1. ‘Ǝṣuv Gevrǝka

A piece for the middle of the service for ‘Āstaseryo. It is also part of the liturgy of Friday evening of Beravo’a Senvet, when the service is held all through the night but in this last case, the melody is different than in the present selection. Several sections of the text are in Ge’ez but thereafter Ge’ez and ‘Agawegna are mixed. The prayer begins with a standard expression of praise to God. His might and miracles are recalled. The text ends with an evocation of Pharaoh’s defeat on the Sea of Reeds.

This antiphonal piece is measured, although a regular beat pattern is not clearly perceptible from the beginning but becomes apparent when the soloist’s part switches from one priest to another. The choir’s part has a dense heterophonic texture produced by individual melodic variations and slight rhythmic shifts.