In Memoriam 2023

Plus, Scarface at the Tiny Desk, 'Alt.Latino' best of Latin music and more

View this email online December 30, 2023 Support This Newsletter Hello! As the year draws to a close, we reflect on what the public in National Public Radio truly means. It’s a reminder of a vital truth: NPR's in-depth reporting and relevance are powered by you — our audience.  Our mission of creating a more informed public invigorated by a deeper understanding and appreciation of the big ideas and stories that shape our world is what drives us. It’s what fuels this newsletter, keeps it free and accessible for all and powers the independent journalism you rely on from across the NPR Network.  But it all hinges on the generosity of readers and listeners like you. Your contribution is more than just a tax-deductible donation. It's a commitment to uphold this vital public service. By contributing before the year's end, you help keep the spirit of public media alive and thriving for all to enjoy in 2024 and beyond. Every dollar makes a difference. Your support today will help shape the stories of tomorrow. — Lars Gotrich, NPR Music NPR Music remembers more than 100 musicians who died in 2023, and editor Lars Gotrich explains the importance of honoring the artists we lost. Plus, the Tiny Desk hosts three spellbinding stage acts from different fields.  John Rogers/Getty Images  Mourning someone, especially if they are primarily known through their work, is a delicate web to weave in words. For me, the obituary is an opportunity to look at the whole of a person and distill their essence through biography, output and impact. In 2023, I wrote remembrances of the wildly charismatic Brazilian musician Rita Lee, the complex saxophonist Charles Gayle and Brian McBride, one half of the ambient duo Stars of the Lid. But I also kept an extensive spreadsheet of musicians who died throughout the year, in order to publish a memorial at the year's end.  In Memoriam features more than 100 musicians we lost in 2023, including icons, producers, rock pioneers, visual artists, hip-hop trailblazers, jazz legends and prolific composers across pop and classical music. These are just some of their names: Tina Turner, Tony Bennett, Jeff Beck, David Crosby, Tom Verlaine, Burt Bacharach, Trugoy the Dove, Wayne Shorter, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Harry Belafonte and Sinéad O'Connor. The bios are short and the photos are big, but the heart is memory — to honor these musicians who reflect and refract myriad versions of ourselves and the world we know. Click the audio button at the top of the page to hear a cascade of their voices, thoughtfully produced by Phil Harrell for Morning Edition.  One name that left a lasting and specific impression on me is an obscure one: Emahoy Tsegué-Maryam Guèbrou.  For a little over a decade, Buda Musique's archival Éthiopiques series introduced the likes of Ethio-jazz musician Mulatu Astatke and funky crooner Alèmayèhu Eshèté to the world, but it was Guèbrou's 2006 entry, simply titled Piano Solo, that was unlike anything I'd heard before. Notes bent on keys like loosely wound strings on an old blues guitar. Melodies waltzed with lush Romanticism à la Beethoven, but could also whisper quiet prayers with the patience of Satie. Most of all, the music rolled like ships at sea, awaiting winds in their sails, yearning for home — heavenly, earthly or otherwise.  Did I mention that she was a nun? Born Dec. 12, 1923, in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, Guèbrou was raised to be a woman of society, learning several languages and studying classical music. She attended boarding school in Switzerland, served an emperor in Ethiopia and survived one of Mussolini's prison camps during the Second Italo-Ethiopian War. After being denied attendance to the Royal Academy of Music in London by Ethiopian officials, she reassessed and instead committed her life to God. “I took off my shoes and went barefoot for 10 years,” she told the BBC in 2017. “No shoes, no music, just prayer.” By the 1960s, she came back to Addis Ababa to study Ethiopian Orthodox liturgical music. There she wrote and recorded many of her early pieces. In 1984, she fled to Jerusalem to escape religious persecution, where she lived in a convent until she died on March 26, 2023. She was 99. In the years since Piano Solo was released, Guèbrou's compositions have been the subject of academic study and performance — including "Presentiment" at the Tiny Desk by Sarah Cahill —  and her private-press LPs have been restored and reissued. Mississippi Records, a label that specializes in music from unsung corners, released the stunning Jerusalem this year, and Souvenirs, previously only available to purchase in her church's gift shop, is out Feb. 23, 2024. Emahoy Tsegué-Maryam Guèbrou's music feels free and mysterious — a private invitation from someone you want to know yet have little way of knowing. Beyond her pieces for and about God, she also wrote about the ache of existence. "Clouds moving on the sky," she sings in a homesick tale of exile. "My heart has never stopped missing home." But she was quick to hope, something certainly worth taking into the new year: "Dark, grey clouds run away, feeling the darkened sky forecasting the approach of a violent storm," she writes about "Movement from Rainbow Sonata." "But suddenly appears on the sky the beautiful rainbow as to remember the covenant of Noah: the sign of mercy."  NPR Classical Tipsy in 2/4 time ... Newsletter continues after sponsor message More to read, watch and hear We asked listeners to share the one song this year that helped them get through a difficult time — a song that truly moved them, or pushed them to let it all out with an ugly cry. The responses flooded in, and Robin Hilton and Mitra I. Arthur dedicated a whole episode of All Songs Considered to the collected songs. Grab your tissues.  2023 was a transformative year for Latin music, as traditional sounds made their way to the Billboard charts. On Alt.Latino’s last episode of the year, hosts Anamaria Sayre and Felix Contreras sit down with producer Isabella Gomez Sarmiento to present the best of the best in Latin music this year, from the most popular to those deserving of more attention. Every year Jazz Night in America commemorates the lives the jazz community has lost, with music that reflects the depth of that loss. This year, they decided to do something different: to celebrate the departed with a performance by djembefola Weedie Braimah. To ring in the new year Toast of the Nation delivers four incredible performances from around the globe, including an electric adventure from pianist Hiromi out of New York City and a moody, spiritual set from Lizz Wright from Jazz in Marciac, France. 2023 marked 50 years since hip-hop was born, and NPR has been celebrating the genre’s diverse scenes, sounds and styles. On a new episode of It’s Been a Minute, host Brittany Luse sits down with KQED's Pendarvis Harshaw for a taste of his series Hyphy Kids Got Trauma, a deep-dive into the Bay Area hip-hop scene and its connection to community grief.  Laura Lynch, a founding member of The Chicks, died at the age of 65. “Laura was a bright light. Her infectious energy and humor gave a spark to the early days of our band," the group’s current members announced in a statement. Looking for a last minute gift for the podcast lover in your life? Give them access to NPR+ benefits for 6 or 12 months with a simple one-time payment that supports public media. NPR+ podcasts are the same NPR shows you know and love (and those shows will always be free to enjoy), but with added perks like bonus episodes, sponsor-free listening, archive access, and even early releases. You can even customize your gift with a personal message and schedule delivery for a specific day. So how about it? Will you give a gift that makes an impact? Give Someone NPR+ Tiny Desk Elizabeth Gillies/NPR Most artists approach their time at the Tiny Desk with a bare-bones mindset. It’s a minimalist set-up to begin with, a space to just let songs stand on their own — no bells, no whistles, just music. But Scarface’s Tiny Desk was something else. The rapper was in pure, joyous storyteller mode for his 30-minute set, spooling out context and jokes in between songs with his extensive band and producer Mike Dean beside him. It’s the work of an artist who clearly never gets tired of performing these classics, and who can talk about them for days.  Two other excellent performances rounded out 2023. One, from Louis Cato, showcased the bandleader for The Late Show with Stephen Colbert’s multi-hyphenate abilities as a musician. And the other was an impactful showcase of the Broadway musical Sweeney Todd in miniature, featuring stars Josh Groban and Annaleigh Ashford alongside a nine-piece orchestra. One More Thing One person sad to see the sun set on 2023: Peso Pluma. YouTube announced that the Mexican singer and rapper was the most streamed artist in the U.S. this year. It's safe to say no one was predicting that at this time last December. Listen to your local NPR station. Visit NPR.org to hear live radio from WUFT 89.1 (edit station). Need a new playlist? Follow NPR Music on Spotify and Apple Music What do you think of today's email? We'd love to hear your thoughts, questions and feedback: nprmusic@npr.org Enjoying this newsletter? Forward to a friend! They can sign up here. Looking for more great content? Check out all of our newsletter offerings — including Books, Pop Culture, Health and more! You received this message because you're subscribed to NPR Music emails. This email was sent by National Public Radio, Inc., 1111 North Capitol Street NE, Washington, DC 20002 Unsubscribe  |  Privacy Policy