A Suite of Contemporary Ethiopian Poetry

Abstract

WORLDLITERATURETODAY.ORG 27 poetry The lively center of the contemporary Ethiopian performance poetry scene can be found in the capital, Addis Ababa. Scores of young and old poets have approached the writers presented here in the past two years, asking and auditioning to perform with them. According to Eric Ellingsen (whose essay appears on page 30), “This is really considered a bit of a movement in Addis. There is nothing else like it.” above For a group of art performances in July 2013 called Wax and Gold organized by the Netsa Art Village, visual artist Mulugeta Gebrekidan presented “Invading Samsung Square”to protest the corporate advertising takeover of Addis Ababa’s public spaces. Enkutatash by Misrak Terefe new year new year: enkutatash – my pearly blues. of all the names why did the angel give you this? oh how i wish your name would just be pearl – enku would be enough – but why tatash? tatash with all our troubles, tatash with all our blues. we already have enough of that: don’t borrow us more trouble. enkutatash – for you – to bloom we bake the bread. we spread the grass as carpets, flat, we burn the incense, add the plates, the blessed, to celebrate – to celebrate the change. enkutatash, if you come – then change. then change us, too. but if you come to bring new trouble – year after year – don’t come at all. Translation from the Amharic By Rike Scheffler A Suite of Contemporary Ethiopian Poetry Compiled by Eric Ellingsen 28 WLT JANUARY/ FEBRUARY 2015 An Ethiopian musician, Jorga Mesfin is the founder of the Ethio-jazz group Wudasse and composed the score to Haile Gerima’s epic movie Teza, for which he won the award for Best Music Selection at the twenty-second Carthage Film Festival and Best Composer Award at the fifth Dubai International Film Festival. Up to the End by Abebaw Melaku Abel far able in grace in innocence far beyond reach, poor Cain in changing riches held too near sinks into this abyss. Into a story in the start in the dark changes in a bruise in blackness introducing a violence in the start of humankind. Let’s go down, Abel says to his brother to snatch his breath from him. A chapter in death’s memoirs, over ages will be spoken by men, by angels will be written written now as follows. “Two brothers stepped down into the valley, one killer returns one killed not able to return. “One coming back one staying back the one saying, come down let’s go down together –” Now one stays, in having come down, now a murder. After half a day missing something a half-fulfilled day half-unsuccessful a day half-lived, after this betrayal the trust in half breaks between those on mountaintops and those on mountaintops’ bottoms. The line of Adam no matter how brave, no matter the talk, no matter the profit, no matter the titles, the one staying on top says, “Oh, they will kill me if I come down so I will not step down.” Therefore once reaching the top, to step down equals death. Am I able to step down when told to step down when in coming down Abel’s life is left? Of course, why should he step down? Has stepping down benefited anyone who has reached the top, unless the killing of those who step down is stopped, forever? Translation from the Amharic By Eric Ellingsen & Jorga Mesfin Misrak Terefe is a renowned poet in Ethiopia who published the first poetry VCD as a female poet. A founding member of the Tobiya poetic jazz group, she has various joint publications with other writers as well as the Tobiya poetry and jazz DVD (vol. 1) release. Abebaw Melaku is a renowned poet and journalist who published the verse collection Keradion in 2007 and an audio poetry CD the following year. In 2008 he was one of the founding members of the Tobiya poetic jazz group, and he is also a journalist for Ethiopia’s most influential radio show, Addis Zema. Rike Scheffler (b. 1985, Berlin) is a poet, co-founder of the Berlin poetry collective G13, and songwriter whose work has...