Ghanaian National Dance Company member Bernard Woma came to the University for the fourth year running Sunday.

When world leaders go to Ghana, as part of the National troupe he gets to perform for them. Woma has performed for Bill Clinton, Queen Elizabeth II and President Barack Obama.

Woma is known best for playing on a gyil [geel].

The gyil, which is the “grandfather of the mallet instruments,” according to Woma, is an instrument much like a Xylophone. The keys are made from an African wood, equivalent to Rosewood. The sounds made come from the gourds underneath the keys covered with bits of spider web egg sacs, which help resonate the sound.

“The vibration from the spider webs helps bring out the happiness and job in people,” he said. “It’s very therapeutic.”

Gyil or “gather” in English, is exactly what Woma loves about his job.

“It means ‘gather’ because you all gather around to hear the music,” he said.

At age two his father bought him his first gyil and helped to acquire a mentor for Woma, Ziem Tibo. Tibo taught Woma the ways of the gyil, including how to perfect his technique and how to build the gyil.

“He taught me how to make the gyil become a part of my life,” Woma said.

During his performances, he jumped around the stage, laughed loudly and danced from one end of the stage to the other. He later played a song called Vepele that describes his own personality.

“It’s about a naughty boy who can never sit still,” he said. “Just like me.”

The drummer manages to sit still though, bobbing his head waiting to come in.

Woma came out of the womb ready to play. He said his hands were formed with his thumb between his index and middle fingers — the proper way to hold a mallet for his gyil.

Woma has been coming to the University through different exchange programs for almost 10 years, but this is the first time funding has been available for his dance troupe, Saakumu. Out of 22 members, seven came to the University with five drummers, including Woma.

They had several performances this week. One of the songs the troupe performed was a song called “Monay,” a long song which changes often, and describes marriage, Woma said.

“You don’t know what marriage is going to bring you,” he said. “Marriage never ends.”

The troupe includes two sets of family members including Woma’s younger brother Andrews as a male dancer. Two of the female dancers include Joyce “Mama” Bekyore and younger sister Evelyn Yaa.

Woma gave the nickname to Mama because she is the teacher for the troupe, who then brought her taller, younger sister to dance with them.

“She has so much spirit,” Woma said of Yaa. “Just because you are bigger doesn’t mean you are older,” he said, looking at his older, shorter brother Andrews.

Yaa screams many times during the performance to encourage the troupe.

“I scream often, to either encourage the dancers because they’re doing good, or to give them a timed cue,” she said.

One of the songs, Fume Fume, is a ceremonial song from northern Ghana. It features George Kuubetesuur (“death doesn’t get angry” translated) as a Priest who takes a horse tail to call the holy spirits.

“You need to keep your face very serious in this song,” Kuubetesuur said. “Death is not supposed to be a very happy occasion, and it shows in our movements.”

Dancing is an important part of the experience when seeing the troupe perform. He often gets members of the audience to dance by saying, “It doesn’t matter how well you dance, bad dancing never hurt the ground.”

The troupe left the University Tuesday night and arrived in Indiana at 2 a.m. Wednesday morning, only to have a performance at 9:30 a.m.

“I don’t need sleep,” Woma said. “All that I need is my music and I can run for days.”