Ven a Ver Mos: Sephardic Songs of Family & Celebration

The 13-member chamber choir Las Kantaderas del Noroeste formed this year in order to explore music that is often overlooked in choral communities.

The Sephardic Jews trace their ancestry back to medieval Spain, but the Mediterranean regions where they lived after the 1492 Expulsion played a major role in shaping their language, music, and traditions. The Judeo-Spanish melodies featured on this program reveal connections to Turkish scales and Balkan rhythms, while also honoring the newer contributions of composers such as Flory Jagoda. They have been reimagined for choir by arrangers such as Eleanor Epstein, Elliot Levine, Alice Parker, and director Sarah Riskind. Popular Ladino songs “Adio Kerida,” “Durme, Durme,” and “Ocho Kandelikas” will be interwoven with others less widely known.