The Mediterranean Sea is a special corner of our globe. It has witnessed the rise and fall of mighty empires that spanned much of the known ancient world. Mighty fleets and trader ships alike, loaded to the gunwales with goods from far-off lands, all sailed through its azure waters. It became a confluence of diverse different peoples and cultures since time immemorial, each with its own unique language, customs, cuisine, and music.
Over the weekend, the show Nights in the Levant laid out these cultural riches of the Mediterranean Basin on full display with a striking musical celebration.
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Yasmin Levy, Jako Hazan and Renin Meseri performing at Gypsy, Shilat
(Photo: Ilan Levinsohn)
The bill for the night was topped by Jako Hazan and Renin Meseri, two Turkish-born Israeli musicians with a profound passion for the tones and timbres of the Orient, backed by a troupe of skillful instrumentalists and with Judeo-Spanish music icon Yasmin Levy as a special guest.
Arriving at the venue bearing the name Gypsy in Shilat, a sleepy little community nestled between the central cities of Modi’in and Modi’in Ilit, the scenery looked a bit off for a world music concert and resembled more a shrine for the greats of rock and pop music of the previous century, with posters and other memorabilia covering almost every square inch on the walls.
However, when the lights dimmed and muzzled the sound of chitchatting patrons and clanking tableware, the crowd was quickly reminded it came to see the real thing.
Hazan kicked off the show with a haunting rendition of the piyut "Avinu Malkeinu", hearkening back to his youth as a cantor at a synagogue in İzmir.
He then welcomed Meseri on stage. Meseri, lithe and elegant in a fitted black sequin gown, her dark brown hair pulled back, joined the veteran crooner in a duet of "Bre, Sarika, Bre" — a Sephardic Jewish folk song about an Istanbul man trying to court a woman who rejects his overtures.
The electrifying dynamic between the two was clearly evident as they traded vocal chops song after song and even a bit of banter in between tunes. The crowd seemed to love every second of it. The pair mixed with the audience as some spectators got up from their seats to sashay and waltz across the floor.
Hazan then took control of mic duties to deliver a heartfelt performance of one of his newest songs. Entitled "Zicaron Matok" (A Sweet Memory), the song tells the story of Hazan back as a young soldier in the Nahal Brigade, yearning for his ex-girlfriend who had just left him. The song will surely pinch the heart of every man who had been through a bad breakup.
The seasoned chanteur then welcomed Yasmin Levy on stage for a touching duet performance of Ladino staple "Adio Kerida", and the Billboard-charting musician certainly did not flatter to deceive.
Up to their joint closing number, Hazan, Levy and Meseri showered the crowd with an assortment of tunes in different styles and languages that would not shame your friendly neighborhood linguist — from Greek rebetiko songs through Turkish pop and Jewish liturgical music, and even a Julio Iglesias cover.
If I had to summarize the night in one word, it'd definitely be "authentic."