Going 180 degrees from our previous release, this latest one goes straight into Akan tradition: Osei Korankye is one of the very last remaining seperewa musicians in Ghana. The seperewa is an Akan harp, a forgotten cousin of the Sahel's kora or ngoni. For centuries it was the melodic backbone to Ashanti and more generally Akan music, one of the key ingredients of highlife, but in the 20th century it was practically wiped out of Ghana by guitars coming from the coast.
Fortunately Osei Korankye recalled his grandfather's tales of the seperewa, and practically regenerated the instrument's lifecycle by himself. He has been relentlessly teaching how to play his instrument and has performed across three continents to showcase it. Now for the first time, he has recorded a timeless, beautiful opus, Emmere Nhyina Nse (time changes), with Legon University professor, guitarist and producer Colter Harper:
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