Re: Klezmer and sephardic music

[Joshua Horowitz <horowitz...>]

borzykowski wrote:
> 
> The repertories of many actual klezmer band and yiddish singers
> includes often sephardic songs in ladino (or judesmo).
> Does anybody (Josh? Henri?...) know if some sephardic musicians (ie in
> Greece, Turkey or Bulgaria) had contacts and influence on klezmer
> bands or ashkenaz musicians in other countries of Eastern Europe the 3
> past centuries?

There is no evidence of a "Sephardic" instrumental tradition in the
areas you mention. Sephardic music is vocal. Women sang (and still sing)
it a capella or sometimes with a tambourine or darabukka. If
instrumental music was used for weddings, the typical thing to do was
take a Calgiya ensemble and play local standards. Any talk today of
"traditional Sephardic ensembles of the balkans" is touting an
anachronism. Josh

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