MULATU ASTATKE

In the organizer's words:

Gretchen presents: Mulatu Astatke *live* @ Huxleys

Mulatu Astatke: The pioneer of Ethio Jazz is going on a big farewell tour with his new album "Mulatu Plays Mulatu".

Mulatu Astatke founded the genre of Ethio Jazz with his mixture of classical jazz, Latin American influences and traditional Ethiopian music. This music sounds so unique, hypnotic and transcendent that you can't get it out of your head. Mulatu not only masters the vibraphone and conga drums, but also other percussion instruments, keyboards and organ and was already making a name for himself in jazz circles in the 1960s. Today he is considered one of the most influential musicians in Africa.

Born in 1943 in Jimma, a town in western Ethiopia, Astatke was given the opportunity to study in faraway England. He studied clarinet at Trinity College of Music in London and in the early 1960s was the first African to transfer to the renowned Berklee College of Music in Boston. He worked with Fela Kuti and Hugh Masekela to establish African music in its non-Americanized form and played his way through New York jazz clubs with his Ethiopian Quintet. In 1971 he performed with Duke Ellington.

After graduating from Berklee College, he returned to Ethiopia and combined western influences from jazz and funk with the traditional sounds of his homeland. In 2005, Jim Jarmusch used Astatke's music for the soundtrack of his tragicomedy "Broken Flowers". The attention this attracted led to his early recordings being released outside Ethiopia. Mulatu has been recording new music in various formations since 2009. Releases such as "Inspiration Information", Mulatu Steps Ahead" and "Sketches of Ethiopia" bear witness to his class. In the 2010s, Mulatu Astatke toured the world, founded the Jazz Village in Addis Ababa, a mixture of music school and club, and, as a radio presenter and TV host, brought his own rich musical history closer to the people of his homeland. In the summer of 2024, Mulatu experienced another highlight of his career with a US tour that took him to the Hollywood Bowl Jazz Festival, among other places.

Mulatu Astatke is now bidding farewell with an extensive tour and his new album "Mulatu Plays Mulatu", which was recorded both in London and in his Jazz Village in Addis Ababa. The album features his entire big band together with Ethiopian musicians - a worthy conclusion to a magnificent career. "All my life I wanted to bring Ethio-jazz to all corners of the world for people to enjoy, and I feel that I have succeeded," says Mulatu. We agree and are very happy to be a part of this incredible journey with countless great shows we have organized with Mulatu over many years.

Presented by untoldency