6 minute read
Q&A: DR. PAUL KWAMI
Q&A
INSPIRED
BY THE MUSIC
INTERVIEWED BY JENNIFER MCKEE
Dr. Paul Kwami and the Fisk Jubilee Singers keep the Negro Spiritual Alive
Dr. Paul Kwami was born in Ghana, West Africa, the son of a musician. He studied at Ghana’s National Academy of Music before immigrating to the United States in 1983 to attend Fisk University, a private, historically black university founded in 1866 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Kwami was involved in the Fisk Jubilee Singers as both a student and as member of Fisk’s music department; in 1994 he became its first African musical director. In 2007, Kwami took the ensemble to his native Ghana for the nation’s Golden Jubilee, and in 2008, the White House, where the singers received a National Medal of Arts. In March 2021, as the group was celebrating its 150th anniversary, the Fisk Jubilee Singers won its first Grammy award, for Roots Gospel Album.
You grew up with music in the household. How did it shape your perspective on the world?
Studying music comes to me naturally. I think it’s because of the training I had at home, starting at a very early age. That also helps me when I’m teaching students—I know how to present materials to them to get them inspired to study music.
What were some of the most important things you learned from your father that you still carry with you today?
One important thing I remember my father telling me—because he was a teacher—is that I should love my students. I credit my musical education to my father, even though he did not sit me down to teach me all the basics. There were just times when I would follow him to his rehearsals and watch him teach, watch him conduct. At home I would just sit and listen to him play the piano. I’d pick up a lot of things from him.
What first drew you to the Fisk Jubilee Singers? How did it enrich your college experience?
I did not know anything about the Fisk Jubilee Singers until I came to Fisk as a student. Once I became a member of the ensemble, it gave me the opportunity to learn more about the history and the legacy, which helped me to realize the sacrifices that those young nine students made —that is, the first ensemble in 1871. I realized I was part of a legacy that always represented Fisk University. Because wherever we went, we were not representing ourselves, we were not part of any ordinary singing group, we were part of a rich legacy that came out of Fisk University.
How has the music the ensemble performs changed throughout the years? Do you still sing any of the songs the very first group of singers did?
The difference is in the arrangements. I recently found a book published by one of the original singers, Thomas Rutling, so I’m using some of the songs. I wish I could hear what the songs sounded like as sung by the first group. This book, I believe, gives me the closest examples of how the music sounded.
When people hear the ensemble’s music, what do you want them to take away from it?
I believe that people, individually, have various types of needs, and our desire is always that when we sing, those needs be met. There may be someone who comes into a concert feeling very unhappy about some matter. But as a result of listening to our music, that person would leave very happy. We’ve had people talk
Q&A
Q&A
Fisk Jub Singers,1876
to us about these types of things. We prepare our rehearsals with a goal of singing and simply delivering specific messages to people as they would need them, or simply bring blessings to people when we sing. We prepare so well that when we sing, our emotions become part of the music that comes out of us. Which means that we have to understand the messages of the songs, we have to develop that emotional relationship with the music.
What does this music stir in you?
When I prepare to teach these songs, when I listen to my students sing these songs, I become inspired. When I’m preparing to teach or even in the course of teaching, so much inspiration comes to me. Sometimes I have to stop teaching the songs and talk about life. It’s amazing. The Negro spirituals, I believe, still have messages for us.
Please talk about “Sacred Journey” and taking the ensemble to your native Ghana. Why you went, what you achieved, and its impact.
When I became a Fisk Jubliee Singer, I realized immediately that music was one of the connecting factors between Africans and African Americans, because people were captured as slaves from countries like Ghana. In Ghana, we have a saying that in the life of the African, there is music from birth to death. Music is part of our lives. So those slaves that were brought here ended up creating the Negro spirituals. When I became musical director, I had a very strong desire to take the Fisk Jubilee Singers back to Ghana, which also meant that we would be taking the Negro spiritual, in a polished form, back to its roots.
We received an inquiry from the Department of State asking if we’d be able to join Ghanaians as they celebrated their 50th Year Independence Anniversary, which was also referred to as the Year of Jubilee. So we agreed to go. The preparation was not easy. We still had to raise some of the funds. None of my students had ever been to Ghana, and so even though they had the desire, people were very cautious. They were not sure about the food, they were not sure about how people would treat them. I realized that people were putting fear into us, and I decided that it was the right time for us to go, and I would see to it that we got to Ghana. That is actually one reason why I named it “Sacred Journey”— taking the Negro spirituals back to Ghana, but also overcoming all of these challenges.
I believe we had a great impact on Ghanaians. We celebrated July 4, 2007 in Ghana, and I remember another singing group joined us in the ambassador’s residence—we sang, they sang, we had plenty of food. I watched my students, they enjoyed it very much. One of our main concerts in the capital city of Accra, was tremendous. I taught some Ghanaian songs, and as my students were singing, anytime we started singing Ghanaian songs, people in the audience would get up and sing along with us. We were there for about 10 days. At the end of the trip, some of my students told me they did not want to return to the U.S.
And now the ensemble has a Grammy. Do you think it’s particularly rewarding this banner anniversary year?
We are always looking for ways to get people to realize the significance of the Fisk Jubilee Singers and their music. So for us to win a Grammy during this year becomes very significant. I’m very happy for it. Extremely happy.
