Mother Ithiopia

MOTHER ITHIOPIA [INTRO — Solo washint flute echoing over distant mountains. No drums. An elderly Ethiopian woman begins singing softly, unaccompanied.] [ELDER FEMALE — AMHARIC] Ityop'ya, enate hoy… (Ethiopia, O my mother…) Ityop'ya, enate hoy… [WOMEN'S CHOIR — DISTANT] Enate hoy… Enate hoy… [VERSE 1 — FEMALE CONTRALTO] Before I knew the morning sun, Before my feet could walk the ground, You held the stories of my people, You kept their voices in your sound. I hear your rivers speaking softly, I hear your mountains call my name, And though the years may take me farther, My heart returns to you again. [WOMEN'S CHOIR — SOFT RESPONSE] Mother, Mother Ithiopia, We have heard you calling. Mother, Mother Ithiopia, Your children are returning. [VERSE 2 — MALE ELDER, DEEP AND RESONANT] I have seen the ancient kingdoms, I have watched the seasons turn, I have seen the fields lie empty, And the lamps of hope still burn. I have heard the songs of mothers As they worked beneath the sun, And the prayers of many fathers For the daughters and the sons. [CHOIR — SLOWLY BUILDING] Oh, Mother! We remember! Oh, Mother! We remember! [CHORUS — FULL ETHIOPIAN CHOIR, KE BERO DRUMS ENTER] MOTHER ITHIOPIA! LAND OF OUR BEGINNING! MOTHER ITHIOPIA! HEAR YOUR CHILDREN SINGING! FROM THE HIGHLANDS TO THE VALLEYS, FROM THE RIVERS TO THE SEA, MOTHER ITHIOPIA! YOUR SONG SHALL LIVE IN ME! [INSTRUMENTAL — Krar lyre repeating a pentatonic melody, masenqo responding, kebero drums in slow 6/8] [VERSE 3 — FEMALE SOLOIST, EMOTIONAL] I have carried you through cities Where your mountains cannot rise, But I see your golden morning Every time I close my eyes. There are children who have wandered, There are names we do not know, Still the roots beneath our footsteps Tell us where our hearts may go. [AMHARIC CALL AND RESPONSE — WOMEN AND MEN] LEAD: Ityop'ya, enate hoy! (Ethiopia, O my mother!) CHOIR: Enate hoy! (O my mother!) LEAD: Selam le'Ityop'ya! (Peace to Ethiopia!) CHOIR: Selam! Selam! (Peace! Peace!) LEAD: Egziabher yimesgen! (Praise be to God!) CHOIR: Hallelujah! Hallelujah! [BRIDGE — DRUMS FALL SILENT, A CAPPELLA CHOIR] May your daughters walk in freedom, May your sons return in peace, May your harvests fill the valleys, May your children's hunger cease. May your elders rest in honor, May your stories never fade, May the hands that built your cities See the beauty they have made. [CHOIR — WHISPERED, GROWING] Rise, Mother… Rise, Mother… Let the morning find you… Rise, Mother… Rise, Mother… We are standing beside you… [FINAL CHORUS — MAGNIFICENT FULL CHOIR, STRONG DRUMS, ULULATION] MOTHER ITHIOPIA! LAND OF OUR BEGINNING! MOTHER ITHIOPIA! HEAR YOUR CHILDREN SINGING! LET THE MOUNTAINS RING WITH GLORY! LET THE ANCIENT RIVERS FLOW! MOTHER ITHIOPIA! YOUR CHILDREN LOVE YOU SO! [CHOIR — REPEATED IN HARMONY] We remember! We remember! Mother Ithiopia! We remember! [OUTRO — INSTRUMENTS FADE, ELDER FEMALE RETURNS ALONE] Ityop'ya, enate hoy… Ityop'ya, enate hoy… [Soft washint flute] [Silence]