Atse Tewodros Project is a group of Italian and Ethiopian musicians, the brainchild of Italian-Ethiopian singer, performer and writer Gabriella Ghermandi. It is a unique project in that it is the only existing Italian-Ethiopian band.
The ensemble aims to respect traditional Ethiopian music by opening it up to dialogue and exchange. The group creates pieces of local music with jazz inserts, reworking it according to the traditions – largely unknown abroad – of different ethnic groups in the country and performing songs in 8 different languages.
In 2022, Atse Tewodros Project recorded its second album ‘Maqeda’ (Ethiopian name for the Queen of Sheba), entirely dedicated to female figures from Ethiopian history and mythology and to ethnic rituals that have women at their centre. The album is the result of painstaking ethnomusicological research in Ethiopia.
In addition to some original pieces such as ‘Lucy’ (dedicated to the first hominid), the programme of the Addis Ababa concert, which will present the new album for the first time, will also include some pieces from the Italian singing tradition, incorporating Ethiopian musical instruments (masinko, washint, kirar). This is an innovative exchange, since until now the ensemble has only performed original pieces, inspired by Ethiopian tradition.
The tour continues in Tanzania, where the ensemble will be a guest at the Sauti za Busara Festival in Zanzibar on 11 February.
The performance is realised with the support of the Italian Embassy in Addis Ababa, the Emilia-Romagna Region and ATER Foundation.
Gabriella Ghermandi: voice
Misikir Mindaye: voice
Camilla Ferrari: voice
Fabrizio Puglisi: acoustic piano and fender rhodes
Misale Legesse: traditional Ethiopian drums
Endris Hassen: one string bowl ‘Masinko’
Camilla Missio: bass guitar
Abu Gebre: traditional Ethiopian flute ‘Washint’
Tommy Ruggero: drums and percussion
Anteneh Teklemariam: Ethiopian acoustic and electric lyre ‘Kirar’
