Re: Spanish "Saetas"

[moshe denburg <denburg...>]

On Mon, 10 Nov 1997 18:17:52 -0500, Joel Bresler <jbresler (at) ultra(dot)net> 
wrote:

>I was recently reading a book about the Golden Age of Spain, and it
>asserted that the Spanish Saeta derives from the Jewish Kol Nidre prayer.
>Can anyone confirm or deny?

The connection between Jewish  and Flamenco Musics has been widely accepted.
Flamenco has its roots in the period following the Spanish expulsions of
1492, at which time both Gitanos (Gypsies) and Jews (and other
non-Christians) became outcasts. There is a lot of research going on in this
area - I have musical friends here (in Vancouver), who specialize in
Flamenco performance, who recently gave a series of cross-cultural
presentations that illustrate the commonalities of Jewish and Flamenco Music.

Regarding the 'Saeta', here are a few lines from the program notes of the
above mentioned presentation.

"As the Jewish voice was extinguished in Spain after 1492, it can be said
that it resurfaced to some degree in Flamenco. The plaintive wailing of
religious prayer - now forbidden - became the secular 'aaiiee' of the
Conversos (Jews forced to convert to Christianity), with the notable
exception of the 'Saeta'. The 'Saeta' sung today during Holy Week dates back
centuries and is generally agreed to have Jewish origins."

For my part, it is always fascinating to see how 'global' Jewish Music
really is, having seeded and been seeded by many musical cultures.
Personally, I think that the Spanish (Sephardi) connection in Jewish Music
is an enormously fertile field for future development. Apart from the Ladino
repertoire, which can provide basic materials for new compositions, their is
a Spanish/North African thread in the modes and harmonies of Jewish Music
which calls out for further exploration.

Be Well,

Moshe
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Moshe Denburg
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