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“Alhamía”: Traces left behind by harems in Al-Andalus
October 16, 20247:00 p.m.
CORDOBA
Casa Árabe’s central courtyard (at Calle Samuel de los Santos Gener, 9).
7:00 p.m.
Free entry until the event’s capacity is reached
In Spanish.
On Wednesday, October 16 in Cordoba, Casa Árabe is presenting this musical show in which texts by Matilde Cabello will help us learn about the story of six women poets who lived in Al-Andalus. Come join us!
Mutá, Wallada, Umm al-Kirám, Hazhún, Umm bint Ysuf and Hafsa are the six poets that we will be discovering in these narrations. Each portrayal will be accompanied by musical works sung by Carmen Pérez, “Niña de Espejo,” with Javier Muñoz “El Tomate” on the guitar, under the direction of Máximo Ortega.
Alhamía is a term of Moorish origin which gave name to the tiled benches in the gardens, palaces, almunias and courtyards of Al-Andalus, where women shared personal issues and cultural concerns that crystallized into a unique feminine world protected by the magnificence of the Umayyads.
It was an atmosphere which Zorrilla described as follows:
There dwell the heavenly
Houris painted by the Moslem legends,
reclining on tiled seat frescoes”.
However, the wise women, teachers and poetesses of Al-Andalus went beyond the confines of the harem, passing their knowledge and scholarship on to great personages throughout the History of Al-Andalus. From Ziryab’s singing slaves to the princesses from the Caliphate and Almohad dynasty, they knew how to sow the seeds of female poetry which would later end up spreading across the peninsula and today’s Europe. They were brilliant women who transcended their era, including Cordoba’s Wallada and her slave Muhya, whom she initiated in the art of poetry, or Hafsa of Granada, who became a teacher to the wives of Al-Mansur in Marrakesh.
Alhamía forms a journey through their lives and feelings, captured in the form of their poems, and through the eras of splendor, transition and decline of Al-Andalus.
Song list
Most of the songs to be heard are original creations inspired by the verses of the poets for which Matilde Cabello has created versions, as well as the musical composition by Javier Muñoz and Carmen Pérez.
1- “Arab Zambra”. Folk song. Guitar: Javier Muñoz.
2- “You, who hide your passion”. Original lyrics: Mut’a. Version by: Matilde Cabello. Music: Carmen Pérez and Javier Muñoz.
3 - “I am jealous”. Original lyrics: Wallada bint al-Mustakfi. Version by: Matilde Cabello. Music: Carmen Pérez and Javier Muñoz.
4 - “A gray-haired groom”. Original lyrics: Umm bint Yusuf al-Hiyariyya. Version by: Matilde Cabello. Music: Carmen Pérez and Javier Muñoz.
5 - “Tell me what I can do”. Original lyrics: Umm al-Qirám bint al-Mutasim. Version by: Matilde Cabello. Music: Carmen Pérez and Javier Muñoz.
6 - “I have a forbidden place”. Original lyrics: Nazhun Bint al-Quila’i. Version by: Matilde Cabello. Music: Carmen Pérez and Javier Muñoz.
7 - “Tap dancing” (Zapateado). Original music: Mario Escudero. Version by: Javier Muñoz.
8 - “To dress for mourning”. Original lyrics: Hafsa bint Hamdum ar Rakuniyya. Version by: Matilde Cabello. Music: Carmen Pérez and Javier Muñoz.
9- “Alhamía”. Version of the song “King Almutamid bids farewell to Seville,” by Carlos Cano. Music: Carmen Pérez and Javier Muñoz.
Matilde Cabello A poet, novelist, journalist, reporter, scriptwriter and lecturer, Cabello’s experience spans nearly two hundred publications, including novels, poetry books, tourist guide books, documentaries and biographies. Her works have been acknowledged by the public and critics, as well as being backed by the domestic and foreign awards she has won. Wallada, la última luna (“Wallada, the Last Moon,” Ahora 2001; Almuzara 2005; Castelvecchi, Rome, 2012), El Libro de las Parturientas (“The Midwives’ Book,” El Páramo 2008; second edition, 2011), El pozo del manzano (“The Apple Tree Well,” Buendía, 2014) and Gentes de Luz (People of Light, Utopía, 2016) are a few of the works in which her commitment to historical remembrance and the defense of women’s rights are made evident.
Carmen Pérez “Niña de Espejo”
With a professional degree in Flamenco, she has continued her training in singing, dancing and piano accompaniment. This multifaceted artist has worked in a wide range of productions as a dancer, singer and actress, including “Mujeres al cante” during the White Night of Flamenco in 2017, “Báilame y deja que te mire” with the Ana Marga Company, and “Carmín en las Mejillas” with the company headed by Irene Lázaro.
Javier Muñoz “El Tomate”
A grandson of Cordovan guitarist Rafael “El Tomate,” he began playing flamenco guitar with Carlos Pacheco at the Elementary Music Conservatory at the age of ten. He is the first in a long list of prestigious teachers who have included Merengue de Córdoba, Juan Muñoz “El Tomate,” Rafael Trenas, Juanma “El Tomate,” Antonio Prieto “El Curry” and José Jiménez “El Viejín.” As a result of his talent, he has become a finalist in many national competitions all over Spain.
Alhamía is a term of Moorish origin which gave name to the tiled benches in the gardens, palaces, almunias and courtyards of Al-Andalus, where women shared personal issues and cultural concerns that crystallized into a unique feminine world protected by the magnificence of the Umayyads.
It was an atmosphere which Zorrilla described as follows:
There dwell the heavenly
Houris painted by the Moslem legends,
reclining on tiled seat frescoes”.
However, the wise women, teachers and poetesses of Al-Andalus went beyond the confines of the harem, passing their knowledge and scholarship on to great personages throughout the History of Al-Andalus. From Ziryab’s singing slaves to the princesses from the Caliphate and Almohad dynasty, they knew how to sow the seeds of female poetry which would later end up spreading across the peninsula and today’s Europe. They were brilliant women who transcended their era, including Cordoba’s Wallada and her slave Muhya, whom she initiated in the art of poetry, or Hafsa of Granada, who became a teacher to the wives of Al-Mansur in Marrakesh.
Alhamía forms a journey through their lives and feelings, captured in the form of their poems, and through the eras of splendor, transition and decline of Al-Andalus.
Song list
Most of the songs to be heard are original creations inspired by the verses of the poets for which Matilde Cabello has created versions, as well as the musical composition by Javier Muñoz and Carmen Pérez.
1- “Arab Zambra”. Folk song. Guitar: Javier Muñoz.
2- “You, who hide your passion”. Original lyrics: Mut’a. Version by: Matilde Cabello. Music: Carmen Pérez and Javier Muñoz.
3 - “I am jealous”. Original lyrics: Wallada bint al-Mustakfi. Version by: Matilde Cabello. Music: Carmen Pérez and Javier Muñoz.
4 - “A gray-haired groom”. Original lyrics: Umm bint Yusuf al-Hiyariyya. Version by: Matilde Cabello. Music: Carmen Pérez and Javier Muñoz.
5 - “Tell me what I can do”. Original lyrics: Umm al-Qirám bint al-Mutasim. Version by: Matilde Cabello. Music: Carmen Pérez and Javier Muñoz.
6 - “I have a forbidden place”. Original lyrics: Nazhun Bint al-Quila’i. Version by: Matilde Cabello. Music: Carmen Pérez and Javier Muñoz.
7 - “Tap dancing” (Zapateado). Original music: Mario Escudero. Version by: Javier Muñoz.
8 - “To dress for mourning”. Original lyrics: Hafsa bint Hamdum ar Rakuniyya. Version by: Matilde Cabello. Music: Carmen Pérez and Javier Muñoz.
9- “Alhamía”. Version of the song “King Almutamid bids farewell to Seville,” by Carlos Cano. Music: Carmen Pérez and Javier Muñoz.
Matilde Cabello A poet, novelist, journalist, reporter, scriptwriter and lecturer, Cabello’s experience spans nearly two hundred publications, including novels, poetry books, tourist guide books, documentaries and biographies. Her works have been acknowledged by the public and critics, as well as being backed by the domestic and foreign awards she has won. Wallada, la última luna (“Wallada, the Last Moon,” Ahora 2001; Almuzara 2005; Castelvecchi, Rome, 2012), El Libro de las Parturientas (“The Midwives’ Book,” El Páramo 2008; second edition, 2011), El pozo del manzano (“The Apple Tree Well,” Buendía, 2014) and Gentes de Luz (People of Light, Utopía, 2016) are a few of the works in which her commitment to historical remembrance and the defense of women’s rights are made evident.
Carmen Pérez “Niña de Espejo”
With a professional degree in Flamenco, she has continued her training in singing, dancing and piano accompaniment. This multifaceted artist has worked in a wide range of productions as a dancer, singer and actress, including “Mujeres al cante” during the White Night of Flamenco in 2017, “Báilame y deja que te mire” with the Ana Marga Company, and “Carmín en las Mejillas” with the company headed by Irene Lázaro.
Javier Muñoz “El Tomate”
A grandson of Cordovan guitarist Rafael “El Tomate,” he began playing flamenco guitar with Carlos Pacheco at the Elementary Music Conservatory at the age of ten. He is the first in a long list of prestigious teachers who have included Merengue de Córdoba, Juan Muñoz “El Tomate,” Rafael Trenas, Juanma “El Tomate,” Antonio Prieto “El Curry” and José Jiménez “El Viejín.” As a result of his talent, he has become a finalist in many national competitions all over Spain.
Harem scene. Moorish lady in the bath (1854). Theodore Chassériau. © Strasbourg Museum of Fine Arts.