Mary Armeday's love-folk songs and her unique krar playing style have become a classic in the history of ethiopian music and she will forever be remembered for her talent and her love for entertaining.
Seleshe Damessae (also known as Sileshi Demissie and Gashe Abera Molla) is an extraordinary singer and musician from Ethiopia. He uses a complex vocal styling, sung in Amharic, his native language. He accompanies himself on the krar, a 6-string lyre which dates back to the ancient civilizations of the Nile.
Sileshi Demissie (aka Gash Abera Molla) - The Master of Kirar
Born in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Seleshe Damessae began studying the krar at an early age with his father, and later attended the Yared School of Music. He spent nearly four years studying traditional Ethiopian culture in northern rural areas, and today is highly respected for his knowledge of the vocal and instrumental music of his native land.
Seleshe is also a skilled instrument maker who builds and plays a variety of folk instruments such as krars, fiddles, harps and drums. He has performed throughout the United States, Europe and Africa.
Seleshe Damessae founded the Gash Abera Molla Association, upon returning to Addis Ababa after 20 years as a successful singer in the United States and decided to address the social and environmental problems that plagued his home city. He set up the new organization and named it after a character in his songs - Gashe Abera, the old man who takes care of his local community.
Sileshi Demisse is a master of his craft. He is a legend. What actually sets Sileshi apart from other artists is what is mainly lacking in the industry these days... An authenticity!
He is nothing like any artist you know. You can't compare his works to no one or say I've heard that somewhere. He is totally in a league of his own. Often accompanied by his kirar (a traditional string instrument), Sileshi plays melodious songs with lyrics that leave you astonished. In his live sets, he incorporates folk tales and stories that inspired the specific song. And as he start strumming his self made custom kirar, the audience is already all on board to take the journey with him and get lost in his music. This special way of interaction he has with his audience often leads to a sing along. You can't help it but to chant, clap or snap along even if you don't know the words.
Gash Abera is also one of the very rare artists who made an album for kids. 'Dankira', one of his children's song.
Sileshi is not only known for his outstandingly unmatchable creativity but also for the positive impact he made in everyday lives of Ethiopians around the country. He does a phenomenal job in motivating the youth to keep their environment clean and helping tackle related health issues. In Ethiopia, the name 'Gash Abera Molla' is a synonym for 'Clean your neighborhood'. He has done almost the unthinkable in helping change the image of cities around Ethiopia. He inspired the youth around the country not only by teaching them the importance of a clean environment but also by participating in action.
Sileshi and his army of young Ethiopians were out picking up trash, cleaning up streets and setting up public parks where children and adults enjoy themselves. Places where people use as dumpster were turned into a green zone. Eventually, the mission grew from being 'Gash Abera and the youth' to inspiring the entire community get involved. He had accomplished what the city municipals around the country couldn't even attempt. His mission of creating a cleaner and healthier environment is still an ongoing effort that every Ethiopian should support.
Although it has been a minute since he has released a new album, Sileshi has recorded several albums and collaborated with the big names in African music scene. Currently, he resides in Addis Abeba where he performs and does features occasionally.
Teshome Mitiku's career stretches back to Addis Ababa, where he began performing at local schools and nightclubs when he was just a teenager.
In the late 60's, Teshome (singer/keyboard), Theodros "Teddy" Mitiku (alto saxophone), Tamrat Ferendji (trumpet), Fekade Amde-Meskel (bass), Tesfaye Mekonnen (drums), Alula Yohannes (guitar) and Seifu Yohannes (singer) joined to form the influential Soul Ekos Band. The band released numerous songs, including 4 tracks written by Teshome like Gara Ser New Betesh, Yezemed Yebada, Mot Adeladlogn and Hasabe.
Teshome Mitiku - Yegna Neger
Teshome fled to Sweden at the peak of his musical career in 1969 after the government endorsed a strict, mandatory night curfew, which prevented him from performing at local venues. A few years later, Emperor Haile Selassie was overthrown in a coup d'etat by the Dergue regime.
Teshome permanently moved to Sweden in 1970 and enrolled at the Music Conservatory in Malmo. He started performing with a 12-piece, jazz band, called Tolvan. He then switched gears and enrolled at Lund University, where he received his Masters of Arts in Sociology.
During a brief visit in the 80's to the United States, Teshome collaborated with the Admas Band and released "Teshome Mitiku and His Experience,"an album full of jazzy tracks like Mengezem Hulgezem and Almazeye.
In 1995, Teshome relocated to the United States and released the critically acclaimed album "Yegna Neger" with favorite tracks like Photoyen Ayechew and Che Belew.
In 1994, Mitiku also collaborated with Mulatu Astatke. Mitiku wrote the Wello Song (Pearl of Ethiopia) on Mulatu Astatke's "Assiyo Bellama" album.
In 1996, he coordinated with various Ethiopian artists and formed the first Ethiopian Music Association, where they teamed up and performed at various fundraisers to raise money for orphanages in Ethiopia.
His third album "Gara Ser New Betish" was released in 1997 with splendid tracks like Satenow and Bechegnaw.
In 1998, four of the songs that were originally recorded with the Soul Ekos Band and Teshome were released on "Ethiopiques Vol. 1".
In 1999, Teshome released his fourth album, "Yesterday & Today" with saxophonist and brother, Teddy Mitiku with remastered hits like Alemazeye and Che Belew .
In 2002, Either/Orchestra released "Afro-Cubism," a six track album that contained Teshome Mitiku's Yezemed Yebada.
Teshome's fifth album, Topia's Deluge was released on May 9th, 2006.
Singer Fekereaddis Nekatebeb was born and raised in Gonder, in a place/town called Dembia Koladeba. She started her music career at a young age in Gonder employed in the military. At the time, her parents didn’t have the clear knowledge of the importance of a music career; their choice for their daughter was for her to pursue work just like the ordinary, to become a doctor or to get educated to turn into a better person. As life’s path is a mystery, Fekereaddis stayed firm in her music profession.
The famous musician Tesfaye Lemesa, went to Gondar, and arranged Fekereaddis’s first album, which became bestselling album of the time.
Fekereaddis in speaking about her successful profession as dancer, she gives the utmost gratitude to choreographer Ejigayehu Abdisa, for the matter the fact Fekereaddis still raises her as the person who showed her the path to her singing profession.
In her music profession, she got recognized for her amazing voice and songs, to raise some of her works. Fekereaddis have worked with different melody and lyric composers including artists such as Tsegaye Deboch, Abebe Birehane, Adugna Bogale, Sirak Tadese, Elias Melka, Habtamu Bogale, and music arangers, including Tesfaye Lemesa, Roha Band, Elias Melka and Abegaz Kibrework.
She proudly speaks of the great respect and adoration she has for her countries great musicians Aster Aweke. Another great singer address’s her adoration to Fekereaddis in person and in the public media. In addition to the numerous successful albums Fekereaddis released as a single artist, the single she worked with cooperation of singer Dereje Degefaw, which focus on HIV, are one of the few songs which gave her adoration from the audience. Fekereaddis proclaims music as her life, and the way she makes a living, she adds that she support her family of seven by her profession. Fekereaddis is a valuable artist who cooperates in countless career wise issues, making her a person who values her peers first hand.
The golden age of Ethiopian popular music (as heard on the fabled ETHIOPIQUES series) is famous in part for the sparsity of material that it yielded: The state-owned recording industry was largely a ramshackle government vanity, and while music of the music it captured was strikingly haunting, only a few dozen tracks were recorded in the 1960s and '70s...
Shambel Belayneh - Yezenaye
Since then, the floodgates have opened as Ethiopia has more or less entered the modern world -- more artists are making and recording more music than was dreamed possible back in the politically repressive "good old days," and the fruits of this renaissance are heard on this 6-CD set.
The tracks are from the late 1990s and early '00s -- the artists are generally younger, more modern musicians, although a few old-timers like Mahmoud Ahmed are still alive and kicking, and sound as cool as ever. Although this collection doesn't have the same eerie power as the '70s-era recordings, anyone who got into the ETHIOPIQUES discs will want to check this out as well, to see where the music has gone since then.
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