Mulatu Astatke

Mulatu Astatke (* 1943 in Jimma, Amharic ሙላቱ አስታጥቄ, name variant Astatqé ) is an Ethiopian musician ( vibraphone, percussion, keyboards) and radio host. He is considered the "father of Ethiojazz " known.

Life and work

Astatke comes from a wealthy Ethiopian parents house and went in 1956 to return to school in the UK, with the plan to become an aircraft engineer. There, he discovered and developed his interest in music; He played clarinet and percussion instruments. Astatke received his musical education in London, New York and Boston, where he was the first African student at Berklee College of Music and moved to the vibraphone. In professional circles, he was known in the 1960s when he joined Western jazz and Latin American music with traditional Ethiopian music and created a new style, the Ethiojazz. In 1971, he appeared together with Duke Ellington.

Back in Ethiopia, he founded the African Jazz Village, a mix of music school and club. As a radio host and TV host, he made his countrymen 's own rich musical history consciously. Since 2001, he worked with the U.S. Either / Orchestra; In 2009, he was with the Heliocentrics on tour.

2005, the film director Jim Jarmusch used pieces of Astatke on the soundtrack of his film Broken Flowers and helped the musician to new awareness.

Mulatu Astatke lives in Addis Ababa and is married to a teacher of English and mathematics. The couple has a son and a daughter.

Discography

• Maskaram Setaba 7 " (1966, Addis Ababa Records, U.S.)
• Afro-Latin Soul, Volume 1 (1966, U.S.)
• Afro-Latin Soul, Volume 2 (1966, U.S.)
• Mulatu Of Ethiopia, LP (1972, Worthy Records, U.S.)
• Yekatit Ethio - Jazz, LP (1974, Amha Records, Ethiopia )
• Plays Ethio Jazz, LP (1989, Poljazz, Poland)
• Ethio Jazz: Mulatu Astatke Featuring Fekade amde Maskal
• Mulatu Astatke
• Assiyo Bellema
• Ethiopiques, Vol 4: Ethio Jazz & Musique Instrumental, 1969-1974, CD (1998, Buda Musique, France)
• Music from Broken Flowers - contribution to the soundtrack of the film (2005, Universal, Berlin)
• New York - Addis - London. The Story of Ethio Jazz 1965-1975, CD (2009, Strut )
• Inspiration Information with The Heliocentrics CD (2009, Strut )
• Mulatu Steps Ahead, CD/2xLP (2010, Strut, Germany )
• Mochilla Presents Timeless Mulatu Astatke - Live recording from February 1, 2009 in Los Angeles, CD DVD/LP/MP3 (2010, Mochilla )
• Sketches of Ethopia ( Harmonia Mundi, 2013)