The Impact of Social Media on Ghanaian Choral Music: A Tool for Growth
The resurgence of choral music in Ghana in the last decade has been catapulted by the emergence of social media. Social media has helped many institutions and groups reach out to their audiences across boundaries. The Ghanaian choral music industry has benefited greatly from this innovation.
It's such a joy these days to hear of emerging choirs - even from backwaters - reaching out to the world with their musical talents through social media.
Maya Dollarhide defined social media as
"... computer-based technology that facilitates the sharing of ideas, thoughts, and information through the building of virtual networks and communities."
I really like this definition because it breaks down the concept into its constituent elements. There has been a recent proliferation of online communities through which Ghanaians engage in this new medium. Most of these are the major online hubs of social content: Facebook. Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat and even YouTube.
The presence of choral groups on these sites suggests how important they have become to the choral music industry. Most choirs take social media more seriously than their traditional websites.
The days of people experiencing musical performances primarily through CDs, DVDs and cassettes at home or in cars - like was in my day - are behind us. When I was younger, I was privileged to hear the Winneba Youth Choir only on a visit to my reverend minister’s home. And that was because he owned a collection of their albums.
The tables have turned, and today we can all catch live performances of the Koforidua Youth Choir, Gramophone Chorus and many other groups without a sweat. The fact that many of us watched Harmonious Chorale represent Ghana at the most recent World Choir Games in South Africa on our phones and laptops was a game changer.
These days, more people are invited to concerts through social media than printed posters. The change has been amazing!
All this is very encouraging for the industry. It's necessary for choirs to increasingly distance themselves from obsolete modes of promoting their activities to fully embrace social media. Not only for communication, but also for profit, with quality content that draws in large, global audiences.
We’ve all witnessed stars emerge from obscurity because of the exposure social media gives them. To reiterate the fact: an investment in the social media game can pay off immensely when done right. I encourage all choirs, musicians and related groups to take social media seriously as a ground-breaking tool that can transform how we promote and profit from our choral industry.
Nii Adjetey Cleland,
Choral Music Ghana.