Music Theory of Ethiopia

The music of Ethiopia is different from the modal system, that is; pentatonic with features long interval between some notes, also in several other parts of the Ethiopian culture and tradition, tastes in music and songs are strongly connected with those in the neighboring Eritrea, Sudan, Somalia and Djibouti.

source of picture: en.wikipedia.org 

The music of the highlands uses the basiocal modal system that is known as quenet and it comprises of four main modes such as bati, amchiloy, tezeta and amabassel and also, there are three additional modes that are different on the above such as bati minor, texeta minor, and bati major. Some lyres got their name from qenet like tizita, a song of reminiscence, when played on traditional instruments, these modes are mainly not tempered (also the pitches may change slightly from the western-tempered tuning system), but when played on the western instruments like the pianos, and guitars they are used to play in the western-tempered tuning system.

The music in the Ethiopian highlands is mainly on heterphonic or monophonic, in some part of the southern places, some music is polyphonic Dorze polyphonic singing (edho) may have up to five units, Majangir, four units.