Nadia Martina; Shanah Tovah
Memorie Di Shlomo

Listening to this album, I have come to the conclusion that there is no music more "contaminated" than Jewish music. It is the result of various cultures with which the Jewish people have come into contact; for example, Klezmer music (Balkans), Sephardic (Spain), Ashkenazi (Franco-Germanic), but also music from their own tradition, more autonomous where Jews have experienced the greatest material deprivations and human rights, forced into isolation in ghettos. For this reason, most Jewish folk music is defined as "ghetto music."

The album I present to your attention is "Shanah Tovah; Memories of Shlomo", the result of research by the Apulian singer and musicologist Nadia Martina, who explored Jewish musical culture in all its facets.

During the Jewish New Year (Rosh Hashanah), which in the current year was celebrated from sunset on Sunday, September 13th until dusk on Tuesday, September 15th, 2015, the wish is “shanah tovah” (For a good year); it is the abbreviation of "l'shanah tovah techatemu ve tikatevu", which means "may your name be inscribed and kept in the Book of Life for a good year". But “Shanah Tovah” is also a tribute, in music and words, to Shlomo Venezia, an Italian writer of Jewish origin, born in Thessaloniki in 1923 and deceased in Rome in 2012, who survived the Nazi concentration camps. Shlomo Venezia remains one of the most important witnesses of the tragedy of the Holocaust; hence the title of the CD “Memories of Shlomo.”

An interpretation that brings a breath of fresh air to Jewish traditions in their many expressions. The album is therefore engaging and accessible to any type of listener. One can only hope that more albums of this kind will be released to further enrich the Jewish historical-musical panorama.

Below is the ensemble that accompanied Nadia Martina (vocals) in this project: Fabio Zurlo (accordion), Gianpaolo Saracino (violin), Stefano Rielli (double bass), Roberto Chiga (percussions), Davide Chiarelli (drums), Marcello Zappatore (guitar), who is the author of track n. 4 “Memories of Shlomo”, and Vincenzo Grasso (clarinet), who is the author of track n. 8 “Ballata A Ritmo Incerto”. The CD was recorded at SudEstStudio by Stefano Manca and is distributed by Anima Mundi.