Abass Dodoo
| Abass Dodoo | |
|---|---|
| Born | 11 November 1970 |
| Origin | Nsawam, southern Ghana |
| Genres | African Jazz, Highlife, Afrobeats |
| Occupation(s) | Professional Musician, CEO of One-Drum Foundation (1185202) a UK registered charity |
| Instruments | African Drums |
| Associated acts | Kofi Ghanaba (Guy Warren), Mustapha Tettey Addy, Ginger Baker (Jazz Confusions) |
| Website | www.one-drum.org |
Abass Dodoo (born 18 November 1970) is a Ghanaian master drummer and a professional percussionist.
Early life
He was born in Nsawam, southern Ghana into a family of African drummers, dancers, and healers.
Before his sixth birthday, he was inspired to play the drum by his grandmother “Abiba Okailey Ablah” who taught him African drumming by singing traditional rhythms. Abass' family of Royal Master Ghanaian Drummers was not only steeped in the traditions of Ghanaian music and dance but also in the folklore of traditional West African medicines[1] inherited from their grandfather, a fetish priest.
In his family, Abass was mentored by, and under the instruction of his maternal uncle Mustapha Tettey Addy, a master drummer, anthropologist, and researcher in the field of traditional music and dance in Ghana.
Abass is also nephew to Yacub Addy and Obo Addy, brothers to Mustapha Tettey Addy, as well as nephew to J.C. Commodore.
Career
In 1982 Mustapha established the Royal Obonu Drummers, and in 1988 he founded the Academy of Music and Arts (AAMA) in the beach village of Kokrobite near Accra, where Abass Dodoo developed his unique skill and technique from a very young age. The AAMA hotel and drum center became a major focus in Ghana for international visitors, musicians, and students. AAMA was the first of what has become a large number of private drum and dance centers that are helping to boost Ghanaian Tourism.[2] leading Abass Dodoo to establish his own African drumming and dance academy called AKROWA in 1989 based on the AAMA principles, which is still running today.
Between 1990 and 1998, Abass, along with his fellow drummers, were featured on six albums on the German Weltwunder label, including the important Royal Drums of Ghana. During 1992-93 Mustapha and his Obonu Drummers, including Abass Dodoo played at various festivals around the globe, such as Panafest, Salona Festival in Croatia, Africa Festival in Germany and many others including WOMAD (World Music and Dance) founded by Peter Gabriel[3].
Between 1998 and 2004, Abass was part of the Adzido Dance Ensemble[4] based in London as the lead African drummer, choreographer, music arranger, and teacher working alongside George Dzikunu[5], Geraldine Connor, Tunde Jegede, Urban Bush Women, Zenzi Mbuli and the Pan-African Orchestra.
Between 2004 - 2006 Abass collaborated on a number of productions including Disney Kids Awards (2001), Lion King (2005), SEWA Education, and BBC's Strictly African Dance
In 2007 Abass founded One-Drum: Bringing Africa to You to educate and promote his distinct style of African drumming that focuses on complex polyrhythmic beats that uses two or more rhythms simultaneously, where the underlying pulse is a concurrent rhythm. This particular style of African drumming is embedded in the Music GCSE curriculum[6] in the world music subject area.
Abass has been involved in many innovative performances, recordings, TV appearances, and educational projects, and in 2012 he performed for a season in the Royal Shakespeare Company production of Julius Caesar.[7]
In 2014 Abass recorded an album titled WHY, and in 2015 he was invited to play on a Van Morrison album titled DUETS.
Between 2007 - 2019 Abass worked with the Cream drummer Ginger Baker[8] touring Jazz venues and festivals around the globe with the Ginger Baker Jazz Confusion[9], a quartet[10] comprising bassist Alec Dankworth[11] and saxophonist Pee Wee Ellis[12]. Together Baker and Dodoo collaborate to perform and produce clinics and workshops, as well as collaborating with Kofi Ghanaba, aka Guy Warren. Currently, Abass Dodoo is performing under his own band, One-Drum Rhythms[13]. In 2019 Abass Dodoo established the UK registered charity, One-Drum Foundation (1185202) with its patron, Ginger Baker, shortly before Ginger Baker passed away on the 6th October 2019.
Abass still runs educational workshops inviting people of all ages and abilities to participate in and contribute to complex and dynamic Ghanaian music and dance, through residencies, workshops[14], lectures, World Music[15] festivals[16] and demonstrations and is frequently commissioned for special performances for presidential, The Royal Commonwealth[17] and high-profile ceremonies including the Golden Jubilee for the Queen of England, Nelson Mandela, Bishop Tutu, Tony Blair, Jerry John Rawlings, Maya Angelou, John Ajekum Kufour, Ghanaian President (2001- 2009), and Richard Branson.
Abass Dodoo currently lives in the UK.
References
- ↑ Zartman, Jacob Blaustein Professor of International Organization and Conflict Resolution and Director of African Studies I. William (2000). Traditional Cures for Modern Conflicts: African Conflict "medicine". Lynne Rienner Publishers. ISBN 9781555878764. Search this book on
- ↑ Duckworth, Katie (October 13, 2002). "Quiet please. Drum lesson in progress". The Independent. Retrieved September 19, 2019. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ Moore, Allan F. (2001). Gabriel, Peter. Oxford Music Online. Oxford University Press. Search this book on
- ↑ Brown, Ismene (5 April 2005). "A long goodbye, long overdue". The Telegraph. Retrieved 19 September 2019.
- ↑ Craine and Mackrell. "George Kwame Dzikunu". The Oxford Dictionary of Dance (2). Retrieved September 30, 2019 – via Oxford Reference. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ "BBC Bitesize Music GCSE REvision". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 2019-09-30. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ "Gregory Doran 2012 production | Julius Caesar | Royal Shakespeare Company". www.rsc.org.uk.
- ↑ Air Force (Musical group) (2004) [1970], Ginger Baker's Air Force., Lemon Recordings, OCLC 566879778, retrieved 2020-01-16
- ↑ Jones, Ros Wynne (2013-05-24). "Ginger Baker: At home with the most terrifying man in music". mirror. Retrieved 2020-01-16.
- ↑ "Abass Dodoo". zildjian.com. Retrieved 2020-01-16.
- ↑ Dankworth, Alec, 1960- (2007), Spanish accents, Basho Records, OCLC 931138974, retrieved 2020-01-16CS1 maint: Multiple names: authors list (link)
- ↑ Bennett, Dina M. (2012-07-10), "Ellis, Pee Wee", Oxford Music Online, Oxford University Press, retrieved 2020-01-16
- ↑ "LIVE JAZZ JAM FEAT. ABASS DODOO (GINGER BAKER'S PERCUSSIONIST)". Grow, Hackney. Retrieved 2020-01-16.
- ↑ "Abass Dodoo". www.villagegreenfestival.com. Retrieved 2020-01-16.
- ↑ "Abass Dodoo". World Music Workshop Festival. Retrieved 2020-01-16.
- ↑ "Abass Dodoo". Arts La'Olam. Archived from the original on 2021-06-10. Retrieved 2020-01-16.
- ↑ Events (October 17, 2018). "150th Commonwealth Anniversary Reception". The Royal Commonwealth Society. Retrieved September 30, 2019. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help)
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