On Thursday the 22nd of March, Mulatu Astatke, widely known as the ‘father’ of Ethio-jazz, comes to the Barbican for a solo show alongside guests Fatima & Eglo Live Band, Ruby Rushton and Seb Rochford (Polar Bear). Whilst credited with inventing the genre of Ethio-jazz, it has still taken over 40 years for Astatke to receive the recognition he deserves. Born in 1943 in Jimma Ethiopia, he came to the UK in the ‘60s to continue his further education, earning himself a degree from Trinity College of Music, as well as forging important friendships with UK musicians: “I started playing different clubs. I used to hang out with Tubby Hayes, Frank Holder, Joe Harriott and Ronnie Scott. It was a beautiful time.”

Astatke then travelled to the USA, where he became the first student from Africa to enrol at Berklee College of Music in Boston, studying vibraphone and percussion. This is where he became interested in Latin jazz, one of the main influences of Ethio-jazz: “It was during the ‘60s that Ethio-jazz came to life,” he remembers. “One night we’d be playing a jazz club in New York, the next a Puerto Rican wedding north of the Big Apple.” Astatke was fusing western jazz & funk with Latin jazz, traditional Ethiopian folk melodies & church music, creating an iconic sound.

Astatke then brought his new sound – christened ‘Ethio-jazz’ – back to his home country, where he released several offerings on the famous Amha Records label, toured around the country with Duke Ellington, and influenced countless Ethiopian artists. This time is often described as the ‘Golden period’ of Ethiopian music, during the reign of Selassie, before the brutal dictatorship of Mengistu took effect in 1977, driving Astatke and many other musicians out of the country.

After this, Astatke became largely unknown outside of Ethiopia, with the exception of some record collectors, until 1998 when Parisian record label Buda Musique began to reissue many of the Amha-era Ethio-jazz recordings on CD. The first one to be dedicated to a single artist was Éthiopiques Volume 4: Ethio Jazz & Musique Instrumentale, 1969–1974, by Mulatu Astatke. This, along with the heavy usage of Astatke’s music in 2005 French-American comedy-drama film Broken Flowers, led to Astatke becoming more widely known than ever before.

Since then, Astatke has lectured as an artist-in-residence at M.I.T. in Boston, showing students that Ethiopian music has elements which pre-date classical music by many years: “…the Derashe tribe in Southern Ethiopia managed to play a diminished scale by cutting different sizes of bamboo. You can hear Charlie Parker, even Debussy using these scales. The Derashe used it in their music well before the advent of jazz or classical music.” He has also released a phenomenal album with London-based psychedelic jazz/funk band The Heliocentrics (Inspiration Information 3), received an honorary Doctor of Music degree from the Berklee College of Music, and continues to tour the world, sharing his beautiful music even at the age of 74. Don’t miss the chance to see one of the founding fathers of modern African music in the beautiful settings of the Barbican.

Podcast: Radio Mukambo #500 – 10 Year Celebration

Ten years of making radio and 500 podcasts, that’s what Mukambo is celebrating this week. So we have a special program talking you through the very vest albums of those ten years. Get ready for a trans-Atlantic trip going from Africa over Latin America to Europe, and a pan-African ride…

Artists: Batida , Dele Sosimi , Dizzy Mandjeku , Doña Onete , Ebo Taylor , Gaspar Z'África , Guts , Gyedu-Blay Ambolley , Jungle Fire , Konono N1 , London Afrobeat Collective , Michi Sarmiento , Mulatu Astatke , Newen Afrobeat , Oghene Kologbo , Raúl Monsalve , Raul Monsalve Y Los Forajidos , Rocky Marsiano , Seun Kuti , Son Palenque , The Bongo Hop

London Gig Guide (December 2019)

At times, we are the first to lose track of how many exciting music events happen in London each month, so we have decided to offer you some sort of “public musical service”, meant for all the locals and passers-by, with the aim of suggesting where to listen to some…

Artists: Afriqoui , Arteria Fm , Diabel Cissokho , Dub Pistols , Freek , Kasai Masai , Kongo Dia Ntotila , Mamadou Diabate , Mozão , Mulatu Astatke , Natty Campbell , Neue Grafik Ensemble , Parov Stelar , Skylla , Sourakata Koite , Yama Warashi , Young Paris

Event Review: Wilderness Festival 2019 @ Cornbury Park (Oxfordshire; Thursday 1st to Sunday 4th August 2019]

Situated within close proximity to some of the festival’s increasingly populated hangouts at Wilderness, such as the Atrium, if you happened to stumble upon the Level stage, you were almost guaranteed to be charmed by a constant conveyer belt of talented troubadours within the world music spectrum. There were memorable…

Artists: Colectiva , Dele Sosimi , Incognito , Project Karnak , Ruby Rushton

London Gig Guide (July 2019)

At times, we are the first to lose track of how many exciting music events happen in London each month, so we have decided to offer you some sort of “public musical service”, meant for all the locals and passers-by, with the aim of suggesting where to listen to some…

Artists: Afrikan Boy , Afriquoi , Amadou & Mariam , Amira Kheir , Amy True , Blue Lab Beats , Bumi Thomas , Carthnage , Dele Sosimi Afrobeat Orchestra , Dj Jigüe , Elpeche , Emicida , Ezra Collective , Fatima , Femi And The Inrhythms , Gianni Denitto , Imperio Bamba , Kamaal Williams , Koroleko Moussa Dembele , La-33 , Lua Preta , Marcelo D2 , Mayra Andrade , Merca Bae , Nané , Naphta , Neneh Cherry , Onra , Renegade Brass Band , Sons Of Kemet , Stella Chiweshe , Tássia Reis , The Blind Boy of Alabam , The Bongo Hop , Xylouris White , Zara Mcfarlane

Album Review: Ruby Rushton – Ironside [22a; April 2019]

The same old Ruby Rushton..? Not this time. Ruby Rushton have released their fourth studio album. Led by Tenderlonius, but including the likes of Nick Walters and Aiden Shepard, they have a history of creating albums that bring together their diverse influences of jazz, spiritual music, hip-hop and international sounds….

Artists: Ruby Rushton