Renan Koen´s Concert of Sephardic Melodies at Historical Italian Synagogue

By Karen ALGUADIŞ

Translation by Janet MITRANI

It was a real privilege for me to listen to this concert which was designed and performed with great care and passion by our sophisticated artist Renan Koen, who is well-known among music lovers.

Koen started the concert with the piano suit she had composed inspired by the Istanbul Sephardic songs based on her own family's immigration story, featured in her album released in 2014. The distinguished musicians, cellist Sedef Erçetin and tanburi (tambour virtuoso) Özata Ayan accompanied her in most of the other songs performed during the concert. It is obvious that over time, we are influenced by the cultural elements of the geography we live in. Here in this concert, for example, while the piece titled "Teslim (meaning delivery or surrender in Turkish)" which contains the Maftirim repertoire (liturgical songs) in it took the audience to the Edirne of the 16th century, the Egyptian Rosh Hashana Hymn "Adonai Yom Lekha Teroxin Lehina", made them ponder on our ancestors dispersed by mandatory migrations. On the other hand, every piece of the concert, whether Mi Zeh Yemallel, a Hanukkah Hymn sung in Casablanca, or the Catalan song Miriam's Song Suite, was a real musical delight for the crowded audience.

It would be a shame not to mention the last two pieces that added an exceptional taste to the concert. I strongly advise you to take the opportunity to listen to "Milontan" by the Italian-born Argentine musician Jose Bragato and the works of the Spanish musician Federico Mompori.

As the concert ended with Adio Kerida as the encore, which most of us know very well, the first feeling that came to my heart was the desire to listen to these songs also on other platforms with the same musicians, as soon as possible.

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