Ijuba to a Sage - Muse J. H. J. H. Kwabena J. H. Kwabena-Nketia (Ajanaku koja mo ri nkan firi!) Thrice now we have asked: Who can tether the elephant? our Nketia, kindred disciple of noise himself black noise, logic of the inchoate? he who straddles soundscapes master of the multiform nimble wit in whose staccato the music-congeal unravels your drizzle at four score and one are these fresh dews on the fern who pay tribute part, to your redolent ways part, for sharing a glimpse into your world where sprouts the gom-gom of djembe the frill of the flute the shriek of textured horns V peer of the ageless now hear us out: guide us through this labyrinth across these islands whose crests and troughs witnessed: the whip the shark the cling-clang of the chain-gang mend our dis-chord find us tuned unbabble, unbabel our voice though we only ask from you a mere sinner from you who is not a saint ... for we know of none GR —Sola Olorunyomi J.H J.H Kwabena Ba ba pe ori akoni a fi ida lale garaga J.H. Kwabena omo Nketia o o Ajanaku koja mo ri nkan firi Oba ti o ma mu erin so koti je Nketia tiwa, Iwo laba peni Ogun ti o lana fun awon orisa yoku agogo, saworo, gedu, ati bata, lodo orisa lati mari awoko logo ede. Bi awoko o ba pede kini ibaka ma ko? Ojo weli weli lati okanle ni ogorin Iri to se si ara ewe lo di nini ni owuro to tutu aso ero oko ati ero ona To fi orisun gom-gom ti djembe han Didun fere ati ifon inu re Oye lagba nwo O wa teti si wa Fi ona han wa lati to ona yiidopin Mu wa la ereko yii ti lilo soke sodo re ti ri: lya Iku Sekeseke Fun wa lorogbo kohun wa legbo Fun wa logede kohun wa le de Eyi la toro Bi o tile je elese bi ti wa ni iwo alai d'ese omo eniyan kan ko kuku si GR -Translation:Adebola Olorunyomi The Man J.H. Kwabena Nketia IN many respects, Profes- sor J.H. Kwabena Nketia embodies that now familiar irony of the human condi- tion: the strive to the future to discover the past, yet we invariably cast a retrospec- tive glance to apprehend the future. At Eighty One, Kwabena Nketia's contri- bution to African music and musicology remains particularly outstanding, writing him into the pantheon of living legends. His compositions straddle choral works, solo songs with piano accompani- ment, and the broad rubric of instrumental works that compel the past to dia- logue with the present, the present with the past, in a most healthy exercise of comparative musicology. We can not even begin to detail his bibliography which spans the diverse and intricate web of music- making and interpretation. His imprint and contribu- tion dot the continents, yet Kwabena Nketia remains a community creative activ- ist in his homeland, Ghana. It is to this icon, this sage, this walking encyclopae- dia and muse of our time, that this edition of Glendora Review is dedi- cated: Ijuba ooo...GR -Editors