Matthews, Berhanu (PhD)Girma, Tigist2018-06-252023-12-052018-06-252023-12-052010-06http://etd.aau.edu.et/handle/123456789/3117Though studying the folk tradition of people in general and their folk Songs in particular helps to understand their historical, socio-ecomnomical and philosophical realities and to preserve the tradition; it was done very little with regard to conducting researches when compaired with the wealth of folk tradition of the country. Thus, in this study, an attempt has been made to explore the Major Themes and Performance Styles of Azmari Lyrics in Gondar. Although it was not well studied, Azmari tradition is popular in the area of Gondar and has existed for a long period of time. It is true that the Azmari communities found in Gondar area have some distinctive features which differentiate them from the non-Azmari society. However, as far as they share the same history, culture, socio-economic, and political realities, the issues raised by Azmari lyrics belong to the realities of the people in the area. As a result, the major purpose of this study was exploring those societal realities through identifying the major themes raised by the lyrics and making a thematic analysis. Because it is impossible to separate Azmari lyrics from its performance, the description of the performance styles of the lyrics have been provided. The method employed to conduct this research was a qualitative analysis. The lyrics were collected through a live record made in seven Azmari nightclubs found in Gondar town. Furthermore, based on the data obtained from observation, the performance characteristics of the lyrics have been described. Interview and document analysis were also used to describe the backgrounds of Azmari tradition. The analysis part has two major classifications. These are the analysis of the major themes and description of their performance styles. As the analysis of the sample lyrics shows, the major themes raised through Azmari lyrics are the themes of praise, criticism, love versus end of relationship, lyrics with encouraging themes of opposite sex relationship, and erotic lyrics. Regarding their performance characteristics, the characteristics of the setting, clothing, musical instruments, dramatic actions and audience participation have been described. Finally, a compiled summary of each section and conclusions drawn from them are presentedenPerformance Styles of Azmari Lyrics in GondarThesis