Souvenirs

The world lost a unique composer with the passing of Emahoy Tsege-Mariam Gebru at the age of 99 last year. Her beguiling piano melodies that mix Ethiopian and European classical and religious music marked her as a true original. Now, Souvenirs shows a different side of her music.

This is the first full release of Tsege-Mariam’s vocal music, home recordings of her singing her own songs in Amharic, accompanied by that unmistakable piano. Recorded in Addis Ababa between 1977 and 1985, these are special, emotional recordings – one need only listen to the opener ‘Clouds Moving on the Sky’ to feel it. We also hear some of her most Ethiopian moments here: ‘Ready to Leave’ is a tezeta, a song of wistful yearning and loss, and it’s almost as if the piano takes the role of a giant krar lyre.

These are lovely songs. However, whether it is because of the lyrics-focussed nature of these pieces or the less-optimal quality of the amateur recordings, this set doesn’t quite give the revelatory, otherworldly experience of Tsege-Mariam’s solo piano works. Nevertheless, Souvenirs remains a special, touching album that adds to the beautiful legacy of a much-missed musical genius.