey, who had been recording since 1986. Prior to his career in jazz recording, Sprey had worked as an aeronautical engineer in The Pentagon, designing A-10 and F-16 fighter jets. The label is based...