Abatte Barihun

Young Barihun fell for the march sound of the saxophones and other wind instruments emerging from the neighbouring military brass band.[6] This period in his life came to an abrupt end six years later, when the band's bus was ambushed by EPRDF forces, rebelling against Mengistu's Marxist dictatorship.[7] Facing a language barrier and alimony, Barihun worked as a dishwasher in a restaurant through the day and as a night security guard.[2] Israeli paired Barihun with jazz pianist Yitzhak Yedid, a successful match that gave rise to the "Ras Deshen Ensemble".Ras Dashen belongs to the rugged Semien Mountains, where Ethiopian Jews defended themselves against persecutions by the Christian Emperors of Ethiopia through the 14th-17th Centuries.[3][8][11] The album blends free jazz with four musical modes used in the Ethiopian Highlands, comprising the qenet[broken anchor] modal system.Bati is a market town in the southern part of Wollo, in the Oromia Zone, between the Ethiopian highlands and the Great Rift Valley.Krar player Fentahon Malessa accompanies Barihun's improvisations on the saxophone, in an instrumental variation of Assafe Abatte's melody, in Bati-minor mode.The dramatic element of the composition is steadily built, from the opening piano tap to the tenor groans at the fourth minute.The first peak of the duet leads to a brief piano session, after which the saxophone clears its path to a touching exhibition of creativity to the end of the composition.Multiple brilliant instants are packed into these seven short minutes, illustrating that the mutual inspiration between Barihun and Yedid yields their most fascinating moments.Holmes has remarked that Abatte's tenor "has a palpable R&B/gospel tinge, with an occasional gutbucket growl added for good measure, working in tandem with Yedid's playful boogie-woogie chaos".Downtown Music Gallery has commented on this tune that Barihun "reaches even deeper into his heart and soul and sings this touching piece sublime spirit".At the third minute Yedid vamps like Fats Waller, as Barihun's tenor Sax "grooves between Ethiopia and the Mississippi Delta".[15] The duo is joined by singer Esther Keinan-Ofri, drummer Tegen Zenba, contrabassist Ora Boazsson-Chorev and dancer Tezeta.