The history of music in Ghanaian school programmes can hardly be separated from the general history of education in Ghana. Since the time of colonial administration in Ghana, music (especially as manifested through singing) has formed part of the educational curriculum for different reasons, one being a tool for promoting the culture of the colonialists. Several advances (particularly after independence in Ghana) have been made to incorporate aspects of the Ghanaian culture into the educational curriculum. Over 50 years down the line, what is the extent to which Ghanaian (African) music is studied in Ghanaian schools? In this paper, the extent to which African music is taught in African (Ghanaian) universities is analysed by looking at the undergraduate music course content of two Ghanaian public universities. Although African music is taught, it only forms an infinitesimal proportion of the total music courses that are offered to music students in these two universities. Considering that the process of music education is also a process of enculturation, the concluding recommendation is that although a multicultural music programme is necessary, the teaching of African (Ghanaian) music in Ghanaian universities should be the dominant feature.

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The musical traditions of the southern Ewe of Ghana; particularly the Anlo, have been subject to a substantial amount of research. Existing research has focused on Anlo musical traditions as practiced in its original context. Comparably little is known about these musical traditions as performed by Anlo migrants living and working among a linguistically and culturally different ethnic group. Furthermore, fishing songs of the Anlo, even at home, have escaped most academic research. In this article, I address both shortcomings by focusing on Anlo fishing songs as performed by a migrant Anlo community living among the Fante in Cape Coast. Employing a variety of qualitative research techniques such as in-depth interviews, participant observation and a two-way inter-subjectivity, I explore the extent to which these fishing songs serve purposes beyond their perceived role of accompanying and easing work. Specifically, I examine how the fishing songs of the migrant Ewe community provide a solid basis for negotiating individual and collective memories and identities.