Wednesday, September 1, 2010

Girma Yifrashewa (b. 1967), Ethiopian Classical Pianist, Performs Chopin in Poland and Ethiopia


[Elilta (Cry of Joy): Ethiopian Classical Music by Girma Yifrashewa; Elilta (7:06), Ambassel (9:40), Chewata (9:31), Sememen (9:50), My Strong Will (7:32), The Shepherd with the Flute (8:50); Girma Yifrashewa, piano; Doroteya Dimitrova, violin; Lyubomir Nikov, cello; Mikhail Zhivkov, clarinet; Sofia Philharmonic Orchestra; Dian Tchobanov, Conductor; Balkan Multimedia Center (2006)]

Girma Yifrashewa had previously told us that he planned to visit Poland during 2010, the Chopin Bicentennial Year. We asked him for an update, and received this email yesterday:

“Hi Bill,
Nice to hear from you. I just came back from Warsaw and Birth Place of Chopin. I was very happy to be in Poland. I had a chance to see all the celebration of Chopin.

“I only had a chance to perform in his birth place just very briefly as you know the place is full of tourists. But here in Addis Ababa there will be a Chopin season starting from October. I will open the big celebration, a concert of Chopin's music here in Addis and followed by almost nine European pianists for the whole season. I will update you Bill. Best wishes. Girma”

Girma Yifrashewa recently informed us of his new website, http://www.GirmaYifrashewa.com. It is both attractive and informative. We have taken great pleasure from Girma's 2006 CD Elilta. AfriClassical.com is proud to have a 1-minute audio sample of each of the 6 tracks on the recording. With this CD, Girma Yifrashewa has demonstrated the feasibility of incorporating Ethiopian themes within Western classical forms.





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