Shir-note-1 © Photo: Federico Buscarino




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Shir Del Essalem - Author's notes

Ever since the remotest of times, music has had the power to transcend limits of religion culture, geography and ethnicity. This was certainly the case in Spain, where music was the connection between Christian, Jewish and Islamic cultures in ways which still resonate through the centuries. In the second half of the 15th century, the peoples of Spain, Christians, Jews and Muslims, were very much mixed on a level of culture, language and blood ties. Some of the musical fruits of this perhaps unique in history blending, are presented in this concert.

For example, according to Mexican writer and scholar Carlos Fuentes, more than a quarter of all current words in the Spanish language have Arab roots. Not to mention contemporary Flamenco music. The "Moors" took their musical instruments to Spain, especially their stringed instruments, and these later became extremely important in their European incarnations, from the Middle Ages to the present. Even today, the influences of the Orient on the musical language, poetic forms and executive practise of the traditional repertoire of the Mediterranean are enormous.

 

The Cantigas de Santa Maria (which narrate the miracles of the Virgin Mary) is the most important collection of courtly monody of Medieval Europe, and came down to us in four 13th century manuscripts. There are no indications as to who the authors might be, but there is reason to believe some of the Cantigas might come from the hand of King Alfonso X "the wise", himself. In any case, the Cantigas are the product of his cosmopolitan court. Enlightened monarch that he was, he surrounded himself with only the best that scientists, literary scholars and musicians of the three religions could offer.

The concert proceeds with the cantillation of the Koran and an important genre from classical Arab music called muwashah, which was born in the heart of the Arab-Andalucian school, later widespread through the Middle East. Also performed, are the vocal and instrumental music of the Sephardic Jews, who were expelled from Spain in 1492 and from Portugal in 1508. The heritage of Sephardic song in the Judeo-Spanish language, has received great attention in these past years, especially around 1992, the 500th anniversary of the expulsion of the Jews from all the Spanish crown territories. This interest has fortunately remained high.

Sephardic song was born in a Spain permeated with Arabic-Mooresque elements, and proceeded in an exile dispersed across the Eastern Mediterranean, North Africa, Italy, the Middle East and the Balcanic peninsula. We feel we cannot do without a reference to the the cultures of those times and places.

From this perspective, Theatrum Instrumentorum proposes to use a mixed ancient-Middle Eastern instrumentation (and in fact ancient and Middle Eastern are often one and the same) and especially as regards the vocality used, aspire to a "harsher" sound, born from the sea of Mediterranean sound. The intention, after years of accurate and passionate research, is to restore a cultural and timbric originality and to try to revive these musical treasures so that the well-informed listener of today may fully appreciate its strength and its beauty.

 

   
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