Great Ethiopian Music Instruments Adapted To The Modern Style
12 August 2022
Music in Ethiopia has become more modern than ever. Thanks to globalization, Ethiopians have been exposed to music from different styles worldwide. And because of that, the Ethiopian music style has been greatly influenced by these foreign styles. Especially in recent years, the music style has been greatly influenced by African styles like Afro-pop and European styles like Rap.
Fortunately, Ethiopian music artists have also adapted the Ethiopian traditional music instruments and traditional music style to modern ones. One of the ways they achieved that is by introducing the country’s loved traditional musical instruments into modern songs. And they do it with such a convincing talent that the whole world admires their works. Let’s look at the Top 5 Ethiopian musical instruments adapted to the modern style.
1. Mesenko or Masinko (Amharic - መሰንቆ or ማሲንቆ)
Mesenko is a bowed string instrument with only one string on it. The diamond-shaped box at the bottom is square and consists of four small wooden boards glued together, then covered with a stretched rawhide. This box serves as a resonator. There is an 80 to 90 centimeters long wood to which the diamond-shaped square box is attached to one end and a large tuning peg to the other. Image source lehaymanot.com
The string is made from horse’s tail hair and it is attached to the top and bottom of the instrument. At the top, it is attached to the tuning peg and at the bottom, it is tied to the wood just below the resonator box. The string is then made to pass through a bridge located on the resonator box so that it can be stretched.Related - Traditional Ethiopian Dances: Exploring the Beautiful Embodied Rhythms
This instrument is also used in Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahdo Church’s spiritual songs.
In Ethiopia, especially in the northern rural part, Mesenko is a signature music instrument of local pub entertainers called “Azmari” plural “Azmariwoch” (Amharic - “አዝማሪ” Plural “አዝማሪዎች”). But this is also the case in culture-themed restaurants and pubs throughout the country. It may be bowed (played) by either the right or left hand, and the non-bow hand sits lightly on top of the upper part of the string. This musical instrument is only played by men. Playing this musical instrument requires a great deal of skill.
Mesenko is the most used traditional music instrument in modern time Ethiopian music with my favorite one being its use in Teddy Afro’s song “Senbere”, performed Mesqel square stage in Addis Ababa. At the 2019 Nobel peace prize award ceremony Bety G also performed sweet Ethiopian music titled “Sin Jaaladhaa” accompanied a great Mesenko performance.
2. Kebero (Amharic - ከበሮ)
Primarily used in the Ethiopian Orthodox Church spiritual songs, Kebero is a double-headed, conical hand drum used in Eritrean, Sudanese, and Ethiopian traditional music. A membrane (Membranophone) that vibrates to make a sound when struck with the palms is formed by stretching a piece of rawhide over either end of the instrument.
To stretch the rawhide, Kebero is made from a hollowed-out section of a tree trunk. Typically, the Kebero used in Orthodox Tewahdo Church is designed in such a way that one end of the Kebero is smaller than the other so different sounds can be made. Kebero makes the best sound if the air in it is expanded by heat. To achieve this most of the time Kebero is left in the sun for a while before it is used.
The above image is taken from Ephrem Amare’s song video clip "Sey (ሰይ)!
Kebero is mainly used for social ceremonial events. There is a common style with which Kebero is regularly featured in almost all Tigrinya songs. Also the type of Kebero used is smaller and equal-sized on both ends with the player usually playing one of the sides only, while holding the Kebero from the side. As is shown in the image below.
3 .Washint (Amharic -ዋሽንት)
Image source etsy.com!
Washint is an end-blown flute usually having four holes on it. Considered to be a typical musical instrument of herdsboys, it is found all over the country. Washint can be made of bamboo, wood, or other cane, although flutes of metal and plastic tubes are becoming more common.
Although 24 centimeters in length is common, there are variations in length and relative finger-hole placement, and a musician may utilize many different flutes during a performance to accommodate different song kinds. It typically has four finger holes, allowing the musician to play a pentatonic scale.
4. Krar (Amharic - ክራር)
Image source Wikimedia commons!
Krar is an Ethiopian and Eritrean bowl-shaped lyre with five or six strings. It is pitched in the pentatonic scale. It can be amplified in the same way that an electric guitar or violin can be.
In Northern Ethiopia, especially in the Amhara region, Krar has a history of being connected with outlaws, and wanderers. Wanderers used it to request food, and outlaws used it to perform war songs. Krar is now one of the most popular stringed instruments in Ethiopia. Krar is typically ornamented with wood, linen, and beads. The available pitches are determined by its five or six strings. The tone of the instrument is determined by the musician's playing technique: bowing, strumming, or plucking. When plucked, the instrument emits a gentle tone. Strumming, on the other hand, will produce a harmonious pulsation.
5. Tom (Amharic - ቶም)
Known as the “Piano of the thumb” Tom (also spelled Thom) is a popular instrument in the Gambella region, in Western Ethiopia bordering South Sudan. Done. Let me know what other traditional musical instruments should have been mentioned in this list. Thank you for reading, and don't forget to share...
