The Jews of Greece – A Musical Journey

Two of Melbourne’s best folk bands, The Habibis and Saray Iluminado render a musical tapestry of the Jewish experience in Greece

What an amazing experience to listen to some of Melbourne’s best folk musicians render a musical tapestry of the Jewish experience in Greece. We were able to slip into the second performance at Melbourne’s Jewish Museum – both scheduled concerts had understandably sold out.

Melbourne bands The Habibis and Saray Iluminado combined to perform a selection of songs ranging from Sephardic romances to the familiar sound of Greece’s rebetiko.

Formed in 2013, Saray Iluminado’s repertoire ranges over Sevdah from Bosnia and Herzegovina and Jewish Sephardic music from across the Balkans. Many will have heard The Habibis renditions of traditional music from Greece, Anatolia, and the Balkans.

Read the article by Jim Claven in Neos Kosmos.