The music of the Mediterranean well resumes the rich diversity of the region in terms of intercultural exchanges and cross-cultural contamination over millenniums.

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Aljama (2022), the album’s title chosen by the Italian duo Claudio Merico & Giulia Tripoti (Karkum Project) evokes a time when three cultural groups - Christian Hispania, Jewish Sefarad, and Islamic al-Andalus – lived in relative peace in the Moorish Iberian kingdoms from the early eighth century until the Reconquista, and expulsion of the Muslims and Jews by the Christians in 1492.

Over the subsequent centuries, beautiful repertoires of songs grew from that experience, especially among the Sephardim as they migrated and settled throughout the Mediterranean, North Africa, and the Balkans.

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From the contaminated Sephardi melodies in Ladino to the poetic Arab-Andalusian music up to the festive popular representations of the Cantigas, through the use of ancient and unusual instruments, Aljama brings us on a fascinating journey among the peoples of the Mediterranean. The poetry and melodies are timeless, with a hint of the Middle East in their style, and they are beautifully performed with a Medieval touch and personal warmth.

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Aljama is both an album and a live performance (in duo or quintet).

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Contact us for concert availability!