Songs of the Sephardim

Traditional music of the Spanish Jews
The songs on this recording derive from a tradition that is centuries old. Passed down through the generations, these songs are links in a chain that connects the Jews known as Sephardim to Spain, from which they were expelled in 1492. When the Edict of Expulsion was handed down by Ferdinand and Isabella in March 1492, the Jews of Spain were given four months to prepare for exile. Thus ended fifteen centuries of Jewish settlement. Jewish culture flourished in Spain, intellectually, artistically and materially. Under Moslem rule especially, Jews had the freedom to persue a variety of professions and intellectual persuits.-Howard Bass