Passing the Andalusian baton

The ensemble began life in Ashdod in 1994, with the goal of perpetuating the rich musical heritage of the Maghreb region.

By BARRY DAVIS
The Israeli Andalusian Orchestra (photo credit: PR)
The Israeli Andalusian Orchestra
(photo credit: PR)
The Israeli Andalusian Orchestra will kick off its 2016-2017 season on November 14 at its hometown Performing Arts Center in Ashdod.
The first slot in the year-round lineup is titled “Ma Avarech,” which was the song that set now-veteran songstress Rivka Zohar on her way to a highly successful career close to four decades ago.
The opening program features Zohar together with her young cohort singer-songwriter-guitarist Liron Lev, as well as acclaimed liturgical singer Lior Elmaliach and 17-year-old female counterpart Shir Yifrach, with pianist Orian Shukrun also very much in the mix.
The ensemble and soloists will perform the repertoire across the country, taking in three concerts in Ashdod, followed by gigs in Beersheba, Kiryat Motzkin, Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, and ending in Ra’anana on December 8.
The ensemble has been around for a while, and garnered its fair share of kudos. The orchestra began life in Ashdod in 1994 with the express intent of perpetuating the rich musical heritage of the Maghreb region, which roughly takes in Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia and Libya, but has its roots in the Golden Age of Spanish Jewry between the ninth and 13th centuries.
“We are talking about an historic chain of 800-900 years,” says orchestra general manager Jacob Ben Simon. “The music was handed down from generation to generation, and we are another link in the chain.”
Some trace the inception of what is now called Andalusian music to a ninth-century polymath called Ziryab who hailed from Iraq. In addition to earning a crust as a singer, oud player, composer, poet and teacher, he was also reputed to be an expert in astronomy, geography, meteorology and botany, and even cosmetics and the culinary arts.
In any case, following the expulsion of Jews and Muslims from Spain, which began in the late 15th century, significant numbers of members of the two communities migrated to the southern shores of the Mediterranean and set up home in North Africa, across the Maghreb expanse.
The orchestra is clearly doing its bit to keep the Andalusian torch burning brightly, and its work gained official recognition of the highest order in 2006, when it was awarded the Israel Prize. The jurors said that the award was due to the orchestra’s “contribution to Israeli society in presenting liturgical material, poetry and Israeli Andalusian music, for its success in making Andalusian music and liturgical poetry part of the colors of contemporary Israeli culture.” High praise indeed.
While Ben Simon is delighted to be helping to safeguard the legacy, he says neither he nor any of the musicians or members of staff take anything for granted.
“It is a heavy responsibility to bear,” he declares. “This is music we need to preserve, to document, to make sure we train the next generation, and to see how the music evolves.”
While the virtual universe has made the sounds and rhythms of thousands of cultures worldwide available at the click of a mouse button, Ben Simon says the proliferation of entertainment possibilities also confronts the orchestra with daunting challenges.
“There is enormous competition from the Internet and other areas,” he notes, while also pointing out the added value of advanced technology and communications. “We can contact all sorts of people, in all sorts of places, and create dialogue which can lead to creativity and good places.”
Ben Simon has certainly been doing his bit to further that avenue of professional pursuit, visiting Morocco – whence his parents made aliya – on several occasions and endeavoring to nurture good relations with the powers that be there, and elsewhere around the globe.
“The professional dialogue I maintain with international producers and artists in general and, in particular, with people in Morocco is important for the orchestra, both in a professional sense and in terms of value,” he says.
The orchestra honcho says the orchestra’s goals and the cause of Andalusian music in general benefit from a significant helping hand from royal quarters. Ben Simon also sees wider, political gain in the offing by spreading the ensemble’s musical word.
“The wealth of musical activity, of Mr. André Azoulai, the king of Morocco’s adviser, helps to advance and preserve Andalusian musical tradition, and strengthens ethical and cultural dialogue between Muslims and Jews, as it has existed for centuries, as part of Andalusian music.”
The 75-year-old Jewish royal aide has been doing his bit for some time. He is a senior adviser to King Mohammed VI of Morocco, as he was to the king’s father, Hassan II, and holds important positions in the cross-cultural field, including heading the Anna Lindh Euro-Mediterranean Foundation for the Dialogue Between Cultures, based in Alexandria, Egypt, and serving as president of the executive committee of the Foundation for the Three Cultures and the Three Religions, based in Seville, Spain.
Naturally, Ben Simon wants to bring in the crowds to the orchestra’s concerts up and down the country and abroad, but he is just as keen for us to appreciate the history and riches sewn inextricably into the fabric of the music.
“People come up to me all the time and say they saw us play at a wedding, or some other event. I’ve got no problems with playing music at weddings, but for the ordinary person in the street, if they see two darbukas [hand drums] and an oud, for them that’s Andalusian music.”
That is clearly not the case. Ben Simon says that music from the Maghreb, originally a Muslim art form which, over time, took on Jewish flavors, was originally based on 24 nubas, or suites, linked to each hour of the day, much as Indian music has raga melodic modes that are traditionally performed at different times of the day. Andalusian music was also handed down orally and, over time, several of the nubas were lost. Today, only 16 nubas exist in Algeria.
Interestingly, the Ashdod troupe comprises instrumentalists with Moroccan roots and quite a few Russian players, with the latter generally classically trained and who play works from sheet music. Some of the ensemble members still play by heart, but increasing numbers of works are being written down, thereby ensuring their longevity.
During our chat Ben Simon stressed the need to nurture active interest in the music among the younger crowd, and the inclusion of 17-year-old Yifrach in the season opener is an encouraging move in the desired direction.
“It is important to expose the public to new material and new artists,” he states. “The concerts in the new season will feature ‘first stage’ slots, to allow new forces to express themselves. We want the public to get to know these young artists, and to give the artists the best stage possible.”
Yifrach certainly got the best start possible to her evolving craft.
“I listened to piyutim at home,” she says. “My father used to sing piyutim – and still does – and after a while I joined in the singing. Every Shabbat I’d learn one or two piyutim from him.”
The youngster was suitably enthused and took the endeavor to the next stage. “I started studying piyut professionally, and not just the music. I learned about the history of the music, and the theory.”
Yifrach gradually began performing in public, but always to what Ben Simon terms “friendly and supportive audiences – people who know Shir.” The November 14 concert will be Yifrach’s inaugural bow in such a grand setting.
With the likes of Yifrach around, it looks like Andalusian music is in good hands.
For tickets and more information: 1-800-693-693 and www.andalusit.co.il