ERIKETA COST
Staff Writer
Fredonia’s own Ghanaian xylophone player, performer and mentor recently passed away on April 27 after battling cancer.
A memorial service will be held for Bernard Woma Saturday, Sept. 29 at 1 p.m. in Mason Hall.
It will begin with prayers and an unveiling of the memorial stone, pouring of libations, words from President Horvath and eulogies from family.
Music and memories will be shared by students, friends, family and faculty.
Among one of the faculty members involved in the creation of the memorial is Fredonia professor and Chair of Percussion Area, Kay Stonefelt.
Stonefelt met Woma in 1993, when she was a Fulbright Senior Scholar affiliated with the Ghana National Dance Ensemble at the National Theatre in Accra, Ghana.
Stonefelt offered some thoughts on her professional relationship with Woma.
“I took private gyil (xylophone) lessons from Bernard and traveled to the Upper West Region of Ghana to attend festivals and to learn about the significance of the gyil in Bernard’s Dagara culture,” she said.
Besides his passion for sharing Ghanaian music, Woma valued teaching.
Stonefelt developed the African drumming program after returning to the U.S. and becoming a professor at Fredonia. She invited Woma as one of the first guest artists in the program.
“Bernard was the first guest artist in our program and, soon after, he joined our faculty as an adjunct lecturer,” Stonefelt said.
The two performed together at international conferences and schools as far as 5,000 miles away.
“He loved little children and knew how to capture their attention. He played with them. He knew the value of education and was demanding of dedication and excellence,” Stonefelt said.
Woma had also gone with a group of students to Ghana for a study abroad J-Term in 2013.
Among Fredonia faculty that went with the students to Ghana were photographer Lori Deemer; percussion professor Tiffany Nicely; and Director of Facilities and Special Projects Marc Levy.
“We visited the Dagara Music Center [founded by Bernard Woma] where we studied music, dance and Ghanaian culture with Bernard Woma,” said Lori Deemer.
While teaching, Woma had also completed a bachelor’s degree in international studies, as well as minors in history and arts administration at SUNY Fredonia.
He had also completed two master’s degrees at Indiana University Bloomington in African studies and ethnomusicology.
“He was just an amazing man who always made you feel welcome into his culture when he was teaching,” said Fredonia sophomore and percussion player, Ryan Potter.
“Bernard always said ‘bad dancing never hurt the ground’ . . . this was to get everyone up and moving during the workshop or performance. If you made a mistake he would always say ‘Buddy you owe me 5,000.’ This would get you laughing and it wouldn’t make you feel bad about making that mistake. He just made everything fun and exciting.”
Percussion professor Tiffany Nicely has also been impacted by Woma’s uniqueness and energy.
“Bernard lived by this motto [bad dancing never hurt the ground]. Coming from a small northern village and specializing in an instrument most of Ghana did not know existed at the time, he did not let fear or uncertainty prevent him from taking on challenge after challenge,” she said.
“He did not allow uncertainty to keep him from doing scary things, and we as his students strive to follow this example. In our case, learning a difficult rhythm or dance move is the first step.”
Before coming to Fredonia as a guest artist and adjunct professor, Woma had been an artistic director of the Saakumu Dance Troupe, which is a leading contemporary music and dance group in Ghana, West Africa.
He had also been a master drummer for the Ghana Dance Company at the National Theater.
Throughout his career, Woma had been a guest artist at several universities and schools throughout the country. He created workshops, masterclasses and lectures for musicians all over America and Europe as well.
Besides working to create opportunities to teach and mentor students, Woma had performed with renowned artists like Maya Angelou, Yo Yo Ma and Glen Velez.
Among some of his audiences have been Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama, Queen Elizabeth II, and Nelson Mandela.
The memorial service will start outside in front of Mason Hall and then move into room 1080.