African Pianism, Jazz Negotiations and Contemporary Experimental Poetry: A Dialogue with Echezonachukwu Nduka
AFRICAN PIANISM, JAZZ NEGOTIATIONS AND CONTEMPORARY EXPERIMENTAL POETRY
A DIALOGUE WITH ECHEZONACHUKWU NDUKA
Echezonachukwu Nduka is an award-winning poet, pianist, scholar, and the author of three poetry collections: Chrysanthemums for Wide-eyed Ghosts (Griots Lounge, 2018), Waterman (Griots Lounge, 2020), and Jazz Negotiations (Masobe Books, 2026).
His debut poetry collection was shortlisted for the Pan-African Writers Association Poetry Prize in 2022. As a scholar, his work has been published in peer-reviewed academic journals. His scholarly interests span across African pianism, religious aesthetics in popular music, and the nexus between music and postcolonial Anglophone literatures.
He has been featured as a pianist and poet with support from institutions including the Intercultural Music Initiative, Somers Point Arts Commission, The African Concert Series London, Music in the Pavilion (Penn), among others. Celebrated for his work in African pianism, he performs a seasonal recital program titled Resounding African Pianism. Nduka is currently a Benjamin Franklin Fellow and PhD Candidate at the University of Pennsylvania.
BY JOEL OYELEKE
This conversation took place between a university hostel room in the ancient city of Ile-Ife, Nigeria and somewhere in the City of Brotherly Love, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA, via Facebook and email exchanges.
Joel: Hello, Nduka. Welcome to what I believe will be an amazing discussion. Let’s begin like this: Imagine I am a total stranger to you and your work. What are three things you can best relate as characteristics of your current state, both as a human and a creative?
Echezonachukwu: Hi, Joel. Three keywords: border-crossing, meaning-making, and imagination. I have lived and worked on three continents, where I have met and collaborated with people from different cultural backgrounds. I am fascinated by creativity. My curiosity reaches its peak when I am studying a subject of interest in order to find answers. This has taught me that life is not always about finding answers, but also about the quality of questions that we ask. As a pianist and scholar, my core research area, known as African Pianism, is about border-crossing. While the instrument is historically European, the composition style is imbued with diverse African musical idioms.
I am interested in meaning and how it is made across disciplines, including music, literature, and history. It doesn’t have to be anything grand at all, considering the fact that I find meaning even in the quotidian. This also implies that I am always in the mode of learning. Imagination is at the heart of my work. The art of creating new worlds, interpreting piano scores distinctively, stretching the limits of language, and thinking about alternative realities; these all shape the core of my work.
Joel: I just finished reading Jazz Negotiations, which I think is a serious improvement on your previous collections – Chrysanthemums for Wide-Eyed Ghosts and Waterman. Not just for its craft-level brilliance but for the pioneering (so to speak) of African Pianism in Poetry. I have listened to several of your lectures on the subject, but I would love some background information. How did you stumble on the theory, and what or who convinced you to push your craft towards the frameworks it provides?
“Music is the foundation of my creativity. If there’s one theme that connects all my poetry books so far, it is music. My goal is to make every line sing.”
Echezonachukwu: You are too kind, Joel. My work on African Pianism came about as a matter of personal conviction and gratitude, for the existence of theory and performance practice. My introduction to the concept was during my final year as a student of music at the University of Nigeria, where I played solo piano pieces by Christian Onyeji and Joshua Uzoigwe, in addition to works in the Western classical canon.
The term, African Pianism, was coined by Akin Euba in the 1970s, to describe the possibilities of African traditional elements in the composition of piano music and the piano’s propensity to function like some African musical instruments such as xylophones, mbira (thumb pianos), and drums, amongst others. Since then, other scholars, composers, and pianists have adopted the term.
I began to read more on the subject after my relocation to the United States in 2016. Consequently, my debut US piano recital in the summer of 2017 and subsequent recitals centre African Pianism not only as a way of introducing the concept to my audiences, but also to portray classical piano music as a diverse genre with living composers working from different cultural standpoints.
Joel: That is such an interesting background. In a recent lecture presented by the Somers Point Art Commission in New Jersey, USA, you opine that African Pianism “is like transferring African traditional instruments, musical styles and rhythms to the Piano . . . it’s a merge of music from Western and African cultures . . .” Isn’t it then correct to say that African Pianism is a post-colonial attempt to do with Western music what a writer like Chinua Achebe did with the English language? Is what you’re doing an Africanisation of foreign (Western) music?
Echezonachukwu: It is close to that, but not exactly. The danger here is that viewing African Pianism as an Africanization of foreign music will ultimately rob it of its originality. It suggests that the work is already done and all the composers and pianists have to do is make it African. Far from it. We cannot change the fact that the piano is a European instrument, but compositions that make up the canon of African Pianism are new works by African modernist composers, who often use traditional elements in their compositions.
The Western component could be the adoption of common forms in Western classical music, like the ternary form, otherwise known as the ABA in some cases; the use of Western notation, which has become somewhat universalised; the use of serialism, as theorised by Arnold Schoenberg for atonal music; or even the adoption of impressionism. However, the works stand on their own without substantial Western influences.
Compared to Chinua Achebe’s use of the English language in his novels particularly, the language could be likened to the piano and notational practice, while his use of it could nearly be likened to the actual work of composition by composers of African Pianism. Whichever way you choose to look at it, it is a blend of two distinct cultures without one surrendering its originality to the other. This point is particularly important because we live in a world where the authenticity debate has refused to go away.
Joel: I still have my doubts, but I largely agree. Let’s talk more about Jazz Negotiations. In “Arrival”, the first poem in the collection, you write: “I testify that dreams made of music are better than life without sound”. This kind of testimony sets the tone for every poem in the collection.
There is intense emphasis on music (particularly the piano and its peculiarities) as the substance for/through which your lines and stanzas exist. Till today, many creatives around the world do not consider music an art form the same or as great as poetry. A recent instance is the outburst against Bob Dylan’s 2016 Nobel Prize for Literature win. A wise friend once said, “All great poets are failed musicians and all great musicians are failed poets.” What do you think of the relationship between music and poetry, especially in light of the societal gbas gbos around both forms?
Echezonachukwu: How do creatives define greatness in this context? Is it about intellectual depth or audience reception? Are more people likely to attend a poetry reading than a live music concert? Creatives in both forms do not need to compete for which art form is greater. I think it is totally unnecessary, to say the least. Music and poetry are complementary in many ways, and it does not always have to be one or the other. What is a song anyway? It is poetry set to music. Great songwriting can pass as poetry. When the music is off, all you have is what is left on the page.
Both art forms require years of study, practice, and dedication. As a creative working in music and poetry, I can attest, based on personal experience and practice, that music is much more difficult. Perhaps it could be because I am a classical pianist and my training requires long hours of practice sessions, during which I study and memorise difficult piano music. Poetry comes easier to me, but that could be a totally different experience for another musician who also writes poetry. It’s not a one-size-fits-all. At the end of the day, it is about individual talent and practice.
I have mentioned this elsewhere, but I’d like to reiterate my inclination towards featuring a poetry reading session in my subsequent piano recitals. That way, my audiences can get a feel of both art forms in one concert.
Joel: That is such an interesting take! Patricia Jabbeh Wesley describes Jazz Negotiations as “a book with poems that travel through musical notes, hymnals, symphonies, dirges and linger like a song deep inside the reader.” I agree with her because you do not just use rhythm (music) as intrinsic part of poetry; your book blurs the line between the two. How important is music for your poetry, and vice versa?
Echezonachukwu: Music is the foundation of my creativity. If there’s one theme that connects all my poetry books so far, it is music. My goal is to make every line sing. I want my poems to resonate and stay with readers for as long as possible.
Joel: Poems like “Ubo-aka,” “Strings,” “Status,” and several pieces in the Improviso: Cities (section three) show that the collction bridges the Africa of your birth and the America of your sojourn. Jazz itself, which was developed and is dominated by African Americans, exploded during the Harlem renaissance. How has it been for you and your creative pursuits in this kind of multi/inter-cultural matrix?
Echezonachukwu: My creativity benefits a great deal in this instance. I am in a position where both worlds influence and enrich my craft. I can afford to stand as an outsider looking inside, taking advantage of the wholistic viewpoint, and creating as honestly as I can. Even as a Nigerian, I argue that to see the country and its contradictions clearly, you may need to leave and do so from a distance. Now in the United States, my creative work has been supported by organisations and individuals who continue to amplify my voice based on their conviction that I have something to offer the world. I have had my fair share of challenges, no doubt, but my work is gaining more recognition and I am thankful for it.
Joel: You’ve now published three poetry collections, performed recitals in different parts of the world and released several globally recognised recordings. What are you currently working on? What should your fans expect in the near future?
Echezonachukwu: I am currently working on my doctoral dissertation and practicing for forthcoming recitals. My next recording project will likely commence in February next year. The album will be released by the end of 2027, hopefully. I am still writing poems, but I imagine that my major publication in the next couple of years will be a book of personal essays on music and memory. The manuscript is gradually taking shape and I cannot wait to share the final product with the world. For those who are curious or unfamiliar with my nonfiction, excerpts have been published in Lolwe, Maroko, and Olongo Africa.
Joel: Your hands are full and I love it. I can’t wait to get a copy of your book of essays and listen to your album when they’re out. I am almost done with a review of Jazz Negotiations. It deserves all the critical appreciation it can get. Thank you so much for your time.
Echezonachukwu: Thank you for the interview, Joel. I look forward to your review. Well done!
Joel Oyeleke is a literary administrator, poet, essayist and three-time curator of the ANA-OAU Books and Art Festival in Osun State, Nigeria.
He is currently undertaking a year-long project on New Nigerian Poetics through profiling, interviews and critical reviews.
Joel is a 2025 Pioneer Fellow of the ANA Ken Saro Wiwa International Writers’ Residency and was shortlisted for the 2026 Evaristo Prize for African Poetry. Find him on Instagram, Facebook and X.
