The drums, guitar and brass instruments began with a jump - like rolling thunder – sending a rumbling rhythm into the night air. It was a beckoning call for the men in the audience, who immediately jumped up out of their seats, strutted over to the centre floor and began to shake from side to side. A rainbow of handkerchiefs swirled amongst them.It was celebration of highlife music – with performances at the University of Ghana by old-timers such as Ebo Taylor, C K Mann, and The Ramblers – "to rejuvenate the role of highlife music in the development of Ghana as a nation." Indeed highlife, and its modern, rap-influenced son called hiplife, is the kind of music associated with Ghanaian culture. But its swinging sounds aren't the only beats resonating from this country. The fact that music in Ghana is as varied as its political history is no coincidence – as music serves as a foil for what is happening in our lives. In the past 100 years alone, it has reflected the most significant changes in Ghana, starting from a shift from traditional music to highlife, as foreigners in the country brought in big, brass sounds. Later, during times of political and economic instability, the country saw live music retreat into the church. And today, the struggle continues to see music, and culture in general, incorporated into government policy. But as the senior highlifers suggested this past weekend at Legon, not only does music have an important place in this nation"s history, it can also contribute to its future development. By the time thousands of soldiers from the West Indies descended upon the Central Region in the late nineteenth century, with their brass bands, traditional music was alive and well. "Even today, the bulk of the music is traditional music," said John Collins, a highlife musician and music professor at Legon. The Ewes in the southeast are still known for their sophisticated drumming, the North shows its Sahelian cultural ties with its use of stringed instruments and xylophone. The forested areas of Ghana boast big drums and gourd instruments. At the turn of the century, military stationed in Cape Coast and Elmina by the British introduced brass instruments to local musicians, and the first examples of its influence emerged with Adaha music. Prof Collins says it was a "sort of miracle," that highlife, now Ghana’s most recognised sound having spread throughout West Africa, emerged from the military presence in the country. The music became increasingly popular within the elite Ghanaian society, thus named "high life," and was mimicked across the country. Musical preferences at that time, Prof Collins argues, were however a question of taste. Sounds became popular simply for their aesthetics, or pleasing sounds. But by the 1950s and 60s, music with ideological significance was embraced. "More were saying 'let’s go back to our African roots’," said Mr Collins. As the popularity of highlife soared during the time of independence, more outside influence also crept in. Military from the UK and the US brought jazz and swing to the country. As Kwame Nkrumah encouraged music as a cultural identifier, he brought the ever-popular, and present-day highlife hero, E T Mensah and his band The Tempos on state visits to other countries, bringing back a melee of sounds. But it was the military coup in 1979 that destroyed the music industry, said Mr Collins. Jerry Rawlings’ curfew and import tax on musical instruments essentially drove the once flourishing live music culture out of the streets. Some bands left the country entirely, creating waves of highlife culture in America and Europe. From Ghanaians in Germany, electronic-infused Burgher Highlife was born. And to this day, only a handful of venues across the country play live music regularly. "They’ve all been turned into churches," said Prof Collins, "they filled the void." "I think a lot of foreigners come here thinking [high life] is the dominant music in Ghana. It’s not," he said calling gospel, or church music, the leading tune in the country. "I recognise that churches have saved live music in this country," he added. Today, music in Ghana is recovering from the downfall. There has been a return in popularity for music from the north, with the growing interest in "world music." Also, some musicians have rejected the miming that is usual at hiplife shows and are realising the value in playing and singing live, both to Ghanaians and tourists. For some, this is the only way to also reach the international market. Though the government is slowly seeing the merits of promoting homegrown musicians, especially for tourism, Prof Collins says the industry today is still a "disaster," naming the Copyright Bill, passed in 2005, as a major barrier to encouraging music in Ghana. One clause in the bill requires a permit and fee for the use of Ghanaian folklore. "Musicians are not aware of this clause," says Mr Collins. "One day they are going to go to prison for using their grandfather’s song." However, the government has recognised music as part of the poverty reduction strategy, with support from the World Bank. Still, says Mr Collins, "no musician in Ghana has ever become a wealthy man… Nobody who has stayed [in Ghana] has made it, so it is very difficult to get parents to allow their children into music… "What we need is a homegrown superstar." Source: The Statesman