Experimental Sound Studio partners with Grow Greater Englewood to co-present Endris Hassen in the final outdoor performance of the 2022 OPTION season. Interview led by Kaethe Hostetter.
The OPTION series is curated by Tomeka Reid, Ken Vandermark, and Andrew Clinkman.
All 2022 performances are FREE and will be presented in-person throughout Chicago and as videos on ESS’s YouTube.
This event is rain or shine. Walk-ups welcome, reservations recommended.
About the Artists
Endris Hassen Ahmed began playing masinqo, a traditional Ethiopian one-stringed bowed instrument, at a young age. He was born and raised in Wello, an important region of Ethiopia both for this instrument, and for Ethiopian secular music in general.
After moving to Addis Ababa as a teenager, he quickly became the most sought after masinqo player in the country's capital. Endris has now been recording and performing actively for more than twenty years, andis featured on over two thousand domestically produced albums, distributed on all channels of Ethiopian media domestic and abroad. He is a frequent guest performer with traditional as wel as jazz and experimental ensembles in Ethiopia and internationally.
Endris served as chief masinqo player at Hager Fikir, a government sponsored traditional music and theater company established by Haile Sellasie in 1935, holding the position of Permanent Cultural Musician for 13 years. Endris is a founding member of several important groups, and is committed to keeping the rich tradition of Ethiopian music and dance alive and fresh. He has one instrumental solo record, called Taim. He’s collaborated with Éthiopiques founder Francis Falceto, performed with legendary Ethiopian singer Mulatu Astatke,
A choice experimental collaborator, Endris has collaborated frequently with Han Bennink, Paal Nilssen-Love, and Ken Vandermark, with DJ Magabo, with the Hip Hop Project Stereognosis, The Ex, Opera Frontier, and more. He has toured internationally representing for over two decades.
About the Interviewer
Kaethe Hostetter is an American violinist, composer, and bandleader, who's been deeply invested in exploring, preserving, and expanding Ethiopian traditional sounds for over 15 years. A founding member of critically-acclaimed Debo Band, Kaethe recorded many albums and toured the world, including a life-changing tour of East Africa in 2009. Soon after, she relocated to Ethiopia's capital, Addis Ababa, immersing herself in the country's deep musical culture. In her eleven years there, she founded a music school, and started a new band, QWANQWA; which brought together some of the most accomplished players in Addis Ababa’s music scene. QWANQWA has recorded 3 albums and made several international tours, although their 2020 U.S. debut tour was postponed until 2022, due to the COVID pandemic. During the COVID lockdown, she relocated to her hometown of Santa Cruz, CA, to quarantine with her family. While there Kaethe released QWANAQA's third album, and recorded a solo album of Ethiopian-inspired violin compositions, as well as two other albums in collaboration with other artists. As as solo artist she has performed with Fred Frith, Butch Morris, Ava Mendoza, Henry Kaiser, and others.
About OPTION
OPTION is an ongoing music salon curated by Chicago musicians Andrew Clinkman, Tomeka Reid, and Ken Vandermark and presented by Experimental Sound Studio. Its programming explores contemporary perspectives on improvisation and composition in a 'salon' format, enabling local, national, and international artists to publicly discuss their practice and ideas as well as perform.