Ephraim Amu

Ephraim Kɔku Amu (13 September 1899 – 2 January 1995) was a Ghanaian composer, musicologist and teacher.

He was born on 13 September 1899 at Peki-Avetile (also called Abenase) in the Peki traditional area of the Volta Region and as a male child born on a Wednesday was called Kwaku. His father was Stephen Amuyaa, a wood carver who was popularly called Papa Stefano. His mother was Sarah Akoram Ama.

Ephraim Kɔku Amu was baptised by the Rev. Rudolf Mallet on 22 October 1899.

Amu first went to school in May 1906 and at about age 12 he entered the Peki-Blengo E.P. Boarding Middle School, where he showed much interest and love for music and agriculture. According to him, he enjoyed the music played during church collections when the music teacher, Mr Karl Theodore Ntem, played soul-moving renditions on the organ. Amu and his music teacher struck a mutual agreement whereby Amu requested to be taught the skills of organ playing and in return Mr Ntem asked him to work on his farm on Saturdays. In 1915, Amu passed the standard 7 School Leaving Certificate examination and also passed the Abetifi teachers Seminary Examination. In 1916 he and two other colleagues had to walk 150 miles from Peki to Abetifi with their boxes on their heads to start teacher training education. On their journey, they had to rest at several points, including Koforidua, Nkawkaw, Asubone and Obomen. Amu joined 25 other newcomers at the college. While at the college, Amu realised that some of the students, including his classmates, owned steel bicycles so he set himself the task of building his own bicycle from wood, carving it from a wooden slab in the bush near the college. Students who discovered his handiwork brought it into the open and named it Amu. It is on record that even the son of the Swiss principal, Stern, enjoyed many rides on the Amu wooden cycle. Amu also used his ingenuity and creativity to carve wooden balls for the school games, which replaced the imported balls being used at the time at the seminary. Amu completed his four-year teacher-catechist training in 1919. Newly graduating teacher-catechist, he was one of the two preachers selected to mount the pulpit on behalf of their fellow mates, as was customary to preach and to express their appreciation to their tutors and townsfolk. The sermon also served as an assessment of the quality of the theological training that had been offered to the students. Amu chose the sermon text from Matthew 25:40 on this occasion. His theme was “the Lord will thank you for all the good you have done for his little ones”. Amu used both Twi and Ewe in his short sermon.

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