Maghrebi Prayer

Editor's info:
Jewish Liturgical Music from Northwest Africa
This music is the result of a unique collaboration: Muslim Arab musicians from Algeria accompany Jewish cantor Alain Chekroun as he performs Jewish liturgical music.
This CD is an exciting combination of classical Maghrebi Arab melodies (maalouf) and traditional Jewish texts. Some texts are based on those used on Jewish holidays and other festive occasions - such as the Sabbath or circumcision ceremonies - while others are taken directly from the Bible.
This cultural fusion finds further expression in the variety of languages used in the songs in this collection: Hebrew, Arabic and Ladino.
The music which makes up Maghrebi Prayer is hundreds of years old, but until now it has never been formally recorded for distribution. The demand for this genre of music, in French Jewish and Arab communities alike, was the inspiration behind Alain Chekroun's decision to initiate this project with the Algerian musical ensemble, in conjunction with the Magda label.
Alain Chekroun, who is highly respected as a cantor in the North African Jewish community, is the grandson of the Grand Rabbi of the Great Synagogue of Constantine, Algeria.
He is accompanied by top-rank Algerian musicians, in an ensemble led by Taoufik Bestandji who, as grandson of one of Algeria's greatest musicians, is both heir to a long tradition of classical Arab music and representative of its new generation of performers.
The CD was recorded in Paris, in August 2000.