MEDITERRANEAN CLASSICAL MUSIC
ENSEMBLE CONSTANTINOPLE

“From Castile to Samarqand”

After a historical review, the 15th century appears undoubtedly to be the golden age of the Persian and Middle East music. At this time, Tamerlan’s, Baighara’s and Shahrokh’s court received and trained some of the most important musicians, composers and theoreticians, who thanks to their talent wrote some of the area’s most important pages of musical history. Meantime, the Mediterranean Europe of the time was a significant solo cradle, with Santa Maria’s Cantigas and the Italian and French Estampies being its peak. “From Castile to Samarqand” is a program reflecting the heavy heritage of those musical traditions, as well as their crossing relations, from Timour’s land to Hyperoksian, traveling from the West till Spain. Today’s concert takes us to a journey through the miracles of those areas. It is an opportunity to discover the scents and the land, to meet the people along the Silk Road.
“From Castile to Samarqand” follows Clavijo’s travels, king Henry’s 3rd ambassador.  Clavijo left Castile in 1403, to travel to Tamerlan’s Samarqand and to return to Castile 34 months later. In this concert, the ensemble Constantinople takes an original insight into the music of Spain, Italy, Greece, Turkey, Armenia, Persia and Uzbekistan of the 15th and 16th century. The program is the result of a search of musical manuscripts of the time, as well as of the borrowing of traditional elements, which exist, till this day,  in these civilizations.

Ensemble Constantinople
Guy Ross: lute, outi, vocals
Matthew Jennejohn: recorder, cornet
Elin Söderström: bass viola, vielle