 ."SAVAE's pristine a cappella work and thorough research imbues these songs with dignity and reverence. The percussion work is subtle but telling of the Afro-Latin influence. Try this CD at the holiday party to impress your friends and warm the atmosphere.
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Associated Press |
with Christopher Moroney from Early Music Magazine EVEN MORE REVIEWS "The music has been so beautifully preserved and then re-enacted for us." — Scott Simon, NPR's Weekend Edition "SAVAE has been enchanting diverse audiences nationwide." — Associated Press "Grade A - nourishing to the body and soul." — Atlanta Journal-Constitution "A surprisingly sweet, melodic quality." — Los Angeles Times "Compelling." — Denver Post "The music has struck a chord with audiences of all ages and backgrounds" — Our Sunday Visitor "Miracles happen and this music proves it." — The Austin Chronicle
 above: SAVAE performs at Congregation Beth Israel, Austin, TX February, 2003
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Music from the Time of Jesus
April 20, 2003 -- . . . On a new CD, Ancient Echoes, SAVAE has once again turned to history for inspiration, this time in the ancient music of the Middle East. The recording is a collection of tunes, songs and prayers that date from the time of Jesus and Jerusalem's Second Temple, when Jews were returning to the holy city from exile in Babylon. . . .read the whole review ..
SEARCHING FOR ANCIENT SOUNDS
Recreating anything associated with the Second Temple of Jerusalem is a touchy endeavor. The Second Temple was built on the site of the Temple of Solomon in the sixth century B.C. and it was destroyed by the Romans in 70 A.D. To many believers, the rebuilding of the temple will mark the fulfillment of biblical prophecy, but there is the complication of the Al-Aqsa Mosque which happens to stand on the site where many believe the temple was built, on the Temple Mount. In fact, recent attempts by Israeli authorities to excavate tunnels near and beneath the mosque have caused outrage in the Muslim world. So, understandably, talk of rebuilding the temple gets people of all faiths very worked up, in different ways. While it's not likely to satisfy those yearning to enact scripture, a new recording draws on linguistic and musicological research in an attempt to authentically recreate the sound of the Second Temple of Jerusalem. . . . . read the whole review ..
CD BREATHES NEW LIFE INTO ANCIENT TEXTS
A new CD by a creative Texas-based ensemble may transform ideas of classical church music, showing that its roots, like those of the church itself, were decidedly Middle Eastern. . . . The San Antonio Vocal Arts Ensemble, often billed as SAVAE, revives the music of Jesus' time and Jerusalem's Second Temple in its new CD, "Ancient Echoes." Composed and recorded after years of study, the CD reflects Aramaic influences and relies on Christian and Jewish sources. The resulting music is haunting and powerful. . . Listening to it conjures up images of the multicultural world always at play in Jerusalem's Old City. It is a place reeking of history where worship and intrigue, commerce and strife coexist. . . .read the whole review ..
WHAT DID JESUS LISTEN TO?
Music in Jerusalem at the time of Christ definitely did not sound like the soundtrack to Ben Hur or The Greatest Story Ever Told. Instead, according to Ancient Echoes: Music From the Time of Jesus and Jerusalem's Second Temple, a new CD from the San Antonio Vocal Arts Ensemble, the music that Jesus and his contemporaries heard more closely resembled what you hear in the background at a Lebanese restaurant than the lavish film scores of Hollywood's religious epics. . . Now, at a time of year when Christians and Jews alike are reminded of the roots of both religions in ancient Palestine, the disc offers an unusual opportunity to hear at least one take on what the music that Jesus and other Jews of his era heard at the temple and the synagogue and in the countryside. . . . read the whole review ..
MUSIC OF THE TEMPLE AND THE HEART If the early bird catches the worm, the San Antonio Vocal Arts Ensemble (SAVAE) has opened a whole can of them. The early music revival of the late 20th century has usually meant performing Bach on harpsichord rather than piano, Gabrieli on sackbut rather than trombone, and Guillaume de Machaut on anything. However, you have to get up pretty early in the history of music to catch SAVAE asleep at the zil (a finger cymbal). The group's current project goes way beyond baroque, and it makes medieval madrigals seem downright newfangled. Their goal is to recreate the music that was performed in Jerusalem at the time of the Second Temple, 2,000 years ago...
read the whole review ..
SAVAE honors ancient cultures in holiday concert
The show opened with one of two wedding songs of the ancient Jews, this one showcasing a strong alto line, then progressed through selections that alternately exhibited the group's impressive command of ancient instruments such as the shofar and their almost surreal blending of voices into one. . . . The group displayed a deft precision with the often-complicated rhythms, particularly in its rendering of the "Arabian Dance," an example of the music that would perhaps have been heard in the palaces of the ancient world.
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