Biography
Moges Habte(sax) - Moges is one of the greatest sax players of all time in Ethiopian music history. His contribution to the legendary Walias Band is well known. He has performed with most Ethiopian singers in recent memory. Moges started his musical education at St.Yared Music School in Addis Abeba, and continued his education through a correspondence program of Berklee College of Music. Equally adapted in Flute as he is on his Sax, one can hear him blowing up the Flute on his Solo CD entitled “Kebena Godana”. He is a composer and an arranger. His muscal contributions are too numerous to mention, but classics like “Musicawe Silt” which was first heard played by the Walias, is now covered by several bands, all over the world. He has traveled around the world with singers, such as: Mohamud Ahemed, Tilahun Gessess and other well known Ethiopian singers as well.
Alemseged Kebede(E.Bass) - has influenced most of the new generation of Ethiopian bass players.He first started playing professionally in the late 1970’s with famous singers such as: Tilahun Gessesse, Menilik Wosenachew , Muluken Melese, Aster Aweke and with many more Ethiopian singers in recent memory. After moving to Canada and later to the US, he started playing in local restaurants, and clubs. In addition to bass, he also plays Drums and Keyboards. He has arranged and produced more than 2 albums of his own and played bass almost on every Ethiopian singers music CD’s in recent times. Traveled allover the world and shared the stage with the great African bands like Manu Dibango, Hugh Masakela, and Ellis Marsalis. Alemseged remains a first call musician for many artists, who need his soulful, funky bass lines to complement their music.
Araya Woldemichael(Piano and Organ) - Araya is the founder of the Feedel band and he's also a direct descendant of a former Ethiopian king "Emperor Haile Selassie's family" but he has no close relationship with the royal family and he's very humble about it. The lost prince (Araya) started his long musical journey by playing organ at his Church. He added guitar and accordion while still a young boy and later he went on studying music in Moscow, and immersed himself in classical music, composition and music theory. After arriving to the US, he quickly started playing with local musicians, in restaurants and clubs. During this period he had an opportunity to play with the likes of Mahmoud Ahmed, Alemayehu Eshete, Tilahun Gessesse and Aster Aweke. Araya is probably best known for his work with Aster Aweke, as he was traveling with her extensively for jazz festivals and World music tours which gave him the opportunity to perform on the same stage with various world music luminaries like Manu Dibango, Hugh Masakela, Ellis Marsalis, King Sunny Ade and others. More recently, Araya was part of the Millennium band that performed as an opening act for American/British pop stars like Beyonce and Black Eyed Peas, when they were performing in Addis Ababa Ethiopia in 2008. He is also a composer, arranger, producer and a band leader. One of his latest popular composition is called "Ethiopian Ocean".
Kenneth Joseph (Drums) Born in England to Trinidadian parents, Kenneth was exposed to several musical styles at an early age. Just after WW II, his dad was a pioneering innovator in the steel band movement in Trinidad. And in England, he made a seamless progression to the drum set which led to him becoming an in demand session drummer. Kenneth learned drum rudiments as a child and became interested in copying pop beats from the radio. The sounds of Motown, Beatles, Dave Clark 5, and Reggae, all helped shape Ken’s approach to drumming. When his parents relocated to Trinidad, Ken found the lure of steel pan music captivating and joined his dad’s former band, The Trinidad All Stars. In 1980, with this group, he toured the Far East, North America, and, Europe, both as a drummer and a Tenor pan player. After high school he became the resident drummer at the Hilton Hotel in Port of Spain which paved the way for future involvement in group music. In 1982 Ken migrated to Washington DC to study business at Howard University. He managed to continue playing and connected with many of the Caribbean and Ethiopian musicians in the area. Ken backed the big 3 steel pan players in Len “Boogie” Sharpe, Robert Greenidge, and, Andy Narrel. Page 2 of 2Ken also toured the world with the iconic reggae artist Joseph Hill of “Culture”, Mikey Dread, and, backed several first tier reggae artists which culminated in a position with The Original Wailers. Ken backed legendary Mahmoud Ahmed, both, live and in the studio, and is now a permanent member of Feedel Band.
Moges Habte(sax) - Moges is one of the greatest sax players of all time in Ethiopian music history. His contribution to the legendary Walias Band is well known. He has performed with most Ethiopian singers in recent memory. Moges started his musical education at St.Yared Music School in Addis Abeba, and continued his education through a correspondence program of Berklee College of Music. Equally adapted in Flute as he is on his Sax, one can hear him blowing up the Flute on his Solo CD entitled “Kebena Godana”. He is a composer and an arranger. His muscal contributions are too numerous to mention, but classics like “Musicawe Silt” which was first heard played by the Walias, is now covered by several bands, all over the world. He has traveled around the world with singers, such as: Mohamud Ahemed, Tilahun Gessess and other well known Ethiopian singers as well.
Alemseged Kebede(E.Bass) - has influenced most of the new generation of Ethiopian bass players.He first started playing professionally in the late 1970’s with famous singers such as: Tilahun Gessesse, Menilik Wosenachew , Muluken Melese, Aster Aweke and with many more Ethiopian singers in recent memory. After moving to Canada and later to the US, he started playing in local restaurants, and clubs. In addition to bass, he also plays Drums and Keyboards. He has arranged and produced more than 2 albums of his own and played bass almost on every Ethiopian singers music CD’s in recent times. Traveled allover the world and shared the stage with the great African bands like Manu Dibango, Hugh Masakela, and Ellis Marsalis. Alemseged remains a first call musician for many artists, who need his soulful, funky bass lines to complement their music.
Araya Woldemichael(Piano and Organ) - Araya is the founder of the Feedel band and he's also a direct descendant of a former Ethiopian king "Emperor Haile Selassie's family" but he has no close relationship with the royal family and he's very humble about it. The lost prince (Araya) started his long musical journey by playing organ at his Church. He added guitar and accordion while still a young boy and later he went on studying music in Moscow, and immersed himself in classical music, composition and music theory. After arriving to the US, he quickly started playing with local musicians, in restaurants and clubs. During this period he had an opportunity to play with the likes of Mahmoud Ahmed, Alemayehu Eshete, Tilahun Gessesse and Aster Aweke. Araya is probably best known for his work with Aster Aweke, as he was traveling with her extensively for jazz festivals and World music tours which gave him the opportunity to perform on the same stage with various world music luminaries like Manu Dibango, Hugh Masakela, Ellis Marsalis, King Sunny Ade and others. More recently, Araya was part of the Millennium band that performed as an opening act for American/British pop stars like Beyonce and Black Eyed Peas, when they were performing in Addis Ababa Ethiopia in 2008. He is also a composer, arranger, producer and a band leader. One of his latest popular composition is called "Ethiopian Ocean".
Kenneth Joseph (Drums) Born in England to Trinidadian parents, Kenneth was exposed to several musical styles at an early age. Just after WW II, his dad was a pioneering innovator in the steel band movement in Trinidad. And in England, he made a seamless progression to the drum set which led to him becoming an in demand session drummer. Kenneth learned drum rudiments as a child and became interested in copying pop beats from the radio. The sounds of Motown, Beatles, Dave Clark 5, and Reggae, all helped shape Ken’s approach to drumming. When his parents relocated to Trinidad, Ken found the lure of steel pan music captivating and joined his dad’s former band, The Trinidad All Stars. In 1980, with this group, he toured the Far East, North America, and, Europe, both as a drummer and a Tenor pan player. After high school he became the resident drummer at the Hilton Hotel in Port of Spain which paved the way for future involvement in group music. In 1982 Ken migrated to Washington DC to study business at Howard University. He managed to continue playing and connected with many of the Caribbean and Ethiopian musicians in the area. Ken backed the big 3 steel pan players in Len “Boogie” Sharpe, Robert Greenidge, and, Andy Narrel. Page 2 of 2Ken also toured the world with the iconic reggae artist Joseph Hill of “Culture”, Mikey Dread, and, backed several first tier reggae artists which culminated in a position with The Original Wailers. Ken backed legendary Mahmoud Ahmed, both, live and in the studio, and is now a permanent member of Feedel Band.