String Quartet
"Between the Sacred and the Profane"
"בין קודש לחול"
Composing Year:
1991
Instruments:
String Quartet
Duration:
13'
Jerusalem Quartet (1991)
"Between the Sacred and the Profane" for String Quartet has two movements based on rhythmic and melodic materials which draw upon sources of Jewish liturgical music and songs of the various communities of the people of Israel.
The first movement is based on a limited number of biblical cantillations combining two versions: the Moroccan-Casablanca version and the Spanish-Jerusalem one. It is a recitative, prayer-like in character and embodies both the prayers of the individual and of the congregation. It is freely constructed and its language is chromatic and expressive.
The second movement is based mainly on three wedding songs of the Jewish community of Tetuan in Spanish Morocco which is renowned for the beauty and wealth of its songs. The songs were picked out from the anthology "the Cycle of Life", edited by Dr. Shoshana Weich-Shahak. These are Ladino songs influenced by Spanish melos and rhythm yet they retain the taste of biblical cantillations.
The work was commissioned by the Israeli Music Heritage Project.