Isaac M. Quist
I graduated from secondary school a good composer of music. That was in 1967 when I composed a jazz song When Nothing Can Go Wrong, with a well known composer, arranger and producer in Boston, Massachusetts,USA. Later limitations in the music industry in Ghana and Africa in general disillusioned me to turn to the literary arts . I took a course in Journalism and Short Storywriting with School of Mass Com, Hermitage, England . Already armed with the lyrics from music school, I started comfortably as a poet ,and then furthered into short story and arts criticism. For a short while still groping for a career , I did a stint in Communications Electronics and Work Study[ Indusrial Engineering ]and worked in an underground mine , Tarkwa Goldfields Limited in Ghana. It was a period of hibernation and self-discovery and a period when I read widely and wrote many great literary pieces some of which appeared in my first poetry collection,a trilogy, Let Me Sing To My Beloved! Ileft the mine in 1983 and practised as a freelance writer. I did a stint with Ghana Broadcasting Corporation and up to this day I still freelance with newspapers of New Times Corporation namely Ghanaian Times and Spectatorof which I have published over 80 articles, reviews on the arts and general news stories.I stinted also with the Weekend Chronicle. a weekend paper belonging to the Ghanaian Chronicle.In the mid '90s, I took courses in film making -[one with Scriptnet[ Ghana] and Academy of Film Acting in scriptwriting and film acting respectively]When I left the mine in 1983,I took to full time professional career as a photographer, mostly self-taught until I became Editor of a tourism paper, Tourism Today,published by the School O f Hotel Restaurant and Tourism Management from 2001 to 2005 when I set up a PR firm on a trial basis, a company which still publishes my books.
Published books:1. Let Me Sing To My Beloved[ a poetry trilogy]Lady Comes Homes Home[ a play staged in 2002]Kwame Nkrumah- An Undying Flame [ non-fiction tourism pamphlet]. Workshop on Journalism, Creative Writing and Public Speaking .Communications Techniques for Extension Workers[ The Entertainment- Education Strategy]Coming shortly:Music Composition and Practice Made Easy.Media Marketing Made Easy Gospel Music in Ghana - A Survey At The African Frontier [ a literary work], Chains[ a literary work]
I give solo performances, Butterfly Show, in which I play the synthesizer,bamboo flute and hourglass drum whilst reading my poetical works and short stories including Ananse stories [ traditional]
As a public speaker ,
MY KEYNOTE SPEAKING AREAS are MOTIVATIONAL SPEECHES on LEADERSHIP SKILLS
which include
SETTING GOALS
ROLES inGROUPS
TEAMS[ POSITIONING and POLITICS of GROUPS]
I specialize on Popular Culture of West Africa 1. Highlife music and dance[broadly speaking the popular music and dance of Ghana and Nigeria]and its development since the return of the African Diasporeans in the 1890s],Choral music of Ghana[Art music of Ghana a late development],and Gospel music of Ghana.[a new inspirational popular music sung by mostly female singers of 'born again' persuasion], African Pianism[Piano recitals in the African idiom where the piano is used as a rhythmic as well as harmonic instrument much like a drum],African Jazz [highlife jazz],
Popular Drama including Concert Party Dramas [ crossover African comedic theatre of music, dance and drama]and Ananse Storytelling [ children's storytelling , a blend of music, dance and drama by the evening's fireside]
West African video film-mainly the feature film of Ghana and Nigeria with its characteristic religious sentiments and witchcraft
Popular literature of Ghana [ street fiction depicting African myth or the ' popular mind'. These pamphleteers have been around earlier than the sociological novelists and playwrights [ culture of return to African roots]who emerged after the demise of colonialism.
Other popular arts including modern African fashion of West Africa , modern visual arts[ painting,sculpture,beads,etc.
I also give lectures on any of my workshop topics
I graduated from secondary school a good composer of music. That was in 1967 when I composed a jazz song When Nothing Can Go Wrong, with a well known composer, arranger and producer in Boston, Massachusetts,USA. Later limitations in the music industry in Ghana and Africa in general disillusioned me to turn to the literary arts . I took a course in Journalism and Short Storywriting with School of Mass Com, Hermitage, England . Already armed with the lyrics from music school, I started comfortably as a poet ,and then furthered into short story and arts criticism. For a short while still groping for a career , I did a stint in Communications Electronics and Work Study[ Indusrial Engineering ]and worked in an underground mine , Tarkwa Goldfields Limited in Ghana. It was a period of hibernation and self-discovery and a period when I read widely and wrote many great literary pieces some of which appeared in my first poetry collection,a trilogy, Let Me Sing To My Beloved! Ileft the mine in 1983 and practised as a freelance writer. I did a stint with Ghana Broadcasting Corporation and up to this day I still freelance with newspapers of New Times Corporation namely Ghanaian Times and Spectatorof which I have published over 80 articles, reviews on the arts and general news stories.I stinted also with the Weekend Chronicle. a weekend paper belonging to the Ghanaian Chronicle.In the mid '90s, I took courses in film making -[one with Scriptnet[ Ghana] and Academy of Film Acting in scriptwriting and film acting respectively]When I left the mine in 1983,I took to full time professional career as a photographer, mostly self-taught until I became Editor of a tourism paper, Tourism Today,published by the School O f Hotel Restaurant and Tourism Management from 2001 to 2005 when I set up a PR firm on a trial basis, a company which still publishes my books.
Published books:1. Let Me Sing To My Beloved[ a poetry trilogy]Lady Comes Homes Home[ a play staged in 2002]Kwame Nkrumah- An Undying Flame [ non-fiction tourism pamphlet]. Workshop on Journalism, Creative Writing and Public Speaking .Communications Techniques for Extension Workers[ The Entertainment- Education Strategy]Coming shortly:Music Composition and Practice Made Easy.Media Marketing Made Easy Gospel Music in Ghana - A Survey At The African Frontier [ a literary work], Chains[ a literary work]
I give solo performances, Butterfly Show, in which I play the synthesizer,bamboo flute and hourglass drum whilst reading my poetical works and short stories including Ananse stories [ traditional]
As a public speaker ,
MY KEYNOTE SPEAKING AREAS are MOTIVATIONAL SPEECHES on LEADERSHIP SKILLS
which include
SETTING GOALS
ROLES inGROUPS
TEAMS[ POSITIONING and POLITICS of GROUPS]
I specialize on Popular Culture of West Africa 1. Highlife music and dance[broadly speaking the popular music and dance of Ghana and Nigeria]and its development since the return of the African Diasporeans in the 1890s],Choral music of Ghana[Art music of Ghana a late development],and Gospel music of Ghana.[a new inspirational popular music sung by mostly female singers of 'born again' persuasion], African Pianism[Piano recitals in the African idiom where the piano is used as a rhythmic as well as harmonic instrument much like a drum],African Jazz [highlife jazz],
Popular Drama including Concert Party Dramas [ crossover African comedic theatre of music, dance and drama]and Ananse Storytelling [ children's storytelling , a blend of music, dance and drama by the evening's fireside]
West African video film-mainly the feature film of Ghana and Nigeria with its characteristic religious sentiments and witchcraft
Popular literature of Ghana [ street fiction depicting African myth or the ' popular mind'. These pamphleteers have been around earlier than the sociological novelists and playwrights [ culture of return to African roots]who emerged after the demise of colonialism.
Other popular arts including modern African fashion of West Africa , modern visual arts[ painting,sculpture,beads,etc.
I also give lectures on any of my workshop topics
