Illumination II Musique de réconfort et despoir des juifs dItalie Ensemble Nuria Seidelman

Fondé par le violoncelliste Ayela Siedelman, l’ensemble Nuria se propose d’unir deux traditions musicales, juive et italienne, à travers un répertoire de chants liés aux fêtes traditionnelles et d’œuvres de musique classique émanant de cette liturgie. Venise et Rome abritaient dès 1516 des ghettos juifs et les partitions et la transmission orale circulaient librement. L’ethnomusicologue Leo Levi a ainsi recensé tout un héritage millénaire issu des synagogues qui menaçait de tomber dans l’oubli. Le programme offre en alternance les chants et prières de la tradition juive dont le Kol Nidrei avec des œuvres de Salomone Rossi, et de Benedetto Marcello, deux compositeurs, l’un de confession juive actif à la cour de Mantoue, l’autre catholique auteur de l’Estro poetico-armonico, paraphrases des cinquante Psaumes de David… Si le projet était d’illustrer cette porosité entre les deux cultures, les arrangements cross-over de Bari Moscovitz font hélas et souvent basculer le disque dans la musique folklorique (quelques échos de klezmer), assez loin d’une reconstitution authentique (Rossi et Marcello méconnaissables). On apprécie cependant la richesse des timbres et l’éventail des instruments convoqués, baroques ou non (de la viole de gambe à la clarinette) partagés entre interprètes israélites et italiens. (Jérôme Angouillant)

The second album from the acclaimed international (Italy-Israel) Ensemble Nuria began taking shape during the disorienting lockdowns of Covid-19, and was born into the devastating reality of the Hamas-Israel war. The album ‘Illumination II: Italian-Jewish Music of Solace and Hope’ is a testament to the resilience and relevance of Hebrew Liturgical Songs and Poems (known as ‘Piyyutim’). Casting light on the enduring power of these works to sustain hope and offer comfort to those who encounter them, the work on this project spanned over 3 years, due to the impossibility of maintaining continuous work during the Covid pandemic. The process of preparing this album offered to those involved a way to reconnect with stability,community, creativity, joy and inspiration, despite challenging circumstances of life in Israel under the isolation of lockdown and war. Timeless melodies which were born in the ghettos of Rome, Venice, Mantova and Ferrara, these nearly vanished hidden treasures of haunting beauty are given a renewed voice in this album. Without doubt it is the uniquely poignant nature of the works themselves which allows listeners to experience the unabated power of this ancient music: The power to revive and to give solace and catharsis, to offer celebration, connection and community, just as the poets and musicians who created the words and melodies centuries ago intended. This nearly lost traditional music reveals itself here to be as powerful and communicative in our tumultuous 21st century world as when it was first sung in the Jewish communities of Italy, hundreds of years ago.