Mulatu Astatke was the coordinator for the workshop and had gathered a lot of young jazz musicians, professors from the university and the media. He had also invited a traditional performance group who had a concert for the Norwegians. The Core really appreciated this performance and was exited about the music they heard and the dance they could see they expressed after the performance. Jørgen Mathisen, the Norwegian saxophonist joined the group (see front page picture) and jammed together with them with his saxophone. You could see the smile and enjoyment of this collaboration both on the Ethiopians and the Norwegians who where present at the workshop. Later on the Core showed them how they play and use their instruments. During the workshop both the locals and the Norwegians had a lot of questions and both parts could exchange different methods and experiences. The workshop lasted for about three hours.
In the evening the club was again filled up with people, both young jazz enthusiasts and the more refined audience. The Core played two sessions and the first one was exclusively their own material. In the next session Mulatu Astatke joined in and they played one of his greatest hits. It was really appreciated by the audience and the musicians as well.
Everybody had a good time and both Astatke and The Core wish to do something like this again. “Hopefully next time they can even have more time to do greater things,”Astake said after this experience.
From the Embassy we hope that all of you who were present enjoyed this experience and want to see more like this again. So if you have any ideas, please don’t hesitate to contact us. We would also like to use this opportunity to thank all the people who where involved in this arrangement, we could not have done it with out you. A special thanks goes out to The Core and Mulatu Astatke who made this experience happen.