Cornelius Kweku Ganyo

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Cornelius Kweku Ganyo (born August 26, 1937 in Adafienu ; † February 20, 2003 ; also: Nana CK or Uncle CK Ganyo ) was a Ghanaian percussionist and dancer.

Life

Cornelius Kweku Ganyo was born in 1937 as the son of a judge from the Ewe people . He studied the traditional dance and music of ethnic groups in Ghana such as the Ashanti , Dagomba and Ga for almost 20 years since 1957 . From 1966 to 1983 he directed the Arts Council National Dance Company , with which he performed worldwide.

In 1983 Ganyo moved to the USA , where he made recordings with Babatunde Olatunji and Charlie Parker . At the invitation of his former teacher Kobla Ladzekpo , he settled in California and taught at the University of California in Los Angeles and at the California Institute of the Arts in Valencia .

In 1987 Ganyo founded the dance and music group Adzido in Phoenix ( Arizona ) . From 1990 to 2002 he taught West African dance and music at Arizona State University .