Dr. Willie Anku, acting director of the school of performing arts, University of Ghana has decried the perception some Ghanaians have that music oughtn’t to be an academic field of study.

He told Carlos Sakyi on Metro TV’s ‘music and copyright’ program that derogatory remarks such as ‘dondology’ are thrown at music students on campus.

Some students find it difficult carrying their instruments around because of unnerving remarks from their colleagues.

The school of performing arts is creating avenues for popular musicians to study and do music with the ‘systematic approach’, according to Dr. Anku.

Popular music and what is learnt in academia are said to be quite the same, aside from the fact that with the former the student learns through apprenticeship or mentoring. The academia is known for its discipline and systematic approach, which popular musicians need to enrich their art.

“Years back people thought that popular music was reserved for people who haven’t been to school and when you are in serious music and you play popular music people tend to look down on you.

I think that perception, if it’s not changed here then it’s changed all over the world because I went to school with colleagues who had PhDs in Jazz and popular music,” says Dr. Anku.
Carlos Sakyi

The director of the school of performing arts thinks that it’s important and possible to get popular musicians to enter University and deepen their musicianship. The popular music program has been regularized for some time now at the school of performing arts with the likes of popular guitarist Ebo Taylor contributing.

This may be the beginning of bridging the gab between popular music and the academia in Ghana.