“An important study for Jewish urban music in general and for the present work in particular, is that of Amnon Shiloah and Erik Cohen (1983). Many of the authors’ observations hold true for the Sephardic communities of Canada as well as the Israeli scene. One pertinent remark is the seemingly obvious, but often overlooked, observation …

Read the full post →"Judith Cohen Thesis on Research Directions"

“Scholars’ preoccupation with the medieval origins of the Hispanic and Judeo-Spanish ballad has resulted in what Israel Katz has aptly termed “ethnic mysticism” (1973:237), which is strikingly apparent in many performances of Judeo-Spanish songs by outsider groups, especially early music specialists. The imbalance of the value placed on material with clear medieval or Renaissance origins …

Read the full post →"Judith Cohen Thesis on Musical Borrowing"

“Ethnomusicological research of the Judeo-Spanish song tradition is relatively recent and scarce, and has tended to focus on the romance (ballad) repertoire, often neglecting newer material and including little or no analysis of the socio-cultural context. This emphasis on older forms and, or many cases, on internal musical (as opposed to ethnomusicological aspects) seems to …

Read the full post →"Judith Cohen Thesis on Ethnic Mysticism"

One of the best known Sephardic songs, it would be remiss not to include it here. A Ladino romance, it has been recorded by countless artists, ranging in style from traditional singers to jazz singers to historically informed performance practice music ensembles. The text is in Ladino or Judeo-Spanish, while the melody is in miqam …

Read the full post →"Sephardic Tunes / Listening Notes – “La rosa enflorence” or “Los bilbilocos”"

Judeo-Algerian traditional song in Arabic, sung here in the first recording by Sultana Daoud (1915-1998) alias Reinette l’Oranaise, important figure of Arab-Andalusian music. This song is regularly sung in the Algerian diaspora and reached many more ears thanks to this 1934 recording by l’Oranaise. The recording begins with a virtuosic solo violin improvisation before l’Oranaise …

Read the full post →"Sephardic Tunes / Listening Notes – “Abiadi” or “Ya biadi Ya nass”"

1920s: 2015: A malhoun, a Judeo-Moroccan melodic poem in Arabic here performed by singer Neta Elkayam with the Jerusalem Orchestra East and West. This malhun was first made famous in a recording in the early 1920s by the ‘Queen of Malhoune’ Sheikah Zohra El Fassiya. It is interesting to compare both of these versions and …

Read the full post →"Sephardic Tunes / Listening Notes – Hak a mama"

A mystical hymn/Aramaic piyyut (Jewish liturgical poem) with text by 16th century poet Israel ben Moses Najara (1550–ca.1628). This melody, here performed by Ensemble Shaharit, is quite similar to the one sung and played by Lev Koszegi (transcribed elsewhere on this site). In this recording, the refrain “Yah ribon olam” is sung in unison by …

Read the full post →"Sephardic Tunes / Listening Notes – Yah Ribon Olam"