With nearly three decades of experience teaching Ethiopian cultural dance to young people, Lij Temesgen Melese has taken a distinctly local tradition onto the global stage. His latest endeavor, Ethiopian Traditional Dance Music, or ETDM, seeks to preserve the integrity of Ethiopia\u2019s cultural forms while adapting them for contemporary audiences.<\/p>\n
Anchored by the motto \u201cBack to My Roots,\u201d the project emphasizes identity, self-reliance and cultural continuity. Temesgen\u2019s approach blends traditional rhythms and choreography with elements of electronic dance music, producing a hybrid form that speaks to both domestic and international listeners without severing its origins.<\/p>\n
For Temesgen, the aim is not simply aesthetic innovation. His compositions foreground movement as a cultural language, translating the meaning embedded in traditional dance into a format accessible beyond Ethiopia\u2019s borders.<\/p>\n
He is also the author of \u201cNihine<\/em>,\u201d derived from a Ge\u02bdez word meaning \u201cWe,\u201d a title that reflects his emphasis on collective identity. His work has drawn recognition abroad, including participation honors from the Southern Ethiopian Musicians Association at the Africa International Music Festival.<\/p>\n Over the years, Temesgen has performed as a cultural representative in countries including Algeria, Nigeria and the United States, presenting a range of Ethiopian dance traditions. He holds a master\u2019s degree from Howard University in Washington, D.C., and has contributed to projects such as the dance film festival \u201cMek\u2019rez<\/em>\u201d and the \u201cTemu<\/em> Mirt<\/em>\u201d dance reality program on DStv.<\/p>\n His trajectory into the arts was far from assured. Raised in Addis Ababa, he spent part of his youth supporting his family as a shoe shiner. Today, with more than two decades of stage experience, his contributions to cultural education have been incorporated into a Grade 2 national textbook.<\/p>\n Temesgen\u2019s early life unfolded in the busy Shiro Meda area, where he was born and raised. By the age of 12, he had begun to pursue dance more seriously, drawing inspiration from his immediate surroundings.<\/p>\n His father, a shemane<\/em>, or traditional weaver, worked long hours producing shema \u2014 the fabric used in Habesha clothing \u2014 while his brother practiced painting. The rhythms of the loom and the discipline of visual art formed an environment that quietly shaped his sensibility for movement and expression.<\/p>\n In 1998, Temesgen joined the Children and Youth Theatre Club, marking his entry into formal artistic training. Five years later, he advanced to the Hager Fikir Theatre, one of the country\u2019s most prominent cultural institutions, where he worked alongside established figures including Tesfu Birhane, Aster Bedane and Sinafikish Tesfaye.<\/p>\n The experience proved formative.<\/p>\n At one point, he performed on the stages of both the Children and Youth Theatre and Hager Fikir Theatre in a single day \u2014 a moment he regards as a turning point in his career. Building on that momentum, he went on to establish the Ye-Temesgen Lijoch <\/em>Ethiopian Cultural Dance Group.<\/p>\n The group quickly gained attention, attracting a growing number of students and audiences. Under his direction, enrollment expanded significantly, with nearly 40 young dancers training in traditional forms \u2014 a sign, Temesgen said, of sustained interest among a new generation in Ethiopia\u2019s cultural heritage.<\/p>\n Over time, Ye-Temesgen Lijoch (YTL) has developed into a prolific performance ensemble, with appearances on more than 500 stages and in four stadiums. Its productions have included large-scale musical theater works featuring choreographies involving as many as 1,500 performers.<\/p>\n Temesgen attributes part of the group\u2019s growth to an unconventional training method. Dancers rehearse to DJ-driven beats and perform based on real-time cues \u2014 an approach he said has broadened both discipline and adaptability. A televised version of the format ran for six consecutive months, drawing a sustained audience.<\/p>\n His own artistic output has also expanded. In addition to writing and performing two original singles, Temesgen has contributed vocals to projects by other Ethiopian artists. His latest undertaking, \u201cETDM Beats,\u201d is a 13-track album that blends traditional Ethiopian forms with contemporary production, incorporating elements drawn from 17 cultural traditions.<\/p>\n The album, arranged by the krar<\/em> player Fasika Hailu, brings together a range of collaborators, including instrumentalists and vocalists such as Gizachew Teshome and Tesfaye Taye. Among its tracks are \u201cDorze Dance,\u201d which combines Dorze and Minjar influences, and \u201cErase Enesalehu<\/em>,\u201d a piece that merges reggae with stylistic elements from the Raya tradition.<\/p>\n Through ETDM Beats and related initiatives, Temesgen has sought to position traditional dance and music within a broader global framework, while also creating opportunities for young performers.<\/p>\n He described ETDM as a practical response to the challenge of representing Ethiopia\u2019s wide array of dance traditions \u2014 more than 80, by his estimate \u2014 under a single, recognizable platform. \u201cIt becomes difficult to market each individually on the global stage,\u201d he said, adding that a unified format could help younger artists engage across cultures.<\/p>\n At the same time, Temesgen expressed concern about structural constraints facing the creative sector. He said limited institutional support and the absence of a comprehensive cultural policy continue to restrict growth.<\/p>\n \u201cThere is no clear framework governing the arts, despite the sector\u2019s economic potential,\u201d he said, calling for policy reforms that would better support artists and cultural entrepreneurs.<\/p>\n He also pointed to challenges in advancing larger initiatives. A proposal he developed to establish an arts university was not approved, he said, citing regulatory and land-access barriers. \u201cWe need a system that allows artists to pursue projects at scale,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Despite those obstacles, Temesgen said his long-term goal remains to establish a cultural center that can present Ethiopian artistic traditions at an international standard while serving as a platform for future generations.<\/p>\n Temesgen also places part of the responsibility for the sector\u2019s stagnation on the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture, which he said has yet to give sustained attention to the arts. At the same time, he pointed to the government\u2019s Corridor Project \u2014 which has reshaped parts of Addis Ababa\u2019s urban landscape \u2014 as an example of how targeted reform and investment could produce what he described as \u201cradical change\u201d in the cultural sphere.<\/p>\n To Meweded Kibru, an artist and choreographic director who has worked closely with him, Temesgen\u2019s practice defies narrow definition. He described it as \u201cmulti-dimensional,\u201d arguing that Temesgen operates not only as a choreographer or trainer, but as a thinker capable of interpreting artistic expression from multiple vantage points.<\/p>\n Meweded said Temesgen\u2019s work extends beyond performance into mentorship and cultural preservation. By training more than a hundred students \u2014 often taking into account their personal circumstances, education and family background \u2014 he uses dance as a tool for discipline and development. In that role, Meweded said, Temesgen functions as both instructor and guardian figure.<\/p>\n He pointed to the recent ETDM album as evidence of Temesgen\u2019s broader artistic reach, describing it as an attempt to position Ethiopian music within an international framework.<\/p>\n During collaborative sessions, Meweded observed a process that went beyond choreography in the conventional sense. Temesgen, he said, constructs what he described as a \u201cpattern of movement,\u201d aligning physical expression closely with musical arrangement.<\/p>\n Meweded ultimately framed Temesgen\u2019s contribution in terms of direction rather than performance alone, likening his role to that of a film director shaping a narrative through the body.<\/p>\n For younger artists, Meweded argued, Temesgen represents a model of disciplined engagement with culture. His influence, he said, lies not only in performance but in shaping a generation of practitioners capable of sustaining and evolving Ethiopia\u2019s artistic traditions.<\/p>\n That vision extends into Temesgen\u2019s long-term ambitions. He has proposed establishing an international arts university with multiple departments, including film and arts journalism, designed to anchor creative training within Ethiopian cultural frameworks. The project, however, has yet to move forward.<\/p>\n In the meantime, Temesgen is seeking to build momentum through the international exposure of ETDM, with the aim of attracting institutional backing. His objective, he said, is to create a platform where Ethiopian artistic forms can be studied, developed and presented at a global standard.<\/p>\n \u201cMy ultimate goal is to build an international art university,\u201d he said, \u201cone that prepares future generations to contribute to the global cultural landscape through work that is both innovative and rooted in identity.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" With nearly three decades of experience teaching Ethiopian cultural dance to young people, Lij Temesgen Melese has taken a distinctly local tradition onto the global stage. His latest endeavor, Ethiopian Traditional Dance Music, or ETDM, seeks to preserve the integrity of Ethiopia\u2019s cultural forms while adapting them for contemporary audiences. Anchored by the motto \u201cBack […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":64,"featured_media":50040,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"editor_plus_copied_stylings":"{}","ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1944],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-50039","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-art"},"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thereporterethiopia.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50039","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thereporterethiopia.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thereporterethiopia.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thereporterethiopia.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/64"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thereporterethiopia.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=50039"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.thereporterethiopia.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50039\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thereporterethiopia.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/50040"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thereporterethiopia.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=50039"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thereporterethiopia.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=50039"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thereporterethiopia.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=50039"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}