Ana Alcaide & Gotrasawala ensemble

Beautiful encounter between the
globetrotting Spanish Ladino singer
Ana Alcaide, who plays Swedish
nyckelharpa, and The Gotrasawala
Ensemble, consisting of five
young Indonesian musicians on
Spanish guitar, frame drum, flute and
kecapi (Sundanese zither).
Alcaide wrote new songs
specially for this project and added
new arrangements and texts to
traditional Sundanese compositions.
Ana Alcaide & The Gotrasawala Ensemble present
an unique blend of Ladino and
Sundanese music, resulting in a
set of heartbreaking songs with an
unforgettable guest performance by
singer Novi Aksmiranti, who is blessed
with a keening voice that reaches deep
inside you. A recording of Ana Alcaide
& The Gotrasawala Ensemble will be
released later this year. - SONGLINES, Bastiaan Springer - 2015/02

Building on the success of The Cantigua del Fuego, the 2013 album that found the singer and musician Ana ALCAIDE to a wider public in principle as that of his native land, Spain, and its Judeo-Spanish tradition ARC Music label is releasing another album, which is actually the last recorded by the artist from Toledo.

So this is a reissue, but confidentiality in which bathed the disc before that it will be understood as a novelty for most listeners, unless they have spent time in Toledo, from having crossover song and music Ana ALCAIDE and to be procured its first two games, assuming they are still available on site ... (Of course there is also the website of the artist who is fluent in Spanish ...).
Five years separate Como la Luna y el Sol in La Cantiga del Fuego, but the musical approach is quite similar. The difference, however, is more pronounced with Ana ALCAIDE first album (yet to repeat ...).In it she sought especially to highlight its mastery of the nyckelharpa in a Judeo-Spanish registry (remember that this instrument has absolutely no connection with Jewish tradition and returns more readily to traditional Swedish music - and this is well what is the uniqueness of the approach ALCAIDE Ana).

Como la Luna y el Sol has already reported a greater artistic ambition around a thematic focus more clearly rooted in the Sephardic repertoire (including Toledo is an obvious source of inspiration), and evokes the sense of loss experienced by the Jewish people following his expulsion from the Spanish land at the end of the XV th century, and the separation from this beloved Earth. This is the story of a quest for the unattainable, "like the moon with the sun" ... It is basically the story of any "refugee", all faiths ...

Ana ALCAIDE gives us here a selection of twelve songs (in Ladino language) and instrumentals from Turkey, Salonika, Rhodes, Bulgaria, Greece, and even Morocco, all reflecting the exile of the Sephardic Jewish diaspora. These pieces have been rearranged due to instrument Ana ALCAIDE choice.
This is becoming surrounded by three other musicians on this disc, one in the strings, the other wind instruments, percussion and third. The quartet formed and demonstrated a great variety and inventiveness in the arrangements, using different instrumental combinations on each piece. Besides the nyckelharpa, Ana also plays the santur, the hardanger, violin and occasionally adds discrete keystrokes. Carlos Beceiro alternates or screens mandola, lauto, baglama, saz, hurdy-gurdy, acoustic and electric guitars, viola braguesa (ten Portuguese lute strings) Cumbus ("Banjo" Turkish), etc. Jaime MU Ň OZ is in turn responsible for flute (bansuri, kaval ...), clarinet and chirimia (oboe), and Jose Manuel Castro spreads its percussion. Finally, a few voices from audio archives are also heard at the beginning and end of the record in order to support the theme.
Maybe a little less bloated in terms of instrumentation that his successor (but already very generous), Como la Luna y el Sol displayed with the aplomb of Ana ALCAIDE orientation richly developed progressive music but avoiding flashy overproduction. His choice of a Sephardic repertoire arranged Mediterranean colors (in which blends beautifully nyckelharpa) is perfectly rational and consistent. Above all, Ana ALCAIDE sensitivity there shines throughout.
If you liked La Cantiga del Fuego, please get yourself Como la Luna y el Sol. If you are a perfect neophyte in the world of Ana ALCAIDE, you can also start your discovery by this album, which you open the doors the next. - ETHNOTEMPOS, Stéphane Fougère - FRANCE, 2014/09

"...Ethnomusicologists will hear elements of Celtic music and stately medievalism (especially in her vocal pieces), and when I spoke on radio about this I am pretty sure I mentioned her as a one-woman Clannad (check out Y Arrelumbre) or a soundtrack to some tele-series set in Europe's 16th century (Tishri).

Not quite the mature album that La Cantiga del Fuego was obviously, but you do wonder why all music research projects can't be this interesting and made available for the wider world to hear." - Graham Reid - AUSTRALIA - 2014/07

Ana Alcaide of Toledo in Spain came in 2000 to Lund with a scholarship to study biology. There she came in contact with the Swedish nyckelharpa and became so fond of its connotation that she, who previously was a violinist, came to study and take the exam on the instrument at the Malmö Academy of Music. A story we read about in Lira # 1 in 2013.

Her international breakthrough, La cantiga del fuego, was released last year, but back in 2008 she had recorded Como la luna y el sol. It was released then only in Spain but is now being launched as a paradoxical sequel to the latter made disc.

Though nyckelharpa is central to her music her sounds do not have much in common with Swedish folk music. Even though she starts with the Sephardic tradition in Spain, the music remains fairly free. With vocals, nyckelharpa, harmonium, guitars, percussion and more, she creates a wall of sound that is hard to put a label on - maybe you can say that she is a few meters on the right side of the border with gooey New Age. There are clear Spanish and North African influences - and a touch of Nordic melancholy. - LIRA, Ulf Torstensson - SWEDEN, 2014/06

Ana Alcaide
Como la Luna y el Sol
*** 3 Star Review

One of Sephardic song’s contemporary modernisers

There is now a legion of different approaches to Sephardic song but two predominate. There’s the scholarly, supposedly authentic manner, which can sometimes be doggedly literal but which occasionally takes flight: the Al Andalus Project tends to sink under the weight of its own scholarship, whereas the Balkan group Shira u’tfila leave the listener breathless. But then there are the performers such as Yasmin Levi or Mor Karbasi who take the Judeo-Spanish legacy and use it as a road map for creativity.

Alcaide belongs firmly to the second camp. Her latest album surrounds her evocative voice with a host of colourful but never invasive instruments. From her studies in Scandinavia she’s borrowed the Swedish nyckelharpa and then arranged it next to the table, Portuguese lute, harmonium and the rebec (bowed lute). Recorded Ladino speech and song provide the book-ends for 12 very appealing tracks. It is occasionally over-produced and sometimes too resonantly recorded, but familiar Balkan numbers such as ‘La Galana y el Mar’ and ‘las tres hermanicas’ come up fresh.

Review by Dennis Marks.
Track To Try: La Galana y el Mar

Songlines 100th Issue - SONGLINES, Dennis Marks - UK, 2014 / 06

Ana Alcaide, a superlative Spanish singer and multi-instrumentalist who specialises in Swedish nyckelharpa (a keyed fiddle) and Sephardic–influenced music, is nothing if not anomalous. Como La Luna y el Sol, which was released before her 2012 international debut CD, La Cantiga Del Fuego, is actually a more coherent and interesting album. That might well be because it features an even wider array of instrumentation – at least eight different instruments are played by Alcaide alone and up to twenty between three guest musicians – and concentrates on traditional compositions. Alto and tenor nyckelharps work well in combination with sitar, saz, chirimia (oboe), harmonium, lauto, baglama, kaval, tabla and viola both in a song and an instrumental of Bulgarian /Turkish origin. A contrastingly sparse arrangement of a pretty Sephardic folk song about three sisters that features Alcaide’s hardanger fiddle and a Bulgarian song given a distinctive sound by the unlikely combination of santur (hammered dulcimer) and kalimba (thumbed piano) are other highlights.

Tony Hillier. - RHYTHMS MAGAZINE, Tony Hillier - AUSTRALIA, 2014/06

"Tiene el don de trasladarnos a aquellas regiones lejanas donde viven nuestros recuerdos más queridos: escuchar su música es conectar con estos resortes íntimos del alma. Con ella, sentimos el escalofrío sutil de la memoria y de aquellas cosas que perdimos y -quién sabe- si también nos enlaza con las premoniciones ciertas de aquellas que nos quedan por vivir...". - Nacho Toledano - SPAIN - 2014/06

**** 4 Star Review written by Dave Haslam

Released in 2012, Spanish musician Ana Alcaide’s breakthrough album, La Cantiga Del Fuego,
Introduced an international audience to her unique explorations of the Sephardic Jews whose culture is central to her home city of Toledo.

The result of Alcaide’s final degree project at Mälmo’s Academy of Music, Como La Luna y el Sol was recorded before La Cantiga...but until now has only been available in her native country, so this remastered international release is a welcome reminder of her sympathetic approach to this exquisite music.

It was whilst studying in Sweden that Alcaide’s love affair with the nyckelharpa (keyed fiddle) began, an instrument she uses to great effect on a beguiling album of songs from Spain, Turkey and Eastern Europe, which manages to sound simultaneously ancient and modern.

Accompanied by multi-intrumentalists Carlos Beceiro and James Munoz, Alcaide’s crystalline voice brings this music sharply into focus, as through religious songs (‘La Mujer de Terah’), folk tales (‘Las Tres Hermanicas) and the beautiful symbolism of the title track. She provides a superbly atmospheric insight into a fascinating culture and an important period of history. - R2 Rock N Reel, Dave Haslan - UK, 2014/05

Como la Luna y el Sol
Ana Alcaide

We say: It dat ol' Spanish-Sweden-Sephardic connection again, folks.

Alcaide's excellent "La Cantiga del Fuego" (see Perceptive Travel, December 2012) announced not just an interesting artist from Spain but also an unusual instrument of choice. Alcaide is a practitioner of the Swedish nyckelharpa, which she first encountered on a biology scholarship in Lund. She was so taken with the instrument — think a fretted viola with dark resonances — she later busked in Toledo playing it (which must have attracted attention, the thing is huge). She subsequently returned to Sweden to pursue music further (she'd studied classical violin for years) and graduated from Malmo's Academy of Music.

To blur that Spain-to-Sweden picture even more, this album — first released in 2007, but now given wider reissue through Arc Music — was her research project: interpretations of the Sephardic Jewish music historically embedded in Spain.

On the evidence we must conclude that A Big Time Biology Career's loss was Minority Music's gain. Ethnomusicologists will delight in finding here trace elements of Celtic music and stately medievalism, especially in her vocal pieces, and I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the evocations a one-woman Clannad ("Y Arrelumbre") or a maudlin soundtrack to some tele-series set in Europe's 16th century ("Tishri"). Not quite the mature album that "La Cantiga del Fuego" was, but lay people might wonder why all music research projects couldn't be this beguiling. - PERCEPTIVE TRAVEL, Graham Reid - 2014/05

On the second CD ‘Como la Luna y el Sol’, Ana gets deeper into the subject of the Sephardic music, probably influenced by the atmosphere of the city of Toledo where she lives. This is the traditional music of the Spanish speaking communities of Jewish people settled in several places of the world (mostly in Mediterranean countries), after their ejection from Spain in 1492. The Judaeo-Spanish language of these lyrics is known as ‘Sefardí’ or ‘Ladino’, being a kind of old Spanish, heavily influenced by Hebrew and Aramaic, but also Arabic, Turkish and to a lesser extent Greek. The songs are from Sephardic communities in Bulgaria, Turkey, Greece and Morocco, but there are also a few instrumentals composed by Ana. - FOLKWORLD.EU - GERMANY, 2014/04

Het Joods Sefardisch repertoire uit Spanje en Portugal wordt al jaren door veel artiesten op cd gezet. Moeilijk om daar nog verrassende versies aan toe te voegen. Toch lukt het Ana Alcaide (Madrid-1976) weer om met haar derde cd ‘Como la Luna y el Sol’ een verfrissend kijk te bieden op deze vijf eeuwen oude muziek.

Eind 15de eeuw werden de Joden uit Spanje gedwongen zich óf tot het Christendom te bekeren óf Spanje te verlaten. Veel Sefardische Joden vertrokken naar Nederland maar ook velen naar Turkije, Griekenland en de Balkan. Zij namen hun muziek mee die zich aanpaste aan de nieuwe cultuur. Sefardische melodieën zijn karakteristiek, hebben typische melodische wendingen en worden gezongen in het Ladino. Ana Alcaide baseert haar muziek op deze rijke lied cultuur. Ze heeft een prachtig heldere, soms breekbare stem die zo mooi past bij deze fragiele muziek. De inmiddels klassieke balladen ‘La Galana y el Mar’ en ‘Las Tres Hermanicas’ hebben een mooi gedoseerde melancholie en zijn werkelijk schitterend. Bovendien is Alcaide multi instrumentalist. Ze speelt harp, santur (hakkebord), rebec (Renaissance viool), percussie en nychelkharpa. De Zweedse druktoetsenviool, uniek binnen de Sefardische muziek. Ze wordt bijgestaan door drie gast musici die allerlei fluit, snaar en percussie instrumenten bespelen. De arrangementen zijn helder en volgen de lied structuur. Overigens wordt niet in elk stuk gezongen, treffen we Keltische invloeden aan (‘Tishri‘) en is een enkel nummer voorzien van overbodig drumspel waardoor de unieke breekbaarheid verloren gaat. ‘Como la Luna y el Sol’ (Zoals de Zon en de Maan) is een voortreffelijke album waar de tijd even stilstaat of zoals Alcaide het zelf vertaalt: ‘….de metafoor voor alles wat ons bindt en toch zo onbereikbaar en ver weg‘.

Klik hier voor een review van haar debuut-cd ‘La Cantiga del Fuego’.

Mattie Poels - Musicframes - NETHERLANDS - 2014/03

http://www.donaukurier.de/nachrichten/kultur/Ingolstadt-Hoch-emotionale-Geschichtsstunde;art598,2870876

Hoch emotionale Geschichtsstunde


Ingolstadt (DK) Ästhetisch – das ist mit das erste Wort, was einem beim Anblick und Hörerlebnis von Ana Alcaide und ihrem Trio in den Sinn kommt. Elfengleich schwebt die zierliche Spanierin mit ihrer schwedischen Nyckelharpa zu eingespielten mystischen Klängen mit spanischen Sprachfetzen auf die von einem farbenfrohen Teppich bedeckte Bühne der Neuen Welt, um das zahlreich erschienene Publikum für zwei Stunden mit anheimelnder Weltmusik zu verzaubern. - Donaukurier - GERMANY - 2014/01

"...A travers ses deux albums précédents, Ana ALCAIDE avait témoigné à la fois de sa maîtrise du nyckelharpa et de sa prédilection pour un répertoire méditerranéen, et à vrai dire très ancré dans la culture de la communauté judéo-espagnole, dont on sait qu'elle a été, dans l'Espagne de 1492 (fin de la « Reconquista »), la victime d'une forme antique d'épuration ethnique de la part des monarques catholiques en place." - La Voix Source - FRANCE - 2013/11

Ana ALCAIDE - La Cantiga Del Fuego
(ARC Music)
Au chapitre des réconciliations entre cultures du Nord et cultures du Sud, Ana ALCAIDE paraît être une ambassadrice attitrée puisqu'elle a introduit un instrument archaïque scandinave dans une tradition musicale qui a ses sources dans la péninsule ibérique. Cette Madrilène d'origine a en effet abandonné ses études de biologie et de botanique pour se consacrer à la musique, suite à sa découverte, en Suède, du nyckelharpa, un instrument médiéval à cordes frottées de la même famille que la vielle à roue, et qui peut justement se traduire par « vièle à clavier ».
Au début des années 2000, Ana a ainsi passé son temps alternativement entre l'Université de Lund, en Suède, où elle a perfectionné son jeu au nyckelharpa, et Tolède (dans la communauté de Castille-la-Manche, dans le Centre de l'Espagne), où on pouvait la voir jouer de cet instrument – pour le coup très exotique ! – dans les rues. Du reste, elle y vit toujours... (à Tolède, pas dans la rue !).
A travers ses deux albums précédents, Ana ALCAIDE avait témoigné à la fois de sa maîtrise du nyckelharpa et de sa prédilection pour un répertoire méditerranéen, et à vrai dire très ancré dans la culture de la communauté judéo-espagnole, dont on sait qu'elle a été, dans l'Espagne de 1492 (fin de la « Reconquista »), la victime d'une forme antique d'épuration ethnique de la part des monarques catholiques en place.
Cet attachement au répertoire séfarade, Ana ALCAIDE l'a de plus entériné en enregistrant en 2009 un DVD dans la somptueuse synagogue « El Tránsito » (datée du XIVe siècle) de Tolède, ville qui, rappelons-le, est restée connue pour la tolérance religieuse dont elle a fait preuve durant l'époque « Al-Andalus », où les trois communautés chrétienne, juive et musulmane cohabitaient en paix.
Et c'est une fois encore l'histoire et les légendes de la capitale de la communauté de Castille-la-Manche, ainsi que les chants traditionnels séfarades provenant des régions balkaniques et méditerranéennes où se sont exilés les « Séfaradim » après leur expulsion de la péninsule ibérique, qui fournissent la matière littéraire et musicale de ce troisième CD, La Cantiga del Fuego (le chant du feu).
Ana ALCAIDE y chante en espagnol et en ladino (langue espagnole-hébraïque) les histoires d'une jeune fille juive qui, forcée de quitter sa maison, se fait guider par la lune, d'un beau jeune homme qui a « poussé » dans les jardins de la Reine, d'un serpent volant qui enlève une fille, d'un incendie qui ravage toute une ville, d'un amour tragique entre un chrétien et une juive, les événements survenus sous le règne de la reine Esther, etc. Airs de danse, ballades intimistes ou complaintes religieuses se côtoient ainsi pour circonscrire un univers qui emprunte autant à l'Histoire authentique qu'à la Légende.
La production entière est le fait d'Ana ALCAIDE, qui a opté pour des paysages sonores aux couleurs « world », impliquant plusieurs musiciens qui l'accompagnent régulièrement au psaltérion et santour, aux guitares acoustique et espagnole, à la basse et aux percussions. Des timbres supplémentaires ont été ajoutés pour souligner ou évoquer l'origine de telle ou telle pièce, comme une clarinette, un ney turc, une mandole, un accordéon chromatique, une vîna, un oud, une gaida, un pandero, une moraharpa, une furulya hongroise, etc. C'est dire si un soin tout particulier a été pris pour que chaque thème se pare d'effluves reflétant des échos d'un passé onirique ou douloureux. Et sur le thème final (Mikdash, qui signifie « prière » en hébreux), Ana invite une voix masculine à prendre les devants, celle du musicien iranien Reza SHAYESTEH, féru de musique persane.
La Cantiga del Fuego s'avère passionnant et envoûtant d'un bout à l'autre. La musicienne et chanteuse tolédane a cherché à rendre son monde accessible même à des auditeurs non spécialistes en tradition séfarade, sans jamais sacrifier la dimension poétique, voire sacrée, de ses pièces.
S'il fallait situer la démarche d'Ana ALCAIDE dans le vaste champ de la world music, on pourrait dire qu'elle est en quelque sorte une version judéo-espagnole de Loreena McKENNITT (rapprochement d'autant plus induit par le fait qu'Ana ALCAIDE joue aussi occasionnellement de la harpe celtique).
Cet album est son premier à bénéficier d'une diffusion internationale. Il ne faut pas rater cette occasion de découvrir une artiste singulière qui mérite bien plus qu'un succès confidentiel. - Ethnotempos - FRANCE - 2013/07

The charm of wandering sound of contemporary finds fulfillment ARC Music label, founded in 1976 by the will of Horst Tubbesing that narrate the wiki chronicles, after starting to sell Bolivian music in his Citroen 2CV, has built a business of respectable , devoted exclusively to the spread of world music, with titles from more than 120 countries. Among the leading names in the label recently put under contract there are the Irish Clannad, but our survey provides an overview of some of the new artists that are less known to the general public. We begin by Ana Alcaide , eclectic and sensitive singer and multi-instrumentalist, with studies in Sweden that led her to take up the nyckelharpa, which sounds along with violin, rebec, santur, harmonium, harp, keyboards and percussion.

Accompanied by a trio of talented multi-instrumentalists such as Beciro Carlos (guitars, mandolin, viola braguesa, saz, oud, lavish, cümbüs, sitar, hurdy-gurdy, kalimba, bass, E-bow), Jaime Muñoz (flutes, Chirimia, bansuri, kavla, clarinet) and Jose Manuel Castro (lira, percussion, drums), in his "Como la Luna y Sol" Alcaide is a solid combination of emotional charge of the Sephardic Jewish tradition, which adds a personal touch, in the wake of vocal personality as Yasmin Levi and Mor Karbasi. - BLOG FOOLK - ITALY, 2014/07

Sephardic song studies from Europe-hopping nyckelharpist.

Madrid-born Ana Alcaide went to Sweden to study as a biologist and came back to Spain to become a professional musician after falling under the spell of the nyckelharpa (keyed fiddle). She now lives in Toledo and her third album, La Cantiga del Fuego, was composed there during her fist pregnancy. It’s the first to receive significant international distribution, based on its popularity in Europe. The title of the album comes from a traditional Sephardic song describing a fire that ravaged Thessaloniki in Greece, and it’s inspired by the journey of the Sephardic Jews, largely force out of Spain in the 15th century, as well as by the city of Toledo itself. In fact, one track ‘El agua del Río’ is even part of a permanent exhibit in the Sephardic Museum there.
There is a more widescreen sound than on her earlier albums. Alcaide is joined by guest musicians such as American Bill Cooley, principally on psaltery and oud, an her former teacher Reza Shayesteh, who sings the closing tune ‘Mikdash’, with lyrics based on two ancient Persian poems. There’s a delicacy throughout that could perhaps be mistaken for reticence, but which actually conjures an elegantly seductive tone that will beguile listeners far from Toledo.
Kevin Bourke - Songlines nº91 - UK - 2013/04

Ana Alcaide is inspired by the music of the Sephardic Jews and her home city of Toledo in Spain; added to this is her high, pure voice and her skill at playing the nyckelharpa, the Swedish keyed fiddle which sounds a Little like a hammered dulcimer.
She began recording in 2006 and this is her third album, beautifully package and presenting a memorable, haunting amalgam of Spanish, North African, Middle Eastern, Indian, and Celtic influences, with perhaps a slight tinge of a new age, Clannad type of sound and a strong liturgical feel on some tracks.
The music is mostly acoustic and strig-based, though with clarinet, accordion, and gaida (eastern European bagpipes) used in one or two places, and the songs themselves draw on venerable themes and legends – all create strong impressions.
Norman Darwen - R2 ROCKnREEL nº102 - UK - 2013/03

ANA ALCAIDE
La Cantiga del Fuego
This came out in Spain early in 2012, and by August was up to number three in the WMCE European world music radio play chart. It’s recently risen again to the top ten, presumably because now it’s been given wider release via ARC.
Ana Alcaide is a singer and instrumentalist from Toledo, with a particular interest in Sephardic music. Her prime instrument is nyckelharpa which she came across while studying botany at Lund University in Sweden; subsequently she went back to learn more about it, and did a degree at Malmö Academy of Music.
Her singing has a light, airy sweetness that could have become cloying or wifty in the wrong production hands, but there’s mature elegance in the arrangements and production, which are both by Alcaide herself joined by a small, flexible team of musicians, particularly the adaptable Bill Cooley on santur, psaltery, ud, lute and tar and Jaime Muñoz’s traditional reeds and flutes. The final couple of tracks feature the singing of Iranian musician Reza Shayasteh of Malmö’s World Mix Orchestra. The material, which she sees as being strongly related to the old cultural mix of Toledo, draws primarily on Judeo-Spanish musical and lyrical traditions and her own compositions, with some Persian and Bulgarian influences.
Her 2007 second album Como La Luna y El Sol had good ideas but, I reckoned –perhaps because of over-adherence to click-tracks- it plodded somewhat. With this one Alcaide enters a much more fluent, world-class league.
Andrew Cronshaw - fRoots nº97 - UK - 2013/02

Online in Sephardic songs
Ana Alcaide
La cantiga del fuego

Label : Arc / Naxos
Reviewed by: Lars Fahlin

Twelve years ago, Ana Alcaide from the Spanish city of Toledo to Lund to study biology . There she first heard this music on nyckelharpa and fell in love with the instrument that she gained self harp and later spent three years teaching himself to play on it. But not in Sweden , in the streets of Toledo, far from its origin. Her tone and technique are impressive , eclectic compositions that have elements of Castilian , Muslim and Sephardic culture, but also an ounce Swedish melancholy .
La cantiga del Fuego ( Fire, vocals), Alcaides third album, is an emotional collection of songs that particularly emphasizes the medieval , Sephardic tradition. Texts about impossible love between Christians and Jews , old legends about Toledo's Jewish Quarter and the people in perpetual exile, have all been warm, pliable and oriental swinging , minor -like melodies , with a few traditional exceptions , all are composed by Alcaide . The nyckelharpa plays a prominent role in most of the songs , which Alcaide sings himself, with an unpretentious , warm , clear as a bell voice.
Alcaide also play mora harp , violin and Celtic harp . Moreover, nearly a dozen musicians with other evocative instrument , the oud , medieval lute, psaltery , santur ( dulcimer ) and the sitar -like instrument Hanseatic veena , the Turkish clarinet, flutes ney and Kaval , gaida ( Eastern European bagpipes ) , and percussion and hand drums from Spain , the Middle East and the Indian subcontinent - Lira Magazine - SWEDEN - 2013/02

Ana Alcaide artista contemporánea del palaciego que nos abre los ojos

ANA ALCAIDE, artista contemporánea del palaciego que nos abre los ojos del medievo, las culturas sefarditas, la musulmana y judeocristianas con las tonadas más exquisitas del presente siglo XXI.

La piezas de ANA ALCAIDE... siempre tan Dulces y tan poco Amargas; tan intensas en la brillantez, tan hondas como el Pozo de donde aplacaremos con su agua fresca nuestra sed.


"La musica de ANA ALCAIDE... siempre tan amorosa y arrebatadora. La voz calurosa, la que alumbra con sus tonos el candil que da lumbre, la que se nos ofrece de color de petalos de rosa... que me quema y me roza. Me pellizca las auriculas y las ventriculas de un latir en mi pecho sin despecho. Ese golpeo de emociones salen, de cosas, que laten en los adentros. Si no lo escribo re... y tras esta locura que siento se lleva envuelta los silbidos de los vientos..." - Músicas Globales Contemporáneas - SPAIN - 2013/02

This CD is all 31 flavors of “Fuck yeah!”
You’re finding this out in the very beginning of the review because not telling you immediately would’ve been a crime on par with simultaneously kidnapping the Lindbergh baby and assassinating Abe Lincoln while dressed in a Nazi uniform.
Ana Alcaide’s La Cantiga Del Fuego is a musical depiction of the lives and legends of the Sephardic Jews of Toledo. Alcaide’s voice floats and dances effortlessly and seamlessly atop each tune. The songs are brilliantly arranged — one false move and this material could’ve easily taken a wrong turn onto Pretentious Boulevard. And the use of exotic instruments — the oud, Turkish ney, psaltery, lyra, and Alcaide’s own nyckelharpa — is original, innovative and inspired.
Aficionados of world music will immediately recognize the nyckelharpa as that evil Scandinavian cross between a violin and a hurdy-gurdy, the appearance of which usually portends a very unpleasant listening experience. (Seriously, the nyckelharpa has been responsible for more verdicts of “Invade” than yodeling.) But you read that right: Ana Alcaide has single-handedly elevated the nyckelharpa from this column’s sinister, pasty Bond villain into its brooding, handsome hero.
One more thing: According to the liner notes, Alcaide also has a degree in botany and has conducted extensive studies of both the Baja California’s mushrooms and the birds’ nests of Scandinavia. What have you done lately?
Verdict:
How good is this CD? Well, imagine Pat Robertson, naked and covered in bear grease, being backed by Mumford & Sons in a four-hour rock opera about installing drywall. Well, La Cantiga Del Fuego is the exact opposite of that. - Citypaper - USA - 2013/02

"...En definitiva, una curiosidad artística (fue probablemente la primera audición en nuestro país de un repertorio casi desconocido) con intervención de un extraño instrumento del medioevo al parecer muy usado en territorio de lo que es hoy Suecia. Se trata de un mágico instrumento de la Edad Media que se escuchó aquí por primera vez de la mano de una intérprete protagonista de la que emanan riqueza intelectual, delicadeza, sobriedad y simpatía. Es de esperar que en varios escenarios de nuestro país se la pueda apreciar en otras oportunidades." - Juan Carlos Montero - ARGENTINA - 2013/01

Perceptive Travel World Music Reviews
December 2012 - By Laurence Mitchell

La Cantiga del Fuego
Ana Alcaide

We say: A Toledo soundtrack of Sephardic Spanish songs with a modern touch.

Ana Alcaide's adopted city of Toledo in Spain is central to this recording. For centuries Christian, Jewish and Islamic traditions coexisted peacefully here until the unforgiving Reconquista saw to it that both Muslims and Jews were exiled from the Spanish homeland they had known for generations. Both peoples took something of the old country with them when they left for new territories overseas. Ana Alcaide's music documents and celebrates Spain's Jewish tradition and tells the Sephardic story through a variety of traditional and self-penned songs.

A biologist as well as a trained musician, Alcaide's post-graduate studies took her to Sweden where she came across the nyckelharpa, a traditional and somewhat archaic Swedish instrument. Already a skilled violinist, Alcaide learned to play the instrument busking on the streets of Toledo and, as her skills developed, adopted the instrument to her personal telling of the story of Toledo's Jews.

The title track "La Cantiga del Fuego (The Song of the Fire)" is a traditional Sephardic song that tells of a devastating fire in Thessaloniki, one of their cities of exile. "La Reina Ester" is another old Sephardic song sung in Ladino that describes historic events during the reign of Queen Esther in old Persia. Many of the other tracks are original compositions by Alcaide written in the same spirit of tradition.

Ana Alcaide's voice is melodious and strong throughout and at times the sound is markedly Middle Eastern, as you might expect with instrumentation that includes santur, Greek lyra, psaltery and oud as well as Alcaide's own nyckelharpa and violin. Elsewhere, there is a medieval feel to things. Neither should come as a surprise really considering this music's roots in medieval Muslim Spain. Although the result is gentle and evocative with a hint of romantic whimsy, any comparisons with the ethereal ear-floss that is Enya should be politely disregarded. Ana Alcaide is very much her own woman and this is a highly enjoyable and original collection. - Perceptive Travel World Music Reviews - 2012/12

ANA ALCAIDE, La Cantiga del Fuego, ARC Music

Restons en Espagne, et dans une ambiance toute proche, avec le troisième album d’Ana Alcaide. Cette artiste, originaire de Tolède, nous propose un délicieux «voyage judéo-espagnol» comme elle a intitulé son album, accompagnée de l’instrument dont elle est tombée amoureuse lors d’un voyage en Suède : la nyckelharpa, sorte de vièle utilisée depuis le Moyen-Age.

Sans surprise, on retrouve dans cet album des rythmes médiévaux, comme dans «Luna sefardita» («Lune sépharade») au rythme lent d’une marche de pélerins - car au Moyen-Age on marchait beaucoup, et sans doute, s’accompagnait-on de musique ou chantait-on, pour faire passer le temps...

«Khun Caravan» emprunte à l’Orient ses rythmes ondulants, et est rythmé par le daf, ce tambour à main de large diamètre. «En el jardin de la reina» évoque l’univers celtique, et Ana Alcaide élève sa voix dans les aigus, à la manière des chanteuses irlandaises telles Kate Bush : sans doute pour s’approcher des nuages?...

«Un voyage réussi est une réflexion sur qui l’on est. Cela nous force à nous débarrasser de tout ce qui est superflu en nous, et à devenir conscients de qui l’on est vraiment, c’est-à-dire à découvrir notre vrai moi. nous permet d’entendre la voix ancienne et puissante qui vit toujours en nous. «La Cantiga del Fuego» est la voix qui a toujours été là et qui nous guide dans ce voyage d’auto-découverte», explique Ana pour rendre compte de sa démarche.

Ana a composé cet album alors qu’elle attendait son fils Bruno. Voilà sans doute qui explique le climat doux et apaisé de cette musique, qui vous enveloppe et vous fait du bien...

Ecouter: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DPHQAkO-rrY

www.anaalcaide.com - Babel Med - Muzzika! - France 2012/12

"Retomamos la iniciativa de nuestro primer año de elegir el que para Voces del Mundo ha sido el mejor disco de este 2012, y lo hacemos reconociendo el espléndido último trabajo de la madrileña afincada en Toledo, Ana Alcaide..." - Voces del Mundo - SPAIN - 2012/12

De tover van het Sefardische 'songbook' kennen we van uitstekende zangeressen als Yasmine Levy, Françoise Atlan, Arianna Savall en Savina Yannatou & Primavera en Salonico. Maar wat als die liederen gespeeld worden op nyckelharpa, getoetst aan een hele waaier aan volkse, dus akoestische instrumenten? Bovendien in sublieme sferen en ragfijne arrangementen die refereren aan Loreena McKennitt? Van zoiets kon men enkel dromen... Tot nu! Want hier is Ana Alcaide, een Spaanse wetenschapsvrouw, zangeres, muzikante, componiste, musicologe én globetrotter.
Zweden is zowat haar tweede thuis, vandaar de Zweedse viool. Dat ze echter 'van overal' is, merk je aan de Perzische santur, de Griekse lyra, de Indische vina, de oed naast de luit, de ney naast de kaval, de psalter naast de Keltische harp, de gaida naast de gaita, en ga zo maar verder! Op 'La Cantiga del Fuego' ('Het Lied van het Vuur') bezingt bloedmooie Ana met haar engelenstem de diaspora en de odyssee van de Sefardische joden vanaf Toledo over de hele Middellandse Zee. Ze presteert zulks met eigen liederen, die zich laven aan de bewogen geschiedenis der Sefarden en naadloos aansluiten op een handvol traditionals. Zoals de titel aangeeft, is 'La Cantiga del Fuego' een briljante, warme en bovendien uiterst verfijnde gezel voor de donkere, koude dagen... en voor de rest van het jaar!

Antoine Légat - Rootstime - Belgium, 2012/11

Review by Chris Nickson

Ana Alcaide might be the first to mix the Swedish nyckelharpa with the music of her native Spain (specifically Sephardic-influenced music of Toledo), but it's a blend that works well on this, her third album. Her music's often described as the Toledo soundtrack, and there's certainly a sweep to it, both in the epic scope and the use of older instruments to create a neo-medieval sound. The closest analogue, perhaps, is Loreena McKennitt, and although their areas are very different, there's a distinctly common feel to them. Alcaide's album is a mix of traditional and original pieces, with the acoustic instruments filled out on some tracks by electronic soundscapes (created by Alcaide, who's actually a hell of a musician). There's beauty to it all, especially the closing pair of cuts, "Mikdash Intro" and "Mikdash," with text adapted from Persian poems, performed with dignified solemnity, the mix of clarinet, nyckelharpa, and voice particularly moving. It's no surprise, given the historic Islamic influence on the region, that some of the music has a North African and Middle Eastern feel at times, and Alcaide is masterful in her creation of atmosphere. Something different and a musical journey well worth taking. - Allmusic - USA, 2012/11

Spanish musician Ana Alcaide has become a familiar name in Europe thanks to her new album La Cantiga del Fuego that hit the world music charts in Europe at number three. The album will be available in Europe and North America in November 2012.

World Music Central’s Angel Romero interviewed Ana Alcaide to find out more about her background and La Cantiga del Fuego.

When did you begin learning music?

At six. My parents detected that I had a gift for music and signed me up for after school programs in my school.

Which was your first musical instrument?

The violin.

How many instruments do you play now?

Primarily the nyckelharpa, violin and vocals. I have an ability to play instruments, specially the bowed strings (rabel, kamanche, other fiddles). There are many others that also attract me and that I use in studio recordings, such as the Celtic harp and santur. The problem is finding time to study all!

You use as your main instrument the nyckelharpa, a Swedish instrument that is not well known in Spain. How did you discover it?

Ana Alcaide with her nyckelharpa
Photo by Lucía Herrero
When I was finishing my degree in Biology, I was given an Erasmus scholarship to study in Sweden and I lived in Lund for a year. Attracted by the great Swedish musical tradition, during my free time I tried to attend all the music events posible and in one of them I saw a nyckelharpa for the first time. I fell in love with its sophistication and depth of sound.

Where did you learn how to play it?

Two years later, in Toledo. Until then, I didn’t have the economic means to get one. Then I started to play in the streets of Toledo during weekends, since during the weekdays I studied violin at the conservatory. A few years later I returned to Sweden to complete mu music training and to deepen my knowledge of the nyckelharpa.

You latest album is titled La Cantiga del Fuego. What does it mean?

Ana Alcaide – La Cantiga del Fuego
The name comes from a traditional Sephardic song from Thessaloniki in Greece, that describes a fire that took place in that city. This title seemed very symbolic and suggestive, and I used it as the main the thread of the entire work: ‘The cantiga del fuego is the voice that has always been inside and that leads us to be what we are, that ancient powerful voice that echoes inside us since ancestral times.’

The songs on Las canciones de La Cantiga del Fuego have a Sephardic nature but they are original. What sources did you use to write the lyrics and compose the music?

I like to compose new melodies in the ancient language. The composition process is a very special phase: I let myself be carried by my instincts and I leave the rational on the side. When an idea appears, I try to mold it and find the song. I’m passionate and have fun arranging and producing my musical ideas. It’s what I enjoy the most!

When I compose a song, I always begin with the melody, lyrics come later. Perhaps because I feel more an instrumentalist than a singer, and the world of melodies is where I feel it’s easier to create. For this album I had the collaboration of my great friend and poet Beatriz Moreno-Cervera, who wrote two of the lyrics for my melodies. It’s been a really fun and enriching collaboration, that I’m sure will continue in the future!

What musicians did you use to carry out this Project?

Guitarist Josete Ordoñez, one of the participants in la Cantiga del Fuego
This has been my first large production experience and I have learned a lot. I used great musicians and friends who provided special and enriching sonorities, expanding and coloring my musical ideas. The list of collaborators is very long and begins with the musicians with whom I work regularly. On ‘La Cantiga del Fuego’ you can listen to the psaltery, santur and oud of Bill Cooley, winds by Jaime Muñoz, basses by Renzo Ruggiero, guitars by Josete Ordoñez and Rafa del Teso, percussion by Diego López and Sergey Saprychev. In addition, there are very specific special collaborations such as the voice of Iranian artist Reza Sheyesteh, the Greek lyre of Dimitri Psonis and the hansa veena of Ido Segal.

Do you plan to take La Cantiga del Fuego to the stage?

The album came out in May in Spain, but I’ve been presenting live since January. I’ve performed over 40 concerts this year, most of them in Spain and a handful in France, Italy and Portugal. It’s been a very intense and productive year. In the future I plan to do international tours.

La Cantiga del Fuego, which is an independent production reached number 3 in the European World Music Charts. What does this mean to you and did you increase your sales?

Ana Alcaide with the nyckelharpa
Photo by Lucía Herrero
Undoubtedly, it’s a great recognition that fills me with hope and motivation to continue! Sincerely, I was not expecting it, and I am very grateful to everybody who has supported me and I feel a commitment to continue to offer the best of me. These types of recognitions don’t have an immediate direct effect in record sales, but rather positive long term consequences, such as more publicity and international recognition.

I understand that British label Arc Music is going to release the album in November

Yes, I’m very excited!! ARC Music is going to release the album worldwide and this is a very good opportunity to get international exposure for my music, as well as reaching places that I can’t reach. I’m very happy to work with the ARC team.

You live in the ancient city of Toledo, a city in which Jews, Christians and Muslims coexisted. Paco de Lucia lived in Toledo recently. What does it mean to live in Toledo? And why do you think it attracts musicians and other artists?

Ana Alcaide in the streets of Toledo
Photo by Lucía Herrero
Toledo is a beautiful city that attracts numerous artists because of its extremely rich historical past, no wonder it’s known as the ‘city of the three cultures.’ It’s a city that allows itself to be rediscovered over and over again. To me, it means a daily environment for inspiration, and I love being carried away by its influence. I’ve lived here for 10 years and this environment has provided me the necessary ingredients to develop my musical and artistic career: spirituality, inspiration, history. I love living in Toledo, I carry her with me.

Lately, there seems to be a renewed interest in Sephardic music in Israel, Spain, the United States, Europe and several countries in the Mediterranean. Why do you think there is such an interest?

In Spain, the interest has to do with tourism reasons, since we have a Jewish heritage that has not been promoted enough. I don’t know the reasons in other countries. In any case, the story of the Sephardic peoples is really interesting: it means a great example of coexistence, exchange and cultural enrichment.

If you could gather your ideal musicians or bands, who would you call?

Ana Alcaide
Photo by Lucía Herrero
What a difficult question! Above all, I admire great producers and composers, such as Gustavo Santaolalla, Nycky Ryan (Enya), Mike Oldfield, Karl Jenkins (Adiemus), Alan Parsons, and Quincy Jones. I love the songs by groups like Abba and Roxette. I understand music in 360º.

Spain is suffering a great economic crisis. How is it affecting musicians?

Being a musician in Spain is not considered a serious or honorable job. It’s not well recognized academically or valued socially. There is no support for musical creation, or for projects, or tours. The few supports available are practically designated, since Spain is a very corrupt country. In general, people don’t understand that we musicians are professionals who play a role in society, like other professionals. We don’t have a professional association that represents or supports us, and we are much disunited among ourselves. The fundamental problem is a great lack of culture, a tremendous lack of vision that feeds the great cultural crisis that is eating up Spain. The radical measures of cuts in education and the arts show a great ignorance by those who are in charge and forecast a very dark future. It’s very disheartening to live in such an environment with so little motivation. As a Spaniard, I am not proud at all of this situation and sometimes I feel like running away.

What music are you currently listening to?

Ana Alcaide
Photo by Lucía Herrero
Lately I listen to soundtracks. I find very interesting the job of joining music and film. The latest album I purchased is the soundtrack of ‘Kingdom of Heaven’ by Harry Gregson-Williams.

What do you like to do during your free time?

I travel a lot. I always love to have a trip in mind so that I can dream about it and plan it. I’m very attracted to other cultures and learning more about them. I love to go out to the countryside, specially the mountains. I like to read and cook a lot. I’m interested in natural sciences, phytotherapy and natural remedies.

What country or countries would you like to visit?

In general all! I’d love to see India, Korea, Thailand and the south of Asia. I’d also like to see Albania. I would also like to know more about Latin America, where people seem happy and joyful. I’d like to go to Chile and Costa Rica. My next trip is to Mexico, a country that I know and love. I like to learn about places in depth. I prefer to stay in a place for a long time and get to know it well rather than traveling in a superficial way.

If someone were to travel to Toledo, what places would you recommend for sightseeing, food and music?

Círculo de Arte Toledo (Spain). Photo courtesy of Círculo de Arte Toledo
Above all, my recommendation is that they forget about maps and get lost in its streets. Aside from the main monuments, I recommend that they visit historical spaces that open only on certain days and that are quite charming (organized by consorcio de Toledo). Also the thematic routes, there are some that are really varied and interesting.

For food: La Abadía. To have a coffee or attend a concert, the Círculo de Arte de Toledo.

What other projects do you have?

My family. I have a beautiful son and a wonderful partner! I love being with them. If I had more time, I would study some natural medicine, Philosophy and Art History.


Angel Romero - World Music Central, USA 2012/10

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- Kawai Taeko -Link club Newsletter, Japan, 2012/09

Ana Alcaide

La Cantiga del Fuego (ARC Music, 2012)

Fans of Celtic powerhouse Enya’s early work will likely dip into Spanish singer, songwriter and musician Ana Alcaide and find a reason to rejoice. Hitting the world music charts in Europe at number three with her La Cantiga del Fuego, Ms. Alcaide will soon be available to a worldwide audience with the recording’s release on the ARC Music label come November. With previous recordings Viola de Teclas and Como La Luna y El Sol to her credit, Ms. Alcaide pulls out all the stops on this latest project.

Drawing on influences of Toledo, Spain and the Sephardic traditions of the city, Ms. Alcaide flavors La Cantiga del Fuego with a wealth of world music instruments like the oud, santoor, bouzouki, mandola, medieval lute, darbuka along with her own playing of the nyckelharpa and Celtic harp against her sweet vocals to create a lush musical landscape that is delicately and intricately worked.

Writing all of the tracks on La Cantiga del Fuego, Ms. Alcaide opens with the brightly worked “El Pozo Amargo” before slipping seamlessly into the intriguing “Baila Donde El Mar.” Cleverly working with a wide range of instrumentation, La Cantiga del Fuego dips toes into Indian, Middle Eastern and Spanish influences effortlessly, stacking up a series of tracks that blurs musical boundaries.

Music fans are sure to enjoy “La Cantiga del Fuego – El Viaje” before delving into the fragile beauty of “Luna Sefardita.” Other gems include “”La Reina Ester,” “En El Jardin de la Reina” and “La Cantia del Fuego – La Cancion,” not to mention the fabulous duo “Mikdash Intro” and “Mikdash.”

This album will be available in Europe and North America in November 2012. At this time, the only source to purchas e the Cd is from the artist herself: anaalcaide.com/en/tienda/productos/la-cantiga-del-fuego-2012


BY TJNELSON - World Music Central, USA, 2012/09

Ana Alcaide goes on with her successful fusion between the Nordic sonorities of the nyckelharpa (Swedish keyed fiddle), the Sephardic (Spanish-Jewish) music, and the traditional sounds from several places around the Mediterranean Sea.[42] This CD is her 4th creative exercise and it is still inspired by the history & the musical legacy of the Jews that in the 15th century were massively forced to leave Sepharad (Spain in Hebrew). ‘La Cantiga del Fuego’ (‘The Song of the Fire’), is a Sephardic trad song about the big fire that in 1917 destroyed two thirds of the Greek city of Thessaloniki. Once again, Ana’s delicate musical taste is present, not only when performing 5 traditional tunes (from the gypsies of East Europe, and from Greece, Bulgaria & Iran), but also in the composition of the other 7. This can be enjoyed in songs such as: ‘Baila donde el Mar’, ‘Khun Caravan’, ‘En el Jardín de la Reina’, ‘El Agua del Rio’, or ‘Ay Que Casas!’. The list of instrument musicians that join Ana in this culturally diverse project is quite longer than usual : starting with the American Bill Cooley (psaltery, ud, santur, medieval lute, tar, frame drum), Josete Ordóñez (Spanish & acoustic guitars), Rafa del Teso (bouzouki, mandola, guitar), Jaime Muñoz (conventional & Turkish clarinets, Turkish ney, kaval, gaida, pipe & tabor, furuluya, diatonic accordion), Renzo Ruggiero (acoustic & electric guitar, hurdy gurdy, santur), Diego López (frame drums, davul, tombak, riq, kanjira, tinaja), Sergey Saprychev (darboukas, frame drums, riq, tombak, tabla), Ido Segal (hansa veena), Dimitris Psonis (Greek lyra), and ending with Ana’s former teacher, Reza Shayesteh who sings the tune ‘Mikdash’, with lyrics based on two ancient Persian poems. Ana sings with her beautiful voice while also playing: nyckelharpa, moraharpa, violin, and Celtic harp (this is a pleasant innovation!). We could imagine that some part of Ana’s evolution in her latest work is due to her recent first time motherhood. In an artist with such an exquisite level of sensibility, this might be a factor to be perceived in the future progress of her fruitful career.

Pío Fernández - Folk World - Germany, 2012/06

Toledo es sinónimo de patrimonio cultural, artístico y monumental pero también humano. Buen ejemplo de ello es la compositora e intérprete de viola de teclas Ana Alcaide, encargada de ofrecer la noche del lunes un concierto en la plaza del Ayuntamiento para presentar en la ciudad el directo de su último trabajo, ‘La cantiga del fuego’, con motivo de las fiestas del Corpus Christi.
La artista ya llevó sus notas a las tablas del Teatro de Rojas el pasado invierno, pero ayer llegó el momento de hacerlo en la calle de su ciudad, frente a un público que prácticamente llenó las sillas dispuestas en la céntrica plaza y que aplaudió el buen hacer de la compositora.
Su música «antigua» es una inspiración «nueva» basada en la tradición sefardí. Además de ‘La cantiga...’, la joven ha editado dos trabajos discográficos anteriores, ‘Viola de teclas’ y ‘Como la luna y el sol’, y compagina sus conciertos en el entorno de la Catedral y el Ayuntamiento con actuaciones en auditorios cerrados de España y el extranjero.
Anoche le tocó el turno al músico y compositor toledano Julián Maeso y sus ‘Dreams are gone’. - La Tribuna de Toledo - Spain, 2012/06

La mezcla cultural de Ana Alcaide

Sólo muy de vez en cuando, se nos brinda la oportunidad de descubrir una voz, un talento, una forma de expresar los sentimientos, tan pura y delicada. Tengo que reconocer que, antes de ahora, poco sabía y conocía de la cantante y compositora toledana Ana Alcaide, y en cambio tras escuchar repetidas veces este nuevo trabajo –resulta tan hechizante que es imposible no recurrir a él una y otra vez-, parece como si conociera su música desde siempre.
Será por ese magnetismo que nace en la mezcla de culturas, por esa forma de establecer un estrecho vínculo con la tradición desde el presente, por esa capacidad de proyectar un sinfín de cromatismos sonoros y atmósferas musicales al servicio de la sensibilidad extrema, por esa riqueza basada en la esencia de los instrumentos de cuerda como el salterio, violín, arpa, guitarra, laúd, Bouzouki, mandola o lyra que acompañan a la viola de teclas y que invitan al clarinete o el ney turco y a una interminable lista de instrumentos de percusión, a la búsqueda del timbre preciso.
Pero será también por esas canciones nuevas que presenta en su tercer trabajo, La cantiga del fuego, inspiradas en el romancero y cancionero antiguo que viajan por el legado común entre cristianos, judíos y musulmanes. Melodías sefardíes que tanto nos remiten a la antigua capital del Reino de Castilla como nos permiten y ofrecen un paseo por el mediterráneo.

Ferran Pereyra - Un tast the jazz... ¡ qualque cosa més - Spain 2012/06

Hace apenas cinco meses andaba Ana Alcaide muy atareada procurándole los primeros arrullos a su bebé recién nacido. Anoche, esta bióloga de temperamento irrenunciablemente inquieto tenía tiempo para presentar en la sala Galileo Galilei su inminente tercer disco, La cantiga del fuego, una nueva vuelta de tuerca a sus indagaciones sobre el legado de los sefardíes. Alcaide es una curiosa perseverante y ejerce una inequívoca militancia en pro de lo tradicional, pero jamás se muestra distante, inaccesible o sesuda. El folclor nos apega a la tierra y termina, venga de donde venga, haciéndonos cosquillas en el estómago.

Vestida de un rojo tan pasional como sus enseñanzas, esta toledana de 35 años fue desgranando un repertorio inédito que depara momentos muy alentadores. Su voz diáfana realza leyendas como El pozo amargo, sobre una muchacha que vierte mares de lágrimas a la muerte de su amado, pero también ofrece composiciones propias tan meritorias como la poética Baila donde el mar. O Mikdash, con los preciosos melismas vocales de Reza Sheyesteh, un iraní del que se amigó en Malmoe.

Alcaide ha perfeccionado durante años en Suecia su técnica con la nyckelharpa, un cacharro medieval delicioso que parece intersección de violas y zanfonas. Reconoce el legado escandinavo introduciendo en su repertorio una serie de polskas, pero por lo general prefiere recalar en el fascinante territorio de las tres culturas. Hasta seis músicos le acompañan en esta aventura autogestionada y valerosa. Entre ellos, al menos dos excepcionales: Jaime Muñoz (La Musgaña), a menudo moruno con su extensa colección de flautas y mucho más klezmer o jazzístico cuando sostiene el clarinete; y el neoyorquino Bill Cooley, infatigable al frente de un arsenal de oud, salterio, santur y demás hipnóticos instrumentos repiqueteantes. Añadamos el limpio soporte acústico que aporta el bajista Renzo Ruggiero y tendremos todas las claves de un sonido cristalino, embaucador, nada farragoso. Las estructuras de la música sefardí remiten a veces a los romanceros y tienen algo de reiterativas, pero Alcaide aporta una aproximación rejuvenecedora y edificante, ideal para oídos desprejuiciados.

Fernando Neira - EL PAIS - Spain, 2012/01

ANA ALCAIDE
Swedish & Spanish Music Traditions

A previous ‘Folk & The City’ article on Madrid introduced a local musician, who has fused the sound of the Swedish nyckelharpa with traditional songs from central Spain and the Sephardic (Spanish-Jewish) repertoire. FolkWorld went to the city of Toledo to meet Ana Alcaide and to get first hand information about her unusual but fruitful crossover.

Madrid, Malmö, Toledo, ...

Ana ALCAIDE was born and raised in Spain’s capital and geographical center point, Madrid, where she got her university degree in biology. Thanks to an Erasmus scholarship to study in Sweden’s University of Lund, she lived in the city of Malmö (in the southernmost Swedish province of Scania). During her stay, Ana also dedicated time to continue playing and learning the violin, the instrument that she had been taught since childhood. That got her in contact with the traditional ‘keyed fiddle’ from Sweden: the Nyckelharpa, an instrument that combines a keyboard with tangents, like in the hurdy-gurdy, with the bow that frictions the strings, such as on a viol or a fiddle.

After finishing her studies, she went back to Madrid and played her string instruments with a number of local folk and Celtic music bands. She also worked on her own musical projects, and since 2006 Ana has released two CDs and a DVD in cooperation with local and foreign musicians.

Since 2006, Ana lives 70 km South of Madrid, in Toledo’s downtown. For someone interested on the Castilian, Sephardic and Medieval music to move to the nearby city of Toledo is a wise choice. This city keeps a beautiful and extensive old town with stone buildings, narrow streets, churches, mosques and synagogues, providing the right atmosphere to concentrate and get inspired by the rich historical and cultural heritage of the place.

While visiting Ana in Toledo, we also had the chance to meet the nyckelharpist and ‘ghironda’ (hurdy-gurdy) musician Renzo RUGGIERO from the Italian band PÌVARI TRIO. Both Ana and Renzo participate in a tri-national European project (Sweden, Germany, Italy) whose aim is the spread of the interest and the knowledge on the nyckelharpa beyond the borders of Sweden. The name for this project is: EUROPEAN NYCKELHARPA TRAINING.

But let’s first see what Ana told us about her experiences in the Swedish folk music and with the nyckelharpa.

Experiencing Traditional and Folk Music in Sweden

Ana ALCAIDE went to Sweden as a biologist and came back to Spain to become a professional musician. She had been learning to play the violin since her childhood. Therefore, while completing her one year scholarship in Lund’s university, the fiddle was the vehicle that got her involved in the local music scene and on the learning of the nyckelharpa. Once she had finished her biology studies, she took the decision to go on with her Swedish experience. She went back to Malmö’s Academy of Music to continue studying for three more years, but this time to complete her musical education, mainly focused on the nyckelharpa.

In Sweden, Ana found that although the local traditional music is a bit unknown in the rest of Europe (compared to Irish music, for example), the population over there is still extensively respectful and attached to their musical heritage. They have a continuous tradition of old and young people meeting together in sessions to sing, play and dance their folk music (the polska is its most characteristic dance tune), in a similar way to the ‘céilí or ‘cèilidh’ tradition in Ireland and Scotland.

On top of that, the Swedish conservatories and music schools are not limited to the teaching of classical music only. They have integrated the learning of popular music in their official programs: jazz, rock, folk, … and not just from Sweden’s tradition.

During that period, Ana had the chance to play in public for example with the Danish singer Sussie NIELSEN and with the Iranian musician Reza SHAYESTEH. Reza was also one of Ana’s teachers on traditional music at Malmö’s University, and he has continued playing with Ana in some concerts in the last years. I recall one in Madrid’s music bar GALILEO GALILEI where Ana and Reza both played the Tambour, which is a string instrument traditional in Persia.

Ana is a fan of all kinds of traditional string instruments besides the violin, the nyckelharpa and the tambour. During her Scandinavian experience she had the chance to learn and get other instruments such as the Moraharpa and the Hardanger fiddle. The Moraharpa is also an old keyed string instrument which was found for the first time in the Swedish town of Mora. It has a more simplified configuration than the nyckelharpa. The fiddle from Hardanger is used in Norwegian traditional music. It has a higher pitch than the standard classic violin, and it has sympathetic or resonant strings lying underneath each of the four fretted upper ones. In that respect, it is similar to the viola d’amore, or even the nyckelharpa.

Nyckelharpa, Moraharpa & Others

The Swedish word Nyckelharpa is composed of:

‘nyckel’, meaning ‘key’, and
‘harpa’, meaning ‘string instrument’ (harp, but also fiddle, viol, violin,…)
In the last centuries, Sweden and in particular the province of Uppland (on Sweden’s Eastern coast, just North of Stockholm) has become the place in Europe keeping the tradition for this peculiar kind of instrument. Nevertheless, references and illustrations to this kind of keyed fiddle have been found in documents and sculptures in other parts of Europe (Norway, Finland, Germany, Belgium, Italy,...) dated in Medieval and Renaissance times.

The most significant Swedish personality on the recuperation of the nyckelharpa in recent times is Eric SAHLSTRÖM. As musician, composer and nyckelharpa builder, he initiated a great interest in the instrument and the making of thousands of them in Sweden since around 1970. Although he died in 1986, his work is continued by his daughter Sonia and the Eric SAHLSTRÖM INSTITUTET in the village of Tobo (Uppsala County).

Today’s Swedish nyckelharpas are built with narrow and long soundboxes. The total length of the instrument and the way to hold it with the hands (with the help of a strap around the neck) resemble those of a guitar. The difference is that (for a right handed musician) the fingers of the left hand press the keys on the side of the mast, while the right hand frictions the strings by means of bow about half the length of the one for the violin.

The traditional nyckelharpas have three upper strings which vibrate by the direct friction/fretting of the bow. These are the melody strings. Then, there are thinner strings laying under each of those fretted upper ones and tuned to vibrate by resonance or ‘sympathy’ with them . The modern chromatic nyckelharpa has 16 strings: 3 melody strings, 12 sympathetic strings, and one drone string (having no resonant strings underneath). The mechanism of sliding wooden keys placed under the strings is similar to the tangents in the hurdy-gurdy (probably more complex). Their function is to press the corresponding strings at different lengths in order to achieve the chromatic scale of notes in different octaves. The nyckelharpa has a 3 octave range, from the same low ‘G’ as a fiddle’s 4th string. At the end, this defines a keyboard of up to 37 keys arranged in 3 rows on the traditional Swedish nyckelharpas, and up to 4 rows of keys in the less traditional instruments.

The nyckelharpas are built with woods such as spruce or walnut for the sound box, and birch for the keys.

The traditional nykelharpa makers are in Sweden (more than 10 nowadays), although there are also luthiers in other countries. Ana ALCAIDE has nyckelharpas built by:

the Swedish maker Olle PLAHN,
the German Annette OSANN, and
the French luthier Jean-Claude CONDI.
But there are also luthiers for example in Italy, such as Paolo CORIANI in Modena, or Lino MOGNASCHI in Parma.

A more primitive version of these key fiddle instruments is the Moraharpa. It takes the name from the town of Mora in the central Swedish province of Dalarna. The moraharpa has a soundbox shaped with two intersecting round bodies. It has just three melodic strings (none resonant), and its diatonic keyboard has a single row of keys. Ana’s moraharpa is built by Leif ERIKSSON, but there are other Swedish makers such as Björn BJÖRN who also manufactures other varieties of these key fiddles such as the Kontrabassharpa and the Silverbasharpa.

There are also other types such as the Enkelharpa, the Mixturharpa and the Öysterbyharpa. All of them are described in the web page from the ANA (American Nyckelharpa Association) in the section Home » About » What is a nyckelharpa? » Nyckelharpa History.

We asked Ana ALCAIDE about recommended recordings for someone interested in getting familiar with the music of these fascinating instruments. Her list is extensive (mostly Swedish bands and musicians, of course), but to provide a short helpful hint she mentioned the known VÄSEN [FW#41] and HEDNINGARNA [FW#28], and the lesser known:

NORDIC,
Johan HEDIN,
BAZAR BLÅ, and
PETTERSON & FREDRICKSSON, playing Kontrabassharpa.
Regarding resources for diverse information on these keyed fiddles in the internet, it is just a matter of browsing with the right spelling of the word, and for example going to the ANA web page, meaning : American Nyckelharpa Association. This is one of the top pages providing links to several other key nickelharpa organizations all over the world .

We then asked Ana ALCAIDE about the advisable way for someone who wants to fully jump into the nyckelharpa world and learn how to play it. She admitted that nowadays going to a school in Sweden (as she did) is the most direct solution. However, there could be teachers found in other European countries such Germany, Italy or Belgium, for example through the spin off from the projects described below in this article.

The Work on Spanish and Sephardic Music

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Pio Fernández - Folkworld - Germany, 2010/06

"Los instrumentos antiguos se sienten en el estómago"

Amanece en Madrid un domingo antipático y desabrido, y a Ana Alcalde se le suelta la risa floja: "¡Ni que estuviéramos en Suecia!". Sabe bien de lo que habla. Desde hace tres años, esta madrileña del 76 completa en la Universidad de Lund (Malmoe) sus estudios de nyckelharpa, un maravilloso cacharro medieval que funciona como una viola de teclas o pistones. "Sí, a veces tengo la sensación de ser un poco bicho raro", admite mientras su mirada glauca escudriña el fino orvallo de la mañana. "Me siento sola, aislada, distinta, pero todo eso te obliga a vivir una vida muy sincera. Y con los instrumentos antiguos percibes el origen de las cosas, el vínculo con la tierra. Notas que su sonido llega muy dentro, hasta el mismo estómago".

Es de poco comer y le cuesta arrancarse con la tostada, pero el Gijón le trae recuerdos de sus años de "estudiante convencional". Porque Alcaide iba para bióloga y botánica hasta que la música tradicional se interpuso en su camino. Le apasiona la etología, ha estudiado micología en México y pisó por primera vez tierras suecas durante un cursillo ornitológico. Además de pájaros, aquella expedición le descubrió un país de efervescencia musical. Y renació esa Ana que de cría había estudiado un poco de violín, aquella niña avispada que reproducía melodías en un teclado de juguete. "Los suecos son gente paciente y generosa. Nos sacan tanta ventaja en música porque están muy acostumbrados a escuchar. Los españoles preferimos alzar la voz".

Va entrando en calor y se anima con el zumo. Casi nadie la conocía cuando hace tres años publicó su primer disco, Viola de teclas. Encontró acomodo en el corazón histórico de Toledo ("mi microcosmos de tranquilidad") y se puso a tocar la nyckelharpa en plena calle. No de cualquier manera, cual músico precario que procura unas monedas para llenar la despensa. Ella se ponía guapa, vestida siempre de blanco, y buscaba el abrigo de la catedral o algún otro rincón singular. Mayores, chicos, nativos o foráneos fueron cayendo bajo el hechizo de aquel raro instrumento. "Comprendí que mi música gustaba cuando los chiquillos se sentaban, embobados, en primera fila y a los mayores se les escapaba alguna lágrima".

Ha vendido cerca de 15.000 discos, cifra inaudita para los tiempos que corren. Muy pocos en las tiendas: casi siempre es ella quien los despacha a los transeúntes que la descubren en la rúa toledana. Y ahora acaba de publicar un segundo álbum, Como la luna y el sol, más centrado en la música sefardí. "Es un interés estético, sin conexiones familiares o religiosas", aclara, "pero es difícil pasear por la Judería y no sentirse atraído por esa cultura".

Ella siempre fue más de los Stones y de Led Zeppelin, pero ahora anda fascinada por las tradiciones vocales antiguas. "¿Has escuchado alguna vez a los hombres de los coros polifónicos albaneses?", inquiere con gesto apasionado. Y resume: "Supongo que me siento como una aventurera, una buscadora de pequeños tesoros. Mi madre habría preferido que me dedicara a un trabajo fijo y estable. Ahora, con dos discos ya bajo el brazo, se va haciendo a la idea...".

Fernando Neira - EL PAÍS - Spain, 2008/04