Jewish history in Spain is filled with contradictions. There is tragedy here, but there are also traces of former glories during the 1,000 years before the inquisition; these were large scale Jewish communities that prospered for long periods. We will delve into the past, enjoy unforgettable musical presentations created by Prof. Yale Strom and Elizabeth Schwartz, as well as reach out to the nascent Jewish communities of today to hear their struggles, and their successes. Yale and Elizabeth add a musical element that make this tour unique, bringing their personal talents as well as incredible connections to the local Jewish music scene. We also encounter true tales of Crypto Jews on the island of Mallorca, a rarely visited Jewish heritage destination with an amazing story to tell!
YOUR SEPHARDIC SPAIN JOURNEY INCLUDES:
2 nights Hotel Villa Real, Madrid
2 nights Radisson Collection Hotel Magdalena Plaza, Seville
1 night Palacio De Los Patos, Granada
2 nights Nixe Palace, Palma De Mallorca
3 nights Majestic Hotel and Spa, Barcelona
All touring and sightseeing in an air-conditioned motorcoach with expert English-speaking guides
Lectures and musical performances throughout
Jewish heritage & city highlights tours
AVE train from Madrid to Cordoba
Breakfast daily
Welcome dinner at a Madrid restaurant
Dinner with Flamenco performance in Seville
Shabbat dinner with the Seville Jewish community
1 dinner in Mallorca
Farewell dinner with musical performance in Barcelona
Airport transfers if arriving/departing with the main group
Entrance fees per itinerary
Porterage
Bottled water on the bus
Whisper headsets
NOT INCLUDED:
Roundtrip airfare, departure taxes and fuel surcharges
Border taxes or visa fees
Tips to guides, drivers and service personnel ($25 per person, per day; pre-collected)
Meals not listed above
Items of a personal nature
Travel insurance (recommended - group policy available)
Any costs associated with Covid-19 testing or vaccination
ABOUT YOUR TOUR LEADERS:
Professor Yale Strom is an acclaimed violinist, composer, filmmaker, writer, photographer, playwright and a pioneer among revivalists in conducting extensive field research in Central and Eastern Europe and the Balkans among the Jewish and Roma communities. Initially, his work focused primarily on the use and performance of klezmer music among these two groups. Gradually, his focus increased to examining all aspects of their culture, from post-World War II to the present. For more than 3 decades and 75 such research expeditions, Strom has become the world's leading ethnographer-artist of klezmer music and history. Strom's newest children's illustrated book (English/Yiddish) is based upon little known history he unearthed while doing ethnographic research in Romania. Strom has lectured extensively throughout the United States and Europe and taught at NYU for 4 years, where he created the course "Artist-Ethnographer Expeditions". At present he is a professor in the Jewish Studies Program at San Diego State University.
Elizabeth Schwartz has been called "The Edith Piaf of Yiddish" and "a revelation" with a superb mastery of klezmer ornamentations. As the vocalist for Yale Strom & Hot Pstromi and as a soloist, she has performed at festivals, synagogues and concert halls throughout Europe, Asia and North America. Her myriad acclaimed recordings of Yiddish, Ladino, Hebrew and English have been released on the Naxos World, Arc Music UK and Transcontinental Music record labels. On March 18, 2012, Schwartz was invited to become the first woman in history to sing at the 125-year-old Eldridge Street Synagogue in Manhattan, effectively breaking the ban of kol isha in this landmark cultural venue. Schwartz is the subject of the Romanian documentary film, "Searching for Schwartz", by Radu Gabrea (z"l). As a writer, Schwartz co-created the award-winning audio dramas "The Witches of Lublin" and "Debs in Canton" for Suemedia Productions. She contributed a chapter on klezmer vocal technique to "Shpil: The Art of Playing Klezmer" (Scarecrow Press). For more information, visit www.elizabeth-schwartz.com
DANI ROTSTEIN is a TV commercial producer that left New York City to live and work in Majorca (Mallorca). He and his wife have since then become leaders of the present Jewish community both in the synagogue as well as co-founders of Limud Mallorca the cultural association. He recently produced and co-directed "Xueta Island," a documentary exploring the island's Crypto Jewish roots.