‘Maqeda’: An homage to Ethiopian female figures, communities, rituals, and musical styles. Released by the Atse Tewodros Project
Gabriella Ghermandi is an Italo-Ethiopian singer, performer, novelist, and short-story writer. Her writing focuses on the intersection of Ethiopian and Italian identity. Parallel to her writing, Gabriella has built a reputation as a performer of narratives adapted from Ethiopia’s oral and musical tradition. Her readings are usually accompanied by Ethiopian music and songs and revolve around historical events. These performances have toured around the world.
The Atse Tewodros Project
This is a musical ensemble created by Gabriella in 2010. Her vision was to bring together an ensemble of Italian and Ethiopian musicians to foster mutual dialogue and artistic creation. The Project was founded in Addis Ababa, growing out of the collaboration between Gabriella, Ethiopian composer Aklilu Zewdy, and Professor Berhanu Gezaw. It is named after the Ethiopian Emperor Atse Tewodros II who ruled from 1855 to 1868 and is widely considered the father of modern Ethiopia, providing Ethiopia the chance
to modernize while respecting its traditions. Similarly, the Atse Tewodros Project creates
music that opens up the diverse traditions of Ethiopian music to dialogue and exchange of different musical genres.
“Maqeda”
The making of the Maqeda album, released on 21 June 2024, was brought to fruition by the Atse Tewodros Project, Maqeda being the Amharic name for the Queen of Sheba. It’s an Ethiojazz album entirely dedicated to the female figures of Ethiopian and African history and the mythology and rituals of various ethnic groups that center around women. Meticulous research from Gabriella and her musical team resulted in the use of four different Ethiopian languages; Amharic, Kunama, Gamo and Gofa. Every song is an homage to female figures, communities, rituals, and musical styles.
Source: www.gabriella-ghermandi.it/music/