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[choralmusicghana]

The First Acquaah-Harrison Memorial Lecture Held Online

The first Kweku Acquaah-Harrison Memorial Lecture came off on the 15th of February on Zoom. The lecture was put together by the family of the late organist, whose legacy they hope to keep alive with annual lectures and initiatives that promote his ideas.

The lecture was attended by members of the musical community, and saw guests Rev. Dr. Newlove Annan and Prof. Sekyi-Baidoo speak on the place of the organ in church music, and on the life of the pedagogue respectively.

The effort to sponsor a series of lectures in his name was inspired by a similar project the late Acquaah-Harrison intended to begin just before his 80th birthday. He passed away less than a week before his first lecture at the Music Department at the University of Education, Winneba, on church music with a strong focus on the organ. 

Some of the issues he had hoped to address surrounded challenges keyboardists faced when transitioning to the organ, which demanded a more idiomatic approach. The Memorial Lectures are meant to fulfill his ambition of inspiring Ghanaian organists and promoting a “right way” of performing on the instrument.

Mr. Acquaah-Harrison was also instrumental in the founding of Music Haven, a popular music school and organ seller in Accra. An unfinished book the late organist was working on remains in the hands of his family, who are working towards an eventual publication. 

The Acquaah-Harrison family has also instituted a Best Conductor award for the annual conference of the association of Ghanaian Methodist Church Choirs (GHAMECC).