Sarah Aroeste
Background information
Born1976
Washington, D.C.
GenresLadino music, Sephardic music, world fusion, indie rock
Occupation(s)Singer, Composer, Author
Years active2001–present
LabelsAroeste Music
WebsiteSarahAroeste.com

Sarah Aroeste is an American singer and composer.[1] Her music is often referred to as "feminist Ladino rock."[2] She also writes books for children with Sephardic themes.[3]

Early life

Aroeste grew up in Princeton, New Jersey.[3] Her family roots can be traced to the formerly vibrant Sephardic Jewish community of Monastir (now known as Bitola, North Macedonia) which was almost completely destroyed in the Holocaust. Her family immigrated to the United States from Monastir during the Balkan Wars in the early 20th century.[4][5]

Aroeste trained in classical opera singing at Westminster Choir College and Yale University.[6][7] She attended the Israel Vocal Arts Institute in 1997, first learning traditional Ladino songs while studying under Nico Castel.[8]

Career

Ladino beginnings

In the late 1990s, Aroeste was working for the Foundation for Jewish Culture in New York, where she created The New Jewish Musics Initiative. She was disappointed that, while there was a revival of Ashkenazi klezmer music at that time, there was no similar revival for Sephardic music.[4][7] She started her own Judaeo-Spanish rock band in 2001.[4] Born Sarah Silverman, she adopted her mother's maiden name when she began performing as a Ladino musician.[9] Aroeste has been at the forefront of the contemporary Ladino music revival ever since.[10][11]

A la Una and Puertas

Aroeste's first two albums, 2003's A la Una: In the Beginning and 2007's Puertas, were primarily Ladino updates of traditional Sephardic standards.[3] The latter, produced by Grammy Award winner Frank London, was described as "traditional Ladino music updated with rock, funk and jazz."[11]

Gracia

Aroeste's third album, Gracia, is named after Gracia Mendes Nasi, a 15th-century Jewish woman who helped Jews who had falsely converted to Catholicism in order to flee the Spanish Inquisition.[8] Produced and arranged by Shai Bachar,[12] it features the rapping of poet Vanessa Hidary, and its opening track samples from a 1971 speech by Gloria Steinem.[8] Unlike her first two albums, many of the Ladino songs on Gracia are originals written by Aroeste.[12] With this release, she "developed a style that borrows liberally from all sorts of unexpected places, from Santigold fusion-pop to gothic metal," while taking care to insure that "during these genre experiments the Ladino influences don’t disappear, but are integrated."[1] Gracia has been labeled "the strongest case around for the ongoing relevance of Ladino music."[1]

Ora de Despertar

Aroeste's fourth album is an all-original Ladino children's album, the only known contemporary recording of its kind.[13] The songs teach simple concepts in Ladino and range in themes from learning about mealtimes to body parts to animals on a farm. The album won a coveted Parents' Choice Award for music.[14] With this recording, Aroeste has been credited for helping to perpetuate Ladino culture for a new generation.[15]

In July 2017 Aroeste released a bilingual illustrated children's book of the same name, as a companion to the recording.[16]

Together/Endjuntos

Aroeste's fifth album is an all-original bilingual (Ladino/English) holiday album that cycles the Hebrew calendar.[17]

Monastir

Aroeste's sixth album is a musical homage to the once-thriving Sephardic community of Monastir. It features 30 musicians from 5 countries, singing in 3 languages to honor the Balkan Jewish community of Aroeste's family, destroyed in WWII.[18] One of the songs in the album, Estreja Mara honors the memory of Estreya Ovadya, the Macedonian Jewish partisan from Monastir who died in battle against the Nazis in 1944.[19] The album was selected as Best Jewish Album of the Year (2021) by Jewish media outlet, Alma.[20]

Hanuká

Aroeste's seventh album is an all-Ladino recording of Hanuka songs old and new.[21] Billboard Magazine named one of the tracks, Ocho Kandelikas, as one of the eight great Hanukkah songs of 2021.[22]

Savor

Aroeste's eighth concept album is a multi-sensory conversation between Sephardic music, food, and history. [23] In partnership with Sephardic Chef Susan Barocas, Savor pairs ten Ladino songs about food with recipes and cooking videos by acclaimed female chefs who each works to preserve Sephardic culture in her work. [24]

Performances

For two decades, Aroeste has headlined music festivals all over the world.[25] In 2008, she performed with the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra as a finalist in Festiladino, the international competition of original Ladino songs.[26] In 2014, Aroeste won the Sephardic Prize at the International Jewish Music Festival in Amsterdam, and in 2015 she represented the US in the International Sephardic Music Festival in Cordoba, Spain.[27]

Discography

Albums

  • A la Una: In the Beginning (2003)
  • Puertas (2007)
  • Gracia (2012)
  • Ora de Despertar (2016)
  • Together/Endjuntos (2017)
  • Monastir (2021)
  • Hanuká (2021)
  • Savor (2023)

Compilations

  • Sephardic Music Festival, Vol. 1 – "Hija Mia (Tamir Muskat Remix)" (2010)
  • Sephardic Music Festival, Vol. 2 – "Gonna Light" (feat. Y-Love) and "La Comida La Manana" (2012)

Books

  • Ora de Despertar/Time to Wake Up (Self-published) (2017)
  • Buen Shabat, Shabbat Shalom (Kar-Ben) (2020) Considered to be the first contemporary board book with Ladino words published by a mainstream publisher.[28]
  • Mazal Bueno! (Kar-Ben) (2023)

References

  1. 1 2 3 Mordechai Shinefield, "Monday Music: The Face of Ladino Dream-Pop," The Forward, May 21, 2012.
  2. ↑ Felix Contreras and Catalina Maria Johnson, hosts, "Latin Music That Breaks Barriers And Pushes Boundaries," NPR, June 21, 2012.
  3. 1 2 3 Elissa Strauss, "My Baby Is Obsessed With This Ladino Children’s Book," Kveller, March 5, 2020.
  4. 1 2 3 Dmitri Ehrlich, "’Jewish Shakira’ Gives Her Songs a Sexy Spin," The Forward, August 15, 2003.
  5. ↑ Children of the Inquisition, "Sarah Aroeste - Children of the Inquisition" childrenoftheinquisition
  6. ↑ "Sarah Aroeste – Biography," All About Jazz. Accessed November 12, 2012.
  7. 1 2 Aaron Cohen, "Sarah Aroeste’s modern spin on tuneful tradition," Chicago Tribune, April 9, 2004.
  8. 1 2 3 Mordechai Shinefield, "For Ladino Musicians, World’s A Stage," The Forward, July 2, 2012.
  9. ↑ Sandee Brawarsky, "Vows: Sarah Silverman and Jeffrey Blaugrund," New York Times, July 8, 2011.
  10. ↑ Seth Rogovoy, "Sarah Aroeste: Where Ladino Lives – and Rocks," Berkshire Jewish Voice, May 15, 2012.
  11. 1 2 Renée Montagne, host, "Morning Edition," NPR, December 19, 2003.
  12. 1 2 Aaron Howard, "Aaron Howard reviews Two Ladino CDs," Jewish Herald-Voice, June 7, 2012.
  13. ↑ "Sarah Aroeste Brings Ladino Music To A New Generation," Rural Intelligence, March 28, 2016.
  14. ↑ "Ora de Despertar," Parents' Choice, 2016.
  15. ↑ "Jewish mom perpetuates Ladino with kid-friendly music," The Times of Israel, April 3, 2016.
  16. ↑ "#WeNeedDiverseBooks -Jewish Edition: A New Kind of Children’s Book," MyJewishLearning, July 19, 2017.
  17. ↑ M Music Magazine, Sept 19, 2017.
  18. ↑ PRI The World, June 24, 2021.
  19. ↑ Sarah Aroeste's New Album Evokes the Lost Jewish World of Monastir.
  20. ↑ Alma, 2021.
  21. ↑ Kveller, Nov 11, 2021.
  22. ↑ Billboard, Dec 2, 2021.
  23. ↑ Jewish Journal, Apr 20, 2023.
  24. ↑ HeyAlma, Apr 21, 2023.
  25. ↑ "La Fundacion Tres Culturas dedica a la mujer un ciclo de musica y cine," El Pais, February 24, 2005.
  26. ↑ "The 5th Festiladino (The International New Ladino Song Competition) is on its way," festiladino.co.il, January 2008.
  27. ↑ "La cantante americana Sarah Aroeste, mañana viernes, en el XIV Festival de Música Sefardí," June 11, 2015.
  28. ↑ "Finally, Jewish kids’ books are starting to reflect the diversity of Judaism," July 22, 2020.
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