Helen Karikari & William Chapman Nyaho: 'Piano & Voice Recital for Haiti' at Frye Art Museum, Seattle Dec. 5

[Helen Karikari and William Chapman Nyaho]

Dr. William Chapman Nyaho is a professor, music editor and concert artist of Ghanaian heritage who is featured at AfriClassical.com. He sends AfriClassical word of a PIANO & VOICE RECITAL FOR HAITI. Admission consists of donations to the global medical relief group Doctors Without Borders:

PIANO & VOICE RECITAL FOR HAITI

Helen Karikari (Soprano) & William Chapman Nyaho (piano)

works by Verdi, Rodrigo, Ravel song cycles and

Benjamin Britten Folk Songs

VENUE: FRYE ART MUSEUM

704 Terry Avenue

Seattle, WA 98104 USA

DATE: Sunday December 5th, 2010

TIME: 2 pm

ADMISSION: Donations to Doctors Without Borders.

“Helen Karikari began her opera training under the direction of Floral Opera, a Royal Opera House educational programme in London. Initially trained as a mezzo-soprano, full roles as a mezzo include Orlosfsky (Die Fledermaus), Amahl (Amahl and The Night Visitors), Sorceress (Dido and Aeneas). Helen has also performed mezzo roles in extensive scenes from many operas including Carmen (Carmen), Despina (Cosi Fan Tutte), Servillia (La Clemenza di Tito), Dorabella (Cosi Fan Tutte), Cherubino (The Marriage of Figaro), 2nd spirit (Die Zauberflöte) and Hermia (A Midsummer Nights Dream). Helen has performed with Hampstead Garden Opera, City Opera, Opera Workout, Operafesta and BBCM (Bela Bartok Centre of Musicianship). Her experience includes recitals in the UK, Japan and Chile. Helen Karikari studies with Jacqueline Bremer and coaches with Alex Ingram.

“William Chapman Nyaho who resides in the Seattle area received degrees from St. Peter's College, Oxford University (UK), the Eastman School of Music and the University of Texas at Austin. He also studied at the Conservatoire de Musique de Genève, Switzerland. He has held positions as North Carolina Visiting Artist, and Associate Professor at the University of Louisiana atLafayette. He is a regular guest clinician, giving presentations, lecture-recitals and workshops advocating music by composers of the African Diaspora. Chapman Nyaho's performing experience includes recitals in Europe, Africa, Asia, the Caribbean and North America. His recitals have typically included standard repertoire and piano music by composers of the African Diaspora. Chapman Nyaho has been featured on radio and television broadcasts in Ghana, Switzerland, and NPR's Performance Today. His recordings include SENKU: Piano Music by Composers of African Descent, a ground-breaking compilation of music of the African Diaspora, and Aaron Copland: Music For Two Pianos.

Pianist William Chapman Nyaho in 'A Cascades Classical Evening' Nov. 19 in Bend, Oregon

[William Chapman Nyaho (b. 1958)]

The classical pianist Dr. William Chapman Nyaho will perform in "A Cascades Classical Evening" at 6:00 PM Friday, Nov. 19, 2010 in Bend, Oregon:

CascadesClassical.org

“Cascades Classical Music Foundation exists to encourage and support the mastery of classical music among students 18 years of age and younger who reside in the Pacific Northwest. These goals are pursued primarily through our yearly competition, the Cascades Classical, and through specialized instruction by recognized masters.”

“Dear Young Musicians, I am proud to be part of CCMF. Participating in competitive events with first-class adjudicators helps prepare you for a career in music. Competitions foreshadow the real world of the professional musician and are an indispensable part of one's musical training. Public performance also provides an opportunity to share the fruits of your labor with an appreciative and supportive audience. I extend my congratulations on your accomplishments and best wishes for your continued musical success. - Dr. William Chapman Nyaho

BendBulletin.com

Classical pianist to perform Friday

Published: November 16. 2010 4:00AM PST

Concert pianist Dr. William Chapman Nyaho will perform in A Cascades Classical Evening, taking place at 6 p.m. Friday at the Broken Top Clubhouse in Bend. Nyaho will perform pieces by Chopin, Bach, Rachmaninoff, Beethoven and Gershwin, among others. Opening for Nyaho are young musicians Scott Michaelsen (piano) and John Fawcett (violin). Tickets for dinner and concert are $75 and are available at http://www.cascadesclassical.org. Contact: 541-390-5429 or info@cascadesclassical.org. [William Chapman Nyaho (b. 1958) is profiled at AfriClassical.com and has a personal website, http://www.Nyaho.com]

Dr. Wendy Hymes: 'Pianist William Chapman Nyaho is a musician’s musician.'

[ASA: Piano Music by Composers of African Descent; William Chapman Nyaho, piano; MSR Classics MS1242 (2008)]

MyMusic2u.info/ quotes William Chapman Nyaho on ASA: Piano Music by Composers of African Descent:

“The vast repertoire of piano music of Africa and its Diaspora, which has until recently been generally unavailable, appears in myriad forms and styles, from simple to virtuosic. This compact disc brings to light compositions that may have remained in manuscript form, been out of print, or not widely circulated. I have entitled it Asa, which in Fanti (my mother's language) is the noun for dance as most of the music on the disc finds its roots in dance music.”

Dr. Wendy Hymes writes this review:

June 13, 2010

Rating: 5 Stars

“Pianist William Chapman Nyaho is a musician’s musician. Being a musician myself, when I find myself listening to a recording many times and enjoying it each time, I take note that this artist has something special. Nyaho’s artistry on his instrument, the piano is superb. Here he shines in a broad range of musical styles. What’s so wonderful is that he succeeds in painting an audio picture for us, the listener, in each and every track. This being a dance-themed album, I love to hear the joyous dancing he is doing on the keyboard! Aside from his pianistic abilities, is the striking uniqueness of each of these pieces, most of them never recorded and quite a number of them world premieres. These gems will open a new world for any avid pianist searching for quality repertoire 'off the beaten path.'”

[William Chapman Nyaho (b. 1958) is profiled at AfriClassical.com and has a personal website, http://www.Nyaho.com]

Comment by email:
Hi Bill, Thanks! Cheers, Wendy Hymes, DMA, Louisiana State University

The Gleaner: 'Marvellous music at classical concert'; Nyaho & Woodham at U.S. Embassy, Jamaica

[Dr. William Chapman Nyaho, pianist; Steven Woodham, violinist]

The Gleaner

Published: Monday | May 3, 2010

Michael Reckord, Gleaner Writer

“Four world-class musicians performed at the United States Embassy in St Andrew at that mission's 2010 Classical Concert last Thursday evening. The quality of the music delivered by some of the greatest composers was simply superb. Most of the audience would have given full marks to both the musicians and the organizers of the concert, who included interim chargé d'affaires Isiah Parnell and Acting Public Affairs Officer Rebecca Park.”

“The evening, however, officially began with Parnell welcoming guests and urging them to 'forget work and the headlines and just enjoy the music.' Park then introduced the special guest performer, Ghanaian-American pianist Dr William Chapman Nyaho, who was on his second visit to Jamaica. He first came in 2006, also at the request of the US Embassy to perform here. At that recital, he met and was so impressed by Jamaican violinist Steven Woodham that the latter was asked to partner Dr Chapman Nyaho at Thursday's concert.”

“Dr Nyaho studied music in Britain, Switzerland and the US, where he received his Doctor of Musical Arts degree at the University of Texas. The recipient of various international prizes for music, he has taught at several American institutions and performed in North America, Europe, Africa, Asia and the Caribbean. He is the editor of a five-volume anthology, Piano Music of Africa and the African Diaspora, a first-of-its-kind work, published by Oxford University Press. He lives in Seattle, Washington.

“Beethoven's 25-minute-long Sonata in C minor, Op 30, No. 2, for piano and violin was the first item offered by Chapman Nyaho and Woodham. It begins with a lively, complex movement and had the performers not been both good and focused, the instruments could easily have lost musical contact with each other. In fact, so difficult was the sonata as a whole, that after the concert, Chapman Nyaho's page turner, no less a person than senior lecturer at the School of Music Ann McNamee, told The Gleaner that it was fortunate that the student of the school originally slated to turn pages, had not made it. 'A student would not have been able to manage it,' she said.” [William Chapman Nyaho (b. 1958) is profiled at AfriClassical.com and has a personal website, http://www.Nyaho.com]

William Chapman Nyaho: 'Music Of The African Diaspora: Rhythm, Movement, Color,' Elon U. Feb. 22-23

William Chapman Nyaho (b. 1958) is an African American Pianist and Professor of Ghanaian heritage, and is profiled at AfriClassical.com. His website is http://www.Nyaho.com. Dr. Nyaho sends us news of a Symposium “Music And Art As Voice Of Africa And The African Diaspora: Rhythm, Movement And Color.” It is supported by an Elon College Fund For Excellence In the Arts And Sciences Grant. Elon University is a private liberal arts university in Elon, North Carolina.

MONDAY, February 22
7:30 – Whitley Auditorium
William Chapman Nyaho, Piano Recital
Music Of The African Diaspora: Rhythm, Movement, Color

TUESDAY, February 23
4:15 – Yeager Recital Hall
Creative Workshop Featuring Nyaho
And Elon Dance And Music Students
5:30 – Isabella Cannon Room
African Art Exhibition Opening Reception

Inquiry on Sheet Music for Piano Works of African Composers

[ASA: Piano Music by Composers of African Descent; William Chapman Nyaho, piano;
MSR Classics MS1242 (2008)]

A visitor to AfriClassical.com thanked us for the attractive website and asked how to obtain piano repertoire of the Nigerian composer Akin Euba and other African composers in sheet music form. This is a question which is likely to be of interest to others as well, so our reply is reprinted here:

Many thanks for your compliment about AfriClassical.com and your inquiry about piano repertoire by African composers. I am happy to recommend a unique resource compiled and edited by Dr. William Chapman Nyaho, a pianist born in the U.S. but raised in Ghana, the home county of his parents. He is profiled at AfriClassical.com and at http://www.Nyaho.com:

Piano Music of Africa and the African Diaspora

http://www.oup.com/us/corporate/publishingprograms/music/sheet_music/new_and_featured/pianoafrica/

For the contents of each volume, you may consult this page:

http://www.us.oup.com/us/catalog/general/subject/Music/SheetMusic/KeyboardPiano/?view=usa&sf=toc&ci=9780193870154

As you will see, piano works of Akin Euba are found in Volumes 2 and 3, along with works by many other composers of Africa and the African Diaspora. Oxford University Press offers the series in 5 separate volumes or a single volume.

The Akin Euba page at AfriClassical.com features a Works List by Prof. Dominique-René de Lerma of Lawrence University Conservatory in Wisconsin. Dr. Fred Onovwerosuoke is an American composer who was born in Nigeria. He heads African Musical Arts, Inc., http://AfricArts.org, an organization whose activities include publishing both sheet music and recordings.

His works for piano include Twenty-Four Studies in African Rhythms. Six of he Studies open the program of Dr. Nyaho's latest CD, ASA: Piano Music by Composers of African Descent; MSR Classics MS 1242 (2008). Bob Briggs of MusicWeb International has written:

"This is strong music with a very individual voice. Each piece imitates a dance or musical pattern and they make a very attractive suite, with lots of variety and plenty of fun. These six come from a set of 24 and I yearn to hear the others. This taster is really too good to miss..."

William Chapman Nyaho's earlier recording is Senku: Piano Music by Composers of African Descent; MSR Classics MS 1091. I hope this information will assist you in finding the sheet music you are seeking.

Dr. William Chapman Nyaho, U.S. Pianist of Ghanaian Heritage, Born Dec. 28, 1958

[ASA: Piano Music by Composers of African Descent; William Chapman Nyaho, piano; MSR Classics MS1242 (2008)]

Dr. William Chapman Nyaho was born in Washington, D.C. But while still an infant he was taken by his parents to their native Ghana, where they raised him. Following his music education, he settled in the country of his birth. His biographical profile can be found at AfriClassical.com and at http://www.nyaho.com/.

CultureMob.com presents some of Dr. Nyaho's background, in anticipation of his return to Vashon Island, Washington State, for a performance at the Blue Heron Arts Center at 7:30 PM, Jan. 9, 2010:

“According to cd liner notes by friend/mentor, Maya Angelou, Chapman Nyaho, a famed concert pianist, chose compositions, which allowed him to display his virtuosity.”

“Youngest of six, Nyaho's musical aspirations were encouraged by his family in a home always filled with music. He earned his BA from Oxford University's Honour School of Music. He continued his piano studies at the Conservatoire de Musique de Geneve, Switzerland, the Eastman School of Music where he graduated with his Master of Music degree, and at the University of Texas at Austin, where he received his Doctor of Musical Arts degree.”

“Following four years as a North Carolina Visiting Artist, Nyaho taught at University of Louisiana at Lafayette and was recipient of the Distinguished Professor Award and held the Heymann Endowed Professorship. Nyaho recently served as Visiting Professor of Music at Maine's Colby College and Visiting Artist at Oregon's Willamette University. During summers he has taught for Interlochen Summer Arts Camp and Vermont's Adamant Music School. Based in Renton, Nyaho teaches privately when home from touring and teaching posts. Nyaho's book, [a 5-volume set of sheet music] Piano Music of Africa and the African Diaspora, and cds (both Piano Music by Composers of African descent) will be available at the concert.
Where: Blue Heron Art Center
Source: http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/93781

Dr. Nyaho's latest CD, ASA: Piano Music by Composers of African Descent; MSR Classics MS1242 (2008), has recently received a resoundingly favorable review from a respected journal of music criticism:

MusicWeb-International.com:
“This is a very attractive, and most rewarding, recital of music, much, if not all, of which will be totally unfamiliar to the majority of those reading this. There’s a vast variety of styles and sounds here, many taking the European model as a starting point but each work quickly takes its own path in a most fascinating way.”

The Voice of African Music: 'Dr. Nyaho embodies the spirit of a true multicultural educator'

[William Chapman Nyaho - Asa: Piano Music by Composers of African Descent, MSR Classics MS 1242 (2008)]

The Voice of African MusicVolume 16, No. 2 May 2009
Piano Music by Composers of African Descent
New CD by William Chapman Nyaho Reviewed in May/June 2009 American Record Guide
“If the scores are in print, maybe some of them will start turning up on recital programs alongside the Three Bs.” “Anyone who has had it with pianists playing and recording the same repertory over and over should be delighted by the treasure trove of (mostly) premieres. The 11 composers whose works are offered here are not known quantities in our country, but they should be. For example, there is Fred Onovwerosuoke (b. 1960), who was born in Ghana to Nigerian parents. Nyaho begins with six of his Studies in African Rhythms'. These kinetic pieces easily get under one's skin and they sound like they are fun to play. Kushner, American Record Guide“

"It is very rare to find in one individual an unflinching devotion to both chart the course of artistic excellence and multicultural education. But pianist Dr. William Chapman Nyaho has done this with grace and unmatched charm. For almost a decade now he has singlehandedly carried the mantle of promoting the piano repertoire by composers of African descent.” “His research unveiled an enormous resource of unpublished piano works by African, African American and Caribbean and other African-descent composers. 'There indeed exists a vast repertoire of piano music by this unknown constituency of composers, appearing in myriad forms and styles, from simple to virtuosic...some properly noted, but much of it in manuscript form, and certainly not widely circulated.'”

“Besides performing, his five-volume anthology, Piano Music of Africa and the African Diaspora, published by Oxford University Press in 2007 and 2008, immediately became a seminal work cherished by students, scholars and music educators world-wide. His two CDs Senku and Asa,(which incidentally opens with six of my piano studies) released on the MSR-Classics label exclusively features piano works by composers from Africa and the African Diaspora and thus have become a much needed companion for the Oxford anthology. Together, these initiatives complement the collections of America's music libraries which today stock very little in classical music repertoire by African-descent composers.” “To most of us engaged in the promotion and scholarship of new intercultural music by African and other African-descent composers, Dr. Nyaho embodies the spirit of a true multicultural educator.” Fred Onovwerosuoke [Dr. William Chapman Nyaho is profiled at AfriClassical.com and has a website of his own, http://www.nyaho.com/

Nyaho's CD 'Asa: Piano Music by Composers of African Descent' at All Music Guide

[William Chapman Nyaho - Asa: Piano Music by Composers of African Descent]

Dr. William Chapman Nyaho is a pianist, music editor and music professor who was born in Washington, D.C. to Ghanaian parents in 1958, and raised in Ghana from the age of 10 months. He is profiled at AfriClassical.com, and sends us word of this review of his new CD, MSR Classics MS1242, by James Manheim of All Music Guide: “Hi Bill check this out.. love the way this reviewer ties it all together.”

Swapacd.com

William Chapman Nyaho - Asa: Piano Music by Composers of African Descent CD Review

"This release by American pianist William Chapman Nyaho, who is of Ghanaian background, collects music by black composers in a way that has rarely if ever been done before, and it's highly recommended to anyone interested in the intersection of African music with European concert forms. The program is unusual and instructive in two ways. First, it's cross-generational. Much of the music is by contemporary composers, but there are also a few classics of the genre like Florence Price's Dances in the Canebrakes. Nyaho brings out the continuities between the generations, with the basic impulse toward drawing on African-based rhythmic materials intact even as the younger composers add contemporary techniques. The program also includes more non-American than American pieces, and here, too, Nyaho makes a powerful case for the African diaspora as a musical unity. The older pieces are especially interesting in this regard. 'Pomme Cannelle' (Cinnamon Apple) from Guadeloupean composer Alan Pierre Pradel's Sept Pièces Créoles, could have passed for a piece of American ragtime. Much of the music has never been recorded before, and several of the African pieces are real finds. Sample especially South African composer Bongani Ndodana's Flowers in Sand, with its delicate impressionist portraiture superimposed on rhythms on the Venda culture."  [Full Post] [William Chapman Nyaho, Florence B. Price and Alain Pierre Pradel are profiled at AfriClassical.com]