Joel Cohen - A Mediterranean Christmas (2005/2020)

A Mediterranean Christmas savours Christmas in Spain, Italy and Southern France, countries that belong to our Western-Euro-American heritage yet that have maintained a connection over time with the cultures of the near-east. The musical programme, spoken and sung in early versions of Spanish, Judaeo Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, Occitan/Provençal, Hebrew and Arabic, offers a rich mixture of material from the 12th to the 19th century. There is a wide range of melodic styles as well as evidence that the various peoples of the Mediterranean basin influenced one another’s modes of expression.
Joining The Boston Camerata for A Mediterranean Christmas is the Arabic music ensemble Sharq, which is dedicated to preserving and presenting traditional and classical Arabic vocal and instrumental music and consists of young professional musicians from several cities in the Arab world and Turkey performing on original and authentic acoustic instruments.