Edwin Seroussi and Joel Bresler unveil a major new web-based encyclopedic resource, years in the making—a Sephardic Music Catalogue that will list all known commercial recordings containing Ladino songs. The project launch coincides with the 100th anniversary of commercial Sephardic recording. The discussion will include a survey of commercial recordings of Sephardic music, with a particular emphasis on the first half of the 20th century. It will also cover recording technology’s impact on the perception, reception and canonization of Ladino songs in recent decades, illustrated with rare early recordings.

Dr. Edwin Seroussi is the Emanuel Alexandre Professor of Musicology, Director of the Jewish Music Research Centre and chair of the Department of Musicology at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Joel Bresler is a Harvard-trained MBA and has been collecting/researching Sephardic music on commercial recordings for 30 years. Dr. Virginia Danielson is the Richard F. French Librarian of the Loeb Music Library at Harvard University, and a noted expert on Middle Eastern music.