1. Mulatu Astatke is an Ethiopian musician and arranger considered as the father of "Ethio-jazz".
12 Facts About Mulatu Astatke
1. 2.
Mulatu Astatke's albums focus primarily on instrumental music, and Mulatu appears on all three known albums of instrumentals that were released during the Ethiopian Golden Age of Music in 1970s.
3.
Mulatu Astatke's family sent the young Mulatu Astatke to learn engineering in Wales during the late 1950s.
4.
Mulatu Astatke collaborated with jazz vocalist and percussionist Frank Holder.
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The records prominently feature Mulatu Astatke's vibraphone, backed by piano and congas playing Latin rhythms, and were entirely instrumental with the exception of the song "I Faram Gami I Faram," which was sung in Spanish.
6.
Mulatu Astatke recorded Mulatu Astatke of Ethiopia in New York City, but most of his music was released by Amha Eshete's label Amha Records in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, including several singles, his album Yekatit Ethio Jazz, and six out of the ten tracks on the compilation album Ethiopian Modern Instrumentals Hits.
7.
Mulatu Astatke remained to play vibes for Hailu Mergia and the Walias Band's 1977 album Tche Belew before the Walias left Ethiopia to tour internationally.
8.
Mulatu Astatke's music has had an influence on other musicians from the Horn region, such as K'naan.
9.
Mulatu Astatke served as an Abramowitz Artist-in-Residence at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, giving lectures and workshops and advising MIT Media Lab on creating a modern version of the krar, a traditional Ethiopian instrument.
10.
On 1 February 2009, Mulatu Astatke performed at the Luckman Auditorium in Los Angeles with a band that included Bennie Maupin, Azar Lawrence, and Phil Ranelin.
11.
Mulatu Astatke released a two-disc compilation album to be sold exclusively to passengers of Ethiopian Airlines, with the first disc containing a compilation of styles from different regions of Ethiopia and the second consisting of studio originals.
12.
In 2015, Mulatu Astatke began recording with Black Jesus Experience for Cradle of Humanity, which premiered at the Melbourne Jazz Festival in 2016 and was followed by a tour of Australia and New Zealand.