Program 861: Ewe or the Highway
KALW Broadcast Date: February 15, 2026 | Host: Rachel Schonfeld
On this Music from Other Minds, Rachel Schonfeld featured the Dagbe Cultural Troupe. The Troupe is part of the Dagbe Cultural Institute and Arts Centre, a Ghanian organization promoting Ewe (eh-weh) culture, the language, culture, and ethnic group that originated in the Volta region in Ghana. Traditional Ewe music is typically performed in various kinds of social gatherings with a hierarchical drum ensemble and dancers. Schonfeld was lucky to spend a study trip at the Centre in 2024 to learn about West African drumming and dancing practice. The program also featured master-drummer Godwin Agbeli, highlife and jazz from Ghanian guitarist Ebo Taylor, ventured briefly to Nigeria for some afrobeat from Fela Kuti, and ended with Ghanian pop musicians Stonebwoy and Seyram Music, who reinterpret and incorporate Ewe rhythms with a multitude of other global influences.
Program Audio
30-Second Spot
Track Info & Links
Title: Gahu
Composer: Godwin Agbeli
Performer: Godwin Agbeli
Recording Title: Guest Artist Recital: 1992-09-06
Recording Label: University of North Texas Digital Library
Title: Atsiabekor
Composer: Godwin Agbeli
Performer: Godwin Agbeli
Recording Title: Guest Artist Recital: 1992-09-06
Recording Label: University of North Texas Digital Library
Title: Todzo
Composer: Dagbe Cultural Troupe
Performer: Dagbe Cultural Troupe
Title: Togo Atsia
Composer: Dagbe Cultural Troupe
Performer: Dagbe Cultural Troupe
Title: Borborbor
Composer: Dagbe Cultural Troupe
Performer: Dagbe Cultural Troupe
Title: Happy Highlife
Performer: Broadway Dance Band
Recording Title: Happy Highlife
Recording Label: Decca
Catalog Number: WAL 1010
Title: Jazz is Dead 22
Composer: Adrian Younge, Ali Shaheed Muhammed
Performer: Adrian Younge, Ali Shaheed Muhammed, Ebo Taylor, Scott Mayo, Beatrice Lawluvi, Erinn Hornton, Mikaela Elson, Yelp Ladzekpo-Cole, Danny Janklow, Jerry “Jay Flat” Williams, Samson Olawe, Philip Andy Biney, Emmanuel Ackone, Katisee Buckingham, Erm Navarro
Recording Title: Jazz is Dead 22
Recording Label: Jazz is Dead
Catalog Number: JID022
Title: Shakara
Composer: Fela Kuti
Performer: Fela Kuti, Lekan Animashaun, Tommy James, Henry Kofi, Daniel Koranteg, Tonny Allen, Emmanuel Odenusi, Segun Edo, Isaac Olaleye, James Abayomi, Tutu Shoronmu, Igo Chico, Tony Njoku
Recording Title: Shakara
Recording Label: EMI
Catalog Number: EMI008N
Title: Remembering Fela Anikulapo Kuti
Composer: Oghene Kologbo
Performer: Oghene Kologbo, Guiseppi “Jossi” Coppola, Matt Hutchison, Frank Schellenberger, Ben Abarbanel-Wolff, Jochen Ströh, Nicholas Addo-Nettey, Daniel Allen, Brothers Keepers, Xavier Naidoo, Bantu
Recording Title: Remembering Fela Kuti
Catalog Number: LA 003
Title: Vroom
Composer: Seyram Music
Performer: Seyram Music, Vroom Band
Recording Title: Vroom Album (Volta Region’s Organically Original Music)
Title: Angola Junction
Composer: Stonebwoy
Recording Title: Angola Junction
Title: The Torcher
Composer: Stonebwoy
Recording Title: The Torcher
