Akin Euba and Pitt Alumni at UCLA’s Africa Meets North America Conference
Andrew W. Mellon Professor of Music Akin Euba and Music Department alumni, including George Dor (PhD 2001), Anicet Mundundu (2005), Sister Marie Agatha Ozah (PhD 2008), and Jason Squinobal (PhD 2008), will participate in UCLA’s Africa Meets North America Conference (AMNA) taking place October 22-25. Professor Euba will make remarks at several sessions and his opera Chaka will be discussed during a scholarly session. Sister Marie Agatha Ozah will chair a scholarly session on Music Performance and Technology in University and Studio Environments and give a paper titled “Understanding the Pre-Compositional Resources in Joshua Uzoigwe’s Egwu Amala.’” George Dor will give a paper titled “West African Drumming and Dance in U.S. Universities: The Resurrection of a Suppressed Genre” and lead a workshop on “Observations on Ghana50 at Ole Miss in Oxford Mississippi.” Anicet Mundundu will chair a scholarly session titled “Melding Traditions: West Africa, USA, China, and Cuba” and give a paper titled “Diversity and Unity in African Music Performance Practice in the U.S.” Jason Squinobal will perform original compositions, including a song he composed for Dr. Euba, with his jazz group Horizon Band. Squinobal’s compositions feature intertwined ostinatos and polyrhythm, and many utilize West African traditional melodies. He will be joined for this performanc. by Ghanaian master drummer J. S. Kofi Gbolonyo (PhD 2009).