Emahoy Tseque-Maryam Gebrou has led quite a life.
To be fair, most people who live past the age of 90 probably have a story or two to tell. But even in that context, her life stands out.
These are some of the things she has been during her 95 years:
- Boarding school student in Switzerland
- Prisoner of war
- Violin student in Cairo
- Singer to the Emperor of Ethiopia
- First woman to work in the Ethiopian civil service
- Ordained nun
- Ascetic (didn’t play piano, use electricity, or wear shoes for ten years)
- Speaker of seven languages
- Composer, pianist, musical icon
If you’ve got a half-hour to spare, I highly recommend learning more via this excellent BBC radio documentary about her life.
But if all you’ve got is three minutes, listen to this song of hers, and imagine Emahoy in any of the above stages of her life. Somehow, it works as a soundtrack to any of them.
What makes this a beautiful song:
1. The twinkling notes in the right hand. They sound like butterflies. Or drops of water. Or butterflies washing their wings with drops of water.
2. Her music, while completely original, seems to incorporate fractions, echoes of different styles. I can imagine her enjoying Ahmad Jamal as much as she might enjoy Satie.
3. Pulling from Ethiopian sacred music, Gebrou uses the pentatonic scale. This makes it (to me at least) sound simple, playful, and genuinely, deeply human.
Recommended listening activity:
Making a promise to your 95-year-old self.