Professor Charles Emmanuel Graves (Kwamena Abayie) (1884–1929) belonged to the Anona Clan of the Fante people. Born in 1884 in Cape Coast, Ghana (known then as the Gold Coast), he was not only a fine composer in the Western classical tradition, but also a skilled organist, pianist, violinist, and harpist. He created schools, published newspapers, and even started a bottling company. One of his sons, Richard Graves (Yeo Kojo), became a composer, pianist, and organist and is mentioned in the Garland Encyclopedia of World Music: Africa along with his father. "An Evening Calm" was composed in 1913 as a lament for the Rev. A. T. R. Bartrop, General Superintendent of the Wesleyan Mission in the Gold Coast.

Further Reading:

• Ephson, Isaac S. Gallery of Gold Coast Celebrities, 1632-1958. Accra, Ghana: Ilen Publications, 1969.
• Garland Encyclopedia of World Music. Volume 1: Africa, ed. Ruth M. Stone. New York: Routledge, 1997: 227–229.

—Tiffany Ng