Charles Sutton was a Peace Corps Volunteer and the sole American member of the Orchestra Ethiopia, a music and folk dance group which was active in Addis Ababa in the sixties and seventies. Besides playing the one-stringed masenko for the group, Charles served as the administrator of the group from 1966-1971. In a statement sent to Ethiopia Observer, he pays tribute to the Washint player Yohannes Afework, who died at 72 on February 25.

I am deeply saddened by the news of Yohannes Afework’s death.  It is a great loss to all who knew him and to the world of music at large.

Yohannes and I first became acquainted when he joined Orchestra Ethiopia early in 1968.  From the beginning, I was impressed by his superb mastery of the washint and the very high caliber of his overall musicianship. As the year drew to a close and preparations for the Orchestra’s upcoming tour of the U.S. intensified, I began to consult Yohannes extensively.  He generously provided invaluable information about washint playing, and about Ethiopian traditional music in general, that helped me greatly in preparing explanatory notes for our concert programs, as well as teaching materials for the music workshops we conducted for college students along the way–in which he was also a featured participant.

Most of all I remember how during the tour itself Yohannes, in addition to all that he contributed musically, went out of his way to give me much-needed help, support, and encouragement every day.  The friendship that we cemented then lasted a lifetime.

In later years Yohannes, who was one of the most affable and gregarious people I have ever known, would delight other former members of Orchestra Ethiopia by regaling us with his amazingly detailed and often humorous recollections of past events that the rest of us had long forgotten.

Yohannes’s death occurred on February 25, 2019, exactly 50 years from the day that Orchestra Ethiopia landed at Kennedy Airport to begin the concert tour of which he was such a vital part, and to which he contributed so much.

I will miss Yohannes dearly.  I extend my heartfelt condolences to his family and to his many friends and fans.

Old Saybrook, Connecticut
March 4, 2019

Main Image: Charles Sutton with Orchestra Ethiopia in 1967 (photo: Charles Sutton)