Jordi Savall / Hespèrion XXI

A figure comparable in the Islamic world to our Marco Polo, at the beginning of the fourteenth century Ibn Battuta, aged just 21, started out on a very long journey that was to take him from Morocco to the far East and sub-Saharan Africa. There is a written record of that journey lasting more than 30 years (longer, in fact, than that of the Venetian merchant) in a book, a rihla (travel writing in classical Arabic literature) that today is one of the chief sources of information about the world in those days. Jordi Savall recreates Ibn Battuta’s journeys, recovering music from the period and the countries that he visited. Anonymous musical compositions, Arabic and Ottoman songs, traditional melodies from Syria, Yemen or Mali … These and other early music make up the programme of a concert that will take the audience back in time and space. The music will alternate with texts selected by Manuel Forcano, poet, Hebrew scholar, translator and currently the director of the Institut Ramon Llull, recited by the actor Jordi Boixaderas. As is habitual in him, not only does Savall surround himself with the musicians of Hespèrion XXI, on this occasion he will also be accompanied by Turkish, Syrian, Moroccan, Greek, Catalan and Italian soloists.

Direcció musical: Jordi Savall; Interpretació musical: Jordi Savall (vièle, rabec); Hespèrion XXI: Moslem Rahal (ney), Yurdal Tokcan, (oud), Hakan Güngör (kanun), Nedyalko Nedylakov (kaval), Haïg Sarikouyoumdjian (duduk, belul), Gaguik Mouradian (kamancha), Dimitri Psonis (santur, saz), Ballaké Sissoko (kora), Guillermo Pérez (organetto), Pedro Estevan (percussió), David Mayoral (percussió); Solistes: Meral AzizoYlu (cant), Waed Bouhassoun (cant, oud), Driss El Maloumi (cant, oud), Hamam Khairy (cant, riq i sonaja), Lluís Vilamajó (tenor), Furio Zanasi (baríton), Katerina Papadopoulou (cant); Intèrpret: Jordi Boixaderes (recitador);