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Special offer. Istanbul
Dimitrie Cantemir: "The Book of Science of Music" and the Sephardic and Armenian Traditions
Hespèrion XXI, Jordi Savall
…Savall… has… put together a brilliant showcase of both Cantemir's music and the musics he chronicled… for me… the high points of this CD lie… in the solo improvisations on te oud, lira, and...
Special offer. Istanbul
Dimitrie Cantemir: "The Book of Science of Music" and the Sephardic and Armenian Traditions
Hespèrion XXI, Jordi Savall
Purchase product
…Savall… has… put together a brilliant showcase of both Cantemir's music and the musics he chronicled… for me… the high points of this CD lie… in the solo improvisations on te oud, lira, and...
About
Hybrid SACD deluxe digibook
Booklet : English, Spanish, French,Turkish,Armenian, German, Italian & Catalan
Following the huge success of Orient-Occident and Jerusalem.... prepare yourself to cross borders! This new release is mainly based on 'The Book of Science of Music', published in 1710 by the Moldavian prince Dimitrie Cantemir, after many years spent in Istanbul.
This unique manuscript enables us to discover the jewels of the Turkish traditional music. Jordi Savall already included some of its pieces in his album Orient Occident (AVSA9848), but he decided to explore it further in order to reveal the magic of the incredible city of Istanbul. This city portrait wouldn't have been complete without the fascinating Armenian and Sephardic repertoire that was also familiar in Istanbul during this time. Once again, Jordi Savall reminds us about a Golden Age of cultural dialogue, brought back to life by Hesperion XXI and outstanding Turkish and Armenian guests musicians. A Jordi Savall experience that goes beyond music…
Contents and tracklist
Spotlight on this release
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Awards and reviews
March 2010
…Savall… has… put together a brilliant showcase of both Cantemir's music and the musics he chronicled… for me… the high points of this CD lie… in the solo improvisations on te oud, lira, and kanun zither, and above all in the pieces involving the Armenian duduk, which has an ability to transport the listener to ethereal realms.
July 2010
The result is a very polished, sophisticated sound world largely lacking the exuberance that one might expect, at least on occasion, from such repertories, but that in itself is a cue to the listener...that our expectations of non-Western musics are easily confounded.
20th December 2009
This vivid exploration of 17th-century Sephardic and Armenian musical traditions, fruits of the late Ottoman empire melting pot, will refresh jaded Christmas ears. It's prime Jordi Savall territory.