The Jewess of Toledo

Out of the "Age of Three Cultures":
Sephardic and Spanish Music from the court of Alfonso "the Wise"

in medieval Toledo

with collage - forum for early music berlin:

The Jewess of Toledo

Spanish & Sephardic Music of the Middle Ages

Alfonso X "the Wise" made his court in 13th century Toledo a meeting place for Christians, Jews and Muslims from all over Europe, with lively exchanges in many fields in art and science. But was it only his thirst for knowledge and culture that made Alfonso so cosmopolitan and tolerant? An ancient story may also have played its part: his great-grandfather's love for the beautiful Raquel, the legendary "Jewess of Toledo".

The program The Jewess of Toledo fulfills a long-standing wish of mine: to perform music from Alfonso's court (Cantigas de Santa Maria and Cantigas de Amigo) together withsongs of the Sephardim (Spanish Jews), whose orally transmitted poems and music have their roots in the Middle Ages. Through the music I would like to recall this time of rare harmonious coexistence and a unique world in which elements of Arab, Jewish and Christian cultures intertwined in co-existence, side by side. It could still be a model for us today.

Some of the stops on this journey have been the Lake Constance Festival, the Rhineland-Palatinate Cultural Summer, and the Berlin Jewish Cultural Week. The Jewess of Toledo is a concert in the cultural program of the Central Council of Jews in Germany.

Weblinks:

Presseberichte

• Südkurier - Konstanz Jüdin von Toledo (Bodensee Festival)
• Wormser Zeitung - Klänge treffen ins Herz
• Weltreligionen musikalisch vereint