OCT 14-17 | Bay Area Sounds
Oct 16, 2021
Miner Auditorium
PLEASE NOTE:
This page is an archive of a past production
Please visit our calendar for all upcoming SFJAZZ shows.
Original show description below.
An Ethio-American singer, guitarist, Bay Area resident, and TED Senior Fellow, Meklit writes music steeped in traditional Ethiopian rhythms blended with her singer-songwriter’s poetic core, with floating melodies and dancing grooves that draw on sources as varied as East African music, Nina Simone and Joni Mitchell. Meklit became a sensation with the release of her 2010 debut On A Day Like This, an enchanting album featuring her delicately luminous original songs and traditional Amharic melodies. The album received rave reviews and featured coverage on PBS, National Geographic and NPR, and the singer has been on a meteoric rise ever since, spreading her distinctive brand of magic on numerous international tours, including numerous trips to her native Ethiopia, and criss-crossing the U.S.
Recently, Meklit was named Chief of Program at Yerba Buena Center of the Arts, and was a 2019 Artist-in-Residence at Harvard University.
Meklit’s triumphant 2017 Six Degrees album, When The People Move, the Music Moves Too, was an upliftingseries of songs inspired by Ethio-Jazz giant Mulatu Astatke that made Bandcamp’s list of Best Soul Albums of the year. In their review, Bandcamp called the release “an hour of solid joy.” She returns for the 2021-2022 Season to celebrate the release of her brand new album.
Meklit writes music steeped in traditional Ethiopian rhythms blended with her singer-songwriter’s poetic core, with floating melodies and dancing grooves that draw on sources as varied as East African music, Nina Simone and Joni Mitchell.
[Her] sound is a unique blend of jazz, Ethiopia, the San Francisco art scene and visceral poetry; it paints pictures in your head as you listen.
NPR
[Her] sound is a unique blend of jazz, Ethiopia, the San Francisco art scene and visceral poetry; it paints pictures in your head as you listen.
NPR
Personnel
Meklit vocals, guitar, krar
Howard Wiley tenor saxophone
Prasant Radhakrishnan tenor saxophone
Colin Douglas drums
Marco Peris Coppola percussion
Sam Bevan upright & electric bass
Kibrom Birhane keys
She sings of fragility, hope and self-empowerment, and exudes all three. What’s irresistible, above all, is her cradling, sensuous, gentle sound. She is stunning.
San Francisco Chronicle
Personnel
Meklit vocals, guitar, krar
Howard Wiley tenor saxophone
Prasant Radhakrishnan tenor saxophone
Colin Douglas drums
Marco Peris Coppola percussion
Sam Bevan upright & electric bass
Kibrom Birhane keys
She sings of fragility, hope and self-empowerment, and exudes all three. What’s irresistible, above all, is her cradling, sensuous, gentle sound. She is stunning.
San Francisco Chronicle
Watch & Listen
Meklit (featuring Andrew Bird)
I Want To Sing For Them All
Meklit
Yerakeh Yeresal (feat. Andrew Bird)
Meklit (featuring Andrew Bird)
I Want To Sing For Them All
Meklit
Yerakeh Yeresal (feat. Andrew Bird)