The Musical Renaissance of Italian Jews

25 Aprile, ore 20:00
The Italian Rite: Diverse Past and Digital Future

Dr. Gabriele Mancuso, Levi Foundation (Venice)
Dr. Enrico Fink, cantor/performer, President of the Jewish Community of Florence
Italian Jews boast a continuously practiced rite dating back to Rome before the diaspora; yet local communities still retain their own special traditions, ritual habits, and melodies to this day. In this music-filled talk, Dr. Mancuso & Dr. Fink will outline the most iconic features of Italian music repertoires, as well as present their digital project “Thesaurus of Italian Jewish Music” — a new initiative aiming to create a comprehensive online repertoire of Judeo-Italian music.

 

2 Maggio, ore 20:00
Singing Yiddish in Early Modern Italy

Dr. Diana Matut (Halle-Wittenberg University, GER)
The tradition of Yiddish song goes back almost a thousand years, but not as we know it today. The old, Western branch of Yiddish language and song ceased to exist with Jewish emancipation and assimilation, but is being rediscovered and revitalized today. The Italo-Ashkenazi communities of the early modern period (c. 1500-1750) created a fascinating song culture in this Yiddish, encompassing a wealth of topics. This lecture will bring these songs alive, exploring what Italian Ashkenazi Jews sang about and the melodies they used.

 

9 Maggio, ore 20:00
Cantata ebraica. The Music of Federico Consolo

Hazzan Dr. Ramon Tasat, Shirat HaNefesh Congregation (Chevy Chase, MD)
Federico Consolo was an Italian violinist, composer of the national anthem of San Marino and “Shirei Yisrael – Libro dei Canti d’Israel” (1892), a collection of Sephardic synagogal melodies originating in Livorno (Leghorn). Join Hazzan Ramon Tasat for an exploration of Consolo’s life and his unique contribution to Italian Sephardic music.

Register now at: http://www.bit.ly/ItalianJewishMusic