tezeta

tezeta
mahmud ahmed
ένα από τα πιο όμορφα τραγούδια που έχω ακούσει ποτέ...

[για τις μαρίες, τις δέσποινες και τους παναγιώτηδες]

Tezeta, an Ethiopian style with a relatively strict format built on repeated circular riffs, relies on the singer to put his stamp on the form with improvised verses and the up-and-down vocal spirals characteristic of Arabic music. The word itself means something like memory or nostalgia -- in musical terms, it's similar to saudade in Portuguese music, duende in flamenco, or blues and soul in the U.S. music world. It's that indefinable something that separates the great musicians from the merely competent -- you can't exactly say what it is but you know when someone's got it. Mahmoud Ahmed's "Tezeta" runs for 12 and a half gripping minutes with swirling organ, muted sax, and bubbling bass runs supplementing the voice of the most expressive singer in Ethiopian pop music.