Ashenafi Kebede (1938 – May 8, 1998) was an Ethiopian composer, conductor, ethnomusicologist, historical musicologist, music educator, novelist, and poet.
Kebede was born in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, in 1938 and was educated in musicology in the United States at the Eastman School of Music (1962), and Wesleyan University (M.A. 1969; Ph.D. 1971).
He founded the National Saint Yared School of Music in Ethiopia, serving as its first director (1963–1968).
He was designated a National Composer by Ethiopian Emperor Haile Selassie I, in 1967. Shortly after that he began his graduate studies in the United States, and earned the first Ph.D. in ethnomusicology at Wesleyan University.
The Shepherd Flutist, Ethiopian Symphony
Ashenafi was a prolific writer. His works include a novel, Confession (1964), articles in ethnomusicology journals, the book Roots of Black Music, and numerous articles in The Chronicler, the magazine of the Center for African-American Culture.
In his own compositions he combined Ethiopian and Japanese musical ideas. "Koturasia" is one such piece, written for flute, clarinet, violin, and Japanese koto. Among his other musical compositions were "Peace unto Ethiopia" and "The Life of Our Nation". His best known composition though rarely heard outside Ethiopia was "The Shepherds Flute", performed in 1968 with Hungarian State String Orchestra.
In the United States, he was Director of the internationally known Ethiopian Research Council, consisting of a group of Ethiopian and American scholars and professionals. At the time of his death he was Director of the Center of African-American Culture at Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida.
Professor Kebede died in Tallahassee, Florida, May 8, 1998. As spoken by the man, "you are here for me, I am not here for you."
Tracklist
A
01 - The Shepherd Flutist I (8:52)
02 - The Shepherd Flutist II (3:23)
03 - The Shepherd Flutist III (4:40)
04 - The Shepherd Flutist IV (11:56)
05 - The Shepherd Flutist V (3:23)
Composed By – Ashenafi Kebede
B
06 - Ethiopian Symphony [part I & II] (7:40)
07 - Ethiopian Symphony III (12:12)
08 - Ethiopian Symphony IV (10:53)
Composed By – Ashenafi Kebede
Ethiopian Symphony in three movements written by Ashenafi Kebede
The Hungarian State String Orchestra with Lóránt Kovács (Flute) conducted by Ashenafi Kebede
The Ethiopian Symphony was dedicated to the 75th birthday of H.I.M. Haile Selassie I.
Tsedenia Gebremarkosis an Ethiopian artist. She has released songs about HIV/AIDS. She shared the prize for best East African female at the Kora Awards in 2004 for the song "Ewedhalehu", with Achien'g Abura (Kenya) for her song "Toto Wangu.
Tsedenia has recently worked with the Ethiopian dub band Dub Colossus. They released an EP, 'A Town Called Addis' in June 2008 through Real World Records and a full length LP album of the same name was released in August 2008 exclusively through the Bowers & Wilkins Music Club.
Tsedenia Gebremarkos
She also sang two songs on the album Punt (Made in Ethiopia) by Invisible System released on Harper Diabate Records and produced by Dub Colossus cousin Dan Harper.
After fleeing their homeland of Ethiopia in the late ’70s to avoid conflict with the Marxist government, a trio of reggae musicians made their way to the United States.
Landing in Chicago, the three musicians began playing their African and Jamaican-flavored jams in reggae clubs around the city.
Fronted by singer/guitarist Mulu Gessesse, the band consisted of Mulu’s brother Zeleke Gessesse and close friend Meluka Retts.
In 1980, the band assumed the name Dallol, and put together a demo tape. Dallol gained a sizable following in Chicago quickly with its distinct Ethiopian-flavored sound. The demo soon found its way all over the country, outside of the United States, across the Caribbean and into the hands of a certain famous family in Jamaica.
“It was 1981, right after Bob (Marley) died,” Mulu recalled. “Our tape made its way to Rita (Marley), and she asked us to go on down to Jamaica. That was our first contact with the Marleys.”
Contacts with the first family of reggae proved to be a good thing for Dallol. Rita Marley produced the band’s first full-length album and helped the band out in a number of ways. Lodging and other commodities were provided to Dallol by the Marleys as the band made its tour of the islands.
It wasn’t long before the Marleys became more than contacts, with friendships forming between Dallol and Bob’s son, Ziggy Marley. “Ziggy was only 10 years old when we met him,” Mulu explained. “As a matter of fact, he played his first show with us.”
Good ties with the Marleys continued, and soon Dallol was asked to tour with Ziggy’s newly formed band “Ziggy and the Melody Makers.” Dallol’s Ethiopian and reggae roots served as a perfect backdrop to Ziggy’s continuation of his father’s style and heartfelt messages.
In the late ’80s, Dallol toured and recorded with Ziggy. The result of the combined effort was heard worldwide. One platinum and one gold album elevated Dallol to superstar status in the reggae industry.
“That experience was great because it enabled us to go all over the world,” Mulu said.
After about five years with Marley, Dallol returned to its second home in Chicago. Included in the move were a couple line change ups and a change of name for the group. Upon the addition of three more members, including two female vocalists, Dallol changed its name to Baaro.
Born 34 years ago in Adama, an Ethiopian city also known as Nazret, Ada Kassaye came to Oakland 15 years back to join her mother and several of her brothers and sisters. She first attracted attention in Northern California’s large Ethiopian community through her effusive dancing at cultural events and is now hoping to follow in the footsteps of such Ethiopian singers as Aster Aweke and Ejigayehu “Gigi” Shibabaw, both of whom lived in the Bay Area prior to finding international fame.
Ada Kassaye - Yamral
Many of the songs on “Yamral” reflect Kassaye’s homesickness for Ethiopia. She has been back twice since moving to California and hopes to return soon in the wake of her CD release. Family members in Ethiopia, she says, “called me and told me, ‘I heard you on the radio today.’”
“I’m happy,” she adds. “The door is open for me.”
Ada Kassaye - 01 - Agebagn (5:15) Ada Kassaye - 02 - Ya Gobez (5:05) Ada Kassaye - 03 - Hagere (5:39) Ada Kassaye - 04 - Yamral (4:37) Ada Kassaye - 05 - Baschalegn (4:26) Ada Kassaye - 06 - Adama (4:24) Ada Kassaye - 07 - Berena gebere (4:50) Ada Kassaye - 08 - Min yishalegnal (5:00) Ada Kassaye - 09 - Enate (5:23) Ada Kassaye - 10 - Yemesgen (4:29) Ada Kassaye - 11 - Madi shishay (5:30) Ada Kassaye - 12 - Lemeles (3:02)
Jonovan Cooper, a native of Windsor, NC USA, started playing music while in Kindergarten where his mother introduced him to the keyboard. Using the keyboard (organ) that she bought for him, he practiced and began making appearances in his local church playing and singing. He later began taking piano lessons and when he became old enough, he joined his school band. That’s when he picked up the saxophone, which became his instrument of choice. Despite an accident in the 8th grade that almost ended his career before it even started, he kept pursuing his dreams of playing professionally. He played throughout high school, studied Jazz at North Carolina Central University, Music Education at Norfolk State University and Saxophone at The American Conservatory. He thus acquired his BM, MM and DMA degrees and even studied Business Administration at American Intercontinental University where he received his MBA.
Jonovan was a member of the US Navy where he was stationed in the Atlantic Fleet Band in Norfolk, VA. There he lived for about six years also playing in local bands including “Right On,” a seventies show band well known throughout the US and countries around the world and his own jazz quintet. He also volunteered in the music ministry at his local church, “Calvary Revival Church” in Norfolk.
Later Jonovan moved to Orangeburg, SC after being hired as an Assistant Professor of Music Industry at South Carolina State University. There he also served as assistant band director and director of the university jazz ensembles (both vocal jazz and instrumental jazz ensembles). He taught there for four years before leaving for Ethiopia in 2008. After his initial move, Jonovan somehow found himself sailing around the world playing on cruise ships for Princess Cruises where he managed to see six of the seven continents within a time span of less than two years.
Jonovan Cooper - Anchihoye For His Majesty
Finally in 2011, Jonovan settled in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia where he taught music at a local international school and at a seminary school in the city. He also kept a heavy performance schedule throughout the city while taking care to learn the local music and giving it its due respect. He was so intrigued by Ethiopian music from the beginning that he made it a point to learn and write new compositions solely around the modes and rhythms of the country. Now Jonovan ministers through music at Beza International Church where he directs the music department. He also is an assistant professor of music at Yared School of Music, Addis Ababa University and teaches at Jazzamba School of Music.
While in Addis Jonovan has performed with several musicians and singers including Mulatu Astatke, Kalkidan Tilahun (Lily), Samuel Tesfamichael, and Dawit Getachew. In spite of all the teaching and music directing, Jonovan still manages to study the music of Ethiopia and has managed to record his first project under his own name, “Suite Abyssinia", which features various rhythms and modes of Ethiopia. He currently lives in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia with his wife and children.
In the words of Jonovan,
“Music should move people spiritually, emotionally, and physically. I choose, therefore, to strive to always affect people in a positive manner acknowledging my spiritual inspirations in my compositions and performances. I dare not claim to have some power to move people, however, people are moved when I perform. That, my friends, is not me but the God in me. My philosophy as a musician is to tell a story that the audience can relate to. Through this philosophy, I am able to be innovative and entertaining simultaneously."
Jonovan Cooper - 01 - ደስታ የኔ ነው (Joy is Mine) (8:42)
Jonovan Cooper - 02 - ተነሱና አመስግኑት (Get Up & Praise Him!) (11:23)
Jonovan Cooper - 03 - ብርሃናዊ መጋርጃ (Curtain of Light) (8:03)
Jonovan Cooper - 04 - 150 በጉራጊኛ… (150 With Guragegna…) (9:36)
Jonovan Cooper - 05 - አንቺሆዬ ለልኡሉ (Anchihoye For His Majesty) (7:27)
Jonovan Cooper - 06 - አማን ይሁን (Let There Be Peace) (6:12)
Jonovan Cooper - 07 - እንቁ የሆነ (Priceless) (6:41)
Jonovan Cooper - 08 - ኢትዮ ገነት (Ethio-Heaven) (9:16)
Born in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Tigist Ejigu developed a passion for music when she was a little girl. She had a sharp ear for music, and when she reached 10th grade she join the prestigious Yared Music School of Addis Ababa. Tigist showed an uncanny ability to replicate on piano most any music to which she was given ear. Her formal training at Yared exposed her to a broader repertoire of music, and both her technical expertise and her interpretive insightfulness blossomed.
In 1989, Tigist graduated from Yared with honors. She began performing professionally at hotels and restaurants in Addis Ababa. Wabe Shebelle, the Ibex, the Samit and the Hilton in Addis Ababa were among the hosts of her performances. Her repertoire included faithful renditions of traditional Ethiopian, western classical, and popular international music. It also included sensitive interpretative variations on themes of traditional Ethiopian and western classical music.
Tigist moved to America in 1996. She first performed at small Ethiopian restaurants and nightclubs in Washington, DC. She performed solo and with small ensembles, and she primarily performed traditional Ethiopian music. As her notoriety evolved, she began playing across the US -including Seattle, Los Angeles, Boston, and New York. DC is her home, and audiences at the Washington Hilton and the Hilton Capital find great favor with her sensitive melding of Classical and popular international themes. Of late, she has focused upon performing her own compositions. They have a jazz like improvisational quality, yet they capture and reflect both traditional Ethiopian and Western Classical aesthetics. Her performances are heartfelt, and her music has a universal appeal while Ethiopia is forever present.
Tigist's first album, Ambassel, has achieved international recognition. Her new second album is a collection of sensitive interpretations of Ethiopia's popular and traditional melodies. It is reflective of Tizita, Bati, Anchehoye Lene and Ambassel modes of expression.
e
Tigist Ejigu - 01 - Ambassel [a small village name found in Welo region,Ethiopia] (8:17) Tigist Ejigu - 02 - Yematbela Wof [Unedible Bird] (6:38) Tigist Ejigu - 03 - Yiwedegn Aywedegn [Does He Love Me, Does He Not] (6:37) Tigist Ejigu - 04 - Marigne Biyeshalehu [Accept My Apolgy] (5:33) Tigist Ejigu - 05 - Endit neh [How Are You?] (5:01) Tigist Ejigu - 06 - Tizita [Nostalgia] (8:22) Tigist Ejigu - 07 - S'thed s'ketelat [I'll Keep On Following Her Wherver She Goes] (5:06) Tigist Ejigu - 08 - Letidar [For Marriage] (6:03) Tigist Ejigu - 09 - Nafkote [My Beloved One Whom I Miss So Much] (6:41) Tigist Ejigu - 10 - Yenne fiker [My Love] (5:07)
