By Kusi, M.O.

August 12, 2003

Amanfoo truly " a great tree has been uprooted!"

Mr. Boamah is certainly one of the great legends of Prempeh. His passing is certainly a big loss.

I first met Mr. Boamah before I entered Prempeh in 1965 at Abetifi Boarding School. Mr Boamah had accompanied Mr Osae who spoke at our Speech Day. Also with them was Mr. Jimmy Lartey, fomer housemaster of Osei Tutu house.

That year there were about at least six Abetifi boys who had been admitted to Prempeh, (Kusi MO of, Serwah house; Benson of, Freeman, the late Dr. Odame of, Aggrey and his brother, Obeng Nyarko of, OT Kwaah, Ramseyer), perhaps continuing the Abetifi Boarding School - Prempeh College connection, our group was the largest congintent in the "homo" class of 1965 to be admitted to Prempeh from a single school. Mr Boamah was certainly proud of us. He was from Abetifi (and I believe he attended Abetifi Boys and Akropong Training College).

We had literally spent the whole term at Abetifi to prepare for the speech day and have meticulously rehearsed an ensemble of Dr. Ephraim Amu's classic Twi tunes. "Yerefro, Kasea Pa Bofo, Yen ara Asase ni, etc." After our rendition of these tunes "Osukuni spontaneously rose to his feet and gave us a standing ovation ! To make a long story short Osukuni invited the Abetifi Boys to join the choir at Prempeh and encouraged us to take music seriously. Many of the Abetifi Alumni including Sam Kyei and Ntiforo both of Pearson and other Abetifi Amanfoo I can't remember, formed the nucleus of the Prempeh Choir through the years. They were continuing the "Basel/Presbyterian Church" tradition which emphasised the study of Twi and Music.

Mr Boamah was foremost the product of this "Basel/Presbyterian Church" tradition. When Prempeh first purchased the Hammond Organ at the first Ghana trade fair in 1966, I bet it was the first and only secondary school with both a piano and organ at Church services! I still remmeber fondly Mr. Boamah showing off at the organ during the Christmas carol service with Mr. Watson on the light controls !!

Those classical music preludes, interludes, and postludes Mr. Boamah played during morning services and church services are STILL the classical gems I listen to today: Handel's water music, Messiah selections, Bach's Jesu Joy of Man's Desiring (with trumpet solo by the "music sgt. Major " I can't remeber his name,) the numerous Hayden, Mozart, Beethoven, Schumann, Weber, Mendlesohn, etc piano pieces are still fresh and any time I hear these pieces on NPR radio in the USA I ALWAYS remember Oskuuni!!

Who can forget the grilling we had from Osukuni in preparing for the Royal School of Music Exams in both theory and piano recitals and the numerous "wayis" when you played the wrong note or appergio! They were worse than sitting for the WAEC "O- Levels" !

Mr Boamah was certainly a TWI scholar and it was a joy to take a TWI class from him. He was a purist of both the grammer and pronounciation of the language. It is a shame that most Prempeh students did not take TWI. Osukuuni was at his BEST giving a TWI lesson ! He will spend the whole lecture hour speaking "pure Twi" without using a single English word!! I hope his children will be able to preserve some of the clasical Latin translations he had written in Twi.

"Owura, okyerekyrefo, Osuukuni" Damirifa Due, Due !!

I challenge all amanfoo who were blessed by Mr. Boamah to join me in contributing to a permanent endowed music fund which will start the " Boamah Prempeh Sukuufo" philarmonic ochestra !!

After all those of us who might have watched the 60 minutes program in the USA about the Venezuela ghetto children and their youth ochestra can visualise a similar phenomemon in Ghana !! Please if you are intrested, contact me at MASKUSI@AOL.com. We can all contribute to start a school ochestra and endow a music education scholarshio at Prempeh in honor of Mr. Boahmah. That will be the best way to remmeber Mr. Boamah !

Sincerely,

Dr. Michael Opong-Kusi (Kusi, M.O. Serwah 1965-1972)
2199 Erwin Drive
Euless, Texas 76039