KETE (Unity Drum, in Cape Coast, Ghana) Kete dance has always been a court dance for chiefs and members of the Royal Household and the favorite of the Asantehene. Traditionally, Kete was played for the King Adinkra of the Gyamanse during the Asant-Gyaman war. The story is about the Asantes captured Kete drummers and took them to Kumasi. Another traditional source claims that kete drums were originally for the Asantehene who took them while they were going to fight against the Gyamans. One of the kete rhythmic patterns is called Adinkra. 'Yede brebre bekum Adinkra,Oboa keka no kwa' translates as, slowly and very slowly we will kill Adinkra, all his threats are lies. Also, we can see the drums are usually coved in red and black check pattern. The red represent shed blood during the Ashante-Gyaman war while the black signifies the men lost during the war. The dance is noted for the courtliness for the war.
Unity Drum Theater was formed late in 2007 when it was first known as the Peace Academy Drumming and Dancing Group. The founder, Emmanuel C. Richardson started this group in his second year of senior secondary school. However after only four months the group was on the verge of collapse due to financial constraints for the purchase of drums and other equipment as it has already been mentioned. Despite these initial set-backs Emmanuel C. Richardson kept his vision alive, continuing to walk the path he felt was laid before him. As Unity Drum Theater grew, it came not only to welcome adults and young people, supporting them in being re-energized through immersion in their traditional cultural practices, but needy young children were also welcomed not only for drumming/dancing but also being taught traditional arts and crafts.(batik, tie and dye, paintings, beads). Unity Drum Theater not only energizes and reawakens a CAN DO attitude in young people, but gives needy children tools fo...
djembe precaution (Unity Drum, in Cape Coast, Ghana) A djembe is a skin-covered hand drum shaped like a large goblet and meant to be played with bare hands. According to the Bamana people in Mali, the name of the djembe comes directly from the saying "Anke dje, anke be" which literally translates to "everyone gather together" and defines the drum's purpose. In the Bambara language, "Dje" is the verb for "gather" and "be" translates as "everyone".
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