Sephardic
Sephardic & Mediterranean music production
Approximately 60.000 Jews were expelled from the Iberian Peninsula (Spain) in 1942. They scattered throughout the Mediterranean, leaving their homes and their land behind and carrying one of the most significant heritage and cultures of the era.
The Sephardic people carried their songs along the Mediterranean Sea and the Ottoman Empire, mixing and merging the Ladino language (a combination of Spanish and Hebrew), with the languages from where they settled.
The lyrics of these songs talked about all sorts of topics: religion, customs, weddings, love affairs and even food recipes.
Sephardic music instruments and recordings
The majority of those families that left Sepharad settled in the Ottoman Empire, where music (in its classical and popular branches), was vibrant. They used traditional instruments from the regions where they lived.
Percussion instruments (pandero, daff, riq and other frame drums) were the most popular choices but also plucked-strings guitars such as oud (lutes), saz/baglama, citaras, guitars and bouzoukis.
The melodies and music styles of these songs also depended on the trends and music background of their environment. We can find Arabic music style in songs from Morocco and Egypt, Turkish sounds in melodies from Anatolia or intricate rhythms from the Balkans.
Oud/Lute
Baglama/Saz
Bouzouki
Sephardic music for videos, documentaries and other recordings
I am a musician and a writer who focuses on the study, performance, recording and production of Sephardic music. These productions and recordings are often used on videos for different purposes: documentaries, events, marketing and music albums and records.
I offer high-quality recordings of the main instruments of the Sephardic legacy on-demand, personalized and made unique for each client and occasion.
Don’t hesitate to contact me to get more info or just to say hi!