Ahot qetannah

In the Sephardi rite this piyyut attributed to Abraham Hazan Gerondi (13th century) is sung as the opening poem of the evening service of Rosh Hashanah. Cardozo's rendition is based on the traditional melody known in different variants throughout the Western Sephardi Diaspora. Almost identical to the version recorded by Hazzan David Aaron de Sola (1857: 24-25, no. 26), it shows the remarkable stability of the Spanish-Portuguese repertoire for the High Holidays. The performance of all the stanzas in this recording allows for an assessment of the performance practice and degree of improvisation allowed to the traditional Western Sephardi hazzan (changes of tempo, rubato, dynamics). The version performed here is from Amsterdam.