THROUGH THE ALLEYS OF TIME
for guitar and soundtrack
Classical Guitar and Ladino Traditions
Composed in 2007, this 22-minute piece for guitar and soundtrack marries traditional melodies with contemporary textures. Perfect for those seeking to explore this rich cultural heritage through a modern lens, this score stands as an innovative and deeply evocative addition to contemporary Ladino guitar music.
Listen to the Recording and Find More Information Here
About the Music
Through the Alleys of Time was written for guitarist Liat Cohen and commissioned by the Legacy Heritage Fund through the America‑Israel Cultural Foundation. The piece reflects on the fading world of Ladino language and culture, following the imagined journey of a wandering troubadour searching for a lost song. The live performance encounters fragments of archival prayers, spoken voices, and instruments (oud, lute, recorders, viola da gamba, percussion), combined with field recordings from Spain, leading ultimately to the rediscovery of the song La Serena. It is intended for professional guitarists or advanced conservatory‑level players experienced with multimedia works. This atmospheric, narrative-driven composition works well as a major recital centerpiece, requiring a reliable stereo playback system for precise coordination between the performer and the audio track.
Specifications
- Duration: 22 minutes
- Year Composed: 2007
- Instrumentation: Classical Guitar and Soundtrack
Product Information
- Availability: Instant PDF Download (Score and Soundtrack Audio Files Included)
Soundtrack to be emailed separately. - Return Policy: Digital downloads are not eligible for returns.
- Condition: New 1st Edition digital score
THROUGH THE ALLEYS OF TIME Ladino guitar music (score) [PDF download]
BASIC INFORMATION
Item: Performance Score Format: PDF Download Edition: 2nd Edition Copyright: Lior Navok Publisher: Lior Navok Music Pages: 29 Paper Size: DIN A4 / Letter DIGITAL SCORE
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PROGRAM NOTES
Through the Alleys of Time – for classical guitar and tape focuses on the Ladino language, culture, and way of life that is fading away as the older generation passes. My inspiration for this vanishing tradition came during a visit to Córdoba and Sevilla, where the alleys seemed to whisper the tales of long-gone local communities. I envisioned a once-thriving community that, after 1492, dispersed in various directions, taking its language and traditions to new places like Greece and Bulgaria.
The music narrates the journey of a troubadour—a folk singer traveling from village to village in search of a particular song. Along the way, he encounters fragments of other songs, prayers, and chants, including Jewish prayers, traditional Ladino songs (Judæo-Espagnol), narratives, and influences from Christianity and Islam. During the Golden Age in Andalucía, these three religions coexisted harmoniously, enriching each other's cultures.
All the recorded fragments are authentic, featuring elderly men and women singing songs from their childhood. They represent perhaps the last link in a long chain, as these songs and expressions were not fully passed down to subsequent generations, if at all. I am deeply grateful to Dr. Shoshana Weich-Shahak for her lifelong dedication to tracing these singers and informants, and for generously allowing me to use excerpts from her recordings. Thus, the work as a whole becomes a passage through time, where voices, sounds, and images from the past emerge before our troubadour, whose quest leads him to discover his long-awaited song – "La Serena."
In addition to these authentic recordings, the composition incorporates the sounds of soprano, oud, lute, recorders, viola da gamba, percussion, and additional classical guitar, each recorded separately and manipulated sonically. Additionally, I conducted field recordings in Spain to capture ambient sounds.
I extend my heartfelt thanks and credit to the following individuals:
Monica Garcia-Albea, soprano
Lara Morris, recorders
Myrna Herzog, viola da gamba
Guy Kark, oud and lute
Liat Cohen, classical guitar
Avi Agababa, percussion
Sound Track Editing and Mixing:
Dmitry Lifshitz, Yossi Ron
Sound Engineers:
Eldad Berman (Tel Aviv)
Marcus Fritzsch (Berlin)
Pierre Fardel (Paris)
Special acknowledgments to Dr. Shoshana Weich-Shahak for her invaluable support and assistance in locating authentic recordings, and to the National Sound Archives (Jerusalem, Israel), Yad Ben-Zvi Library (Jerusalem, Israel), Sebastián de la Obra, and Rosana de Aza at Casa De Sefarad (Córdoba).
Through the Alleys of Time was commissioned by the Legacy Heritage Fund, through the America-Israel Cultural Foundation, dedicated to Guitarist Liat Cohen.
SOUNDTRACK INFORMATION
The soundtrack will be emailed separately within 24 hours following the purchase of the score.
NEED MORE INFO?
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