Ragnar Johnson & Ralph Harrisson: Ethiopian Musics 1971

Sub Rosa 584 (Do LP) - € 33
Astounding, heart-warming field recordings of indigenous Ethiopian folk musics, incl. 4-page insert
"... Ethiopian Musics 1971, comprising the recordings originally released by Ocora shortly after their completion, expanded in this edition to include an entire disc of never before released music. Widely regarded as some of the most important field-recordings ever made of indigenous Ethiopian folk music (as captivating and intoxicating as they are revelatory: providing insights into the roots of the country's singular traditions of popular music and jazz that have come to be celebrated the world over), this incredible collection is issued by Sub Rosa in a beautifully produced 2LP edition, complemented by a four page insert providing detailed descriptions of each song, as well as notes by the ethnomusicologists and recordists.
[...]
During the summer of 1971, the young ethnographer, Ragnar Johnson, accompanied by Ralph Harrisson, traveled to Ethiopia to begin his brief career as a field recording ethnomusicologist, capturing material on reels of magnetic tape that would be subsequently released across three LPs for Lyrichord and Ocora, respectively, coming to form a cornerstone of documentation and study of the country's many indigenous musical traditions, as well as providing wide, global access to them for the first time."

Tracklisting:

Song About the Beauty of Women

Afar Jinele Divination

Fila Flute Dance

Hold It In My Stomach

You Sting My Eyes

Nawa Dorze Song

The Stork Came Down

Bagana Prayer to Angels

Bagana (My Beloved Gabriel, My Beloved St Michael)

Craar Instrumental (Mary Armede)

Secret Affair (Mary Armede)

Tej Beit Song

Bitter Lemon (Mary Armede Duet)

Anuak Toum

Nuer Dance

Fila Flute Dance 2

Bagana

Love Song (Mary Armede)

Drum Song (Jigsaw)

He-le-le Ampapa (Dorze Work Song)

Nuer Harp

Anuak Toum (Sanza)

Afar Flute (The Hunting of the Oryx)