Asha Longsworth
Staff Writer
A combination of rhythmic and heavy percussion sounds echoed through the Morgan Auditorium.
The percussion was accompanied by joyous shouting and traditional West African dances Sunday afternoon.
The West African drumming and dance workshop was arranged Victoria Romano, assistant professor of music, and led by Greg Riss, who teaches percussive arts, including West African drum and dance, at Lawrence University in Wisconsin and the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh.
About 20 people attended the event, which invited everyone on stage to participate, learning the traditional choreography as Riss guided them.
“We’re trying to expand the type of music we do,” said Riss, who studied traditional percussion, dance and music in Ghana for several years. “It felt like a nice thing to bring some joyful energy.”
Riss taught choreography known as Gahu, a social circle dance performed by the Yoruba and Ewe people of West Africa.
“Being social with music is very important to me,” Romano said. “Even though I’m not a great dancer, I’m going to be up here dancing with students.”
Jinette Johnson, who teaches music at Mount San Antonio College, also attended Sunday.
“One of the aspects of music is that it builds community,” Johnson said. “Seeing everyone learn at a fast pace, incentivizes participation.”
Toward the end of the lesson, participants were asked to pick a partner, and groups then split into dancing and drumming.
Asha Longsworth can be reached at asha.longsworth@laverne.edu.
Correction
In the original version of this story, the organizer of the event was misidentified as Greg Riss. It was actually organized by Victoria Romano. Additionally, the style of choreography taught by Riss was misidentified as Agbadza. It was actual Gahu. The Campus Times regrets the errors.
Asha Longsworth is a senior communications major with a concentration in public relations, and a staff writer for the Campus Times.
