While researching texts for Ke Haber, my album of original Ladino songs, I quickly discovered that most of the material available today is religious. Looking for something different, I visited a library in Leiden, where a rabbi introduced me to a collection of secular Jewish poetry.

Among those texts, one immediately captured my imagination: a passionate love poem written nearly 1,000 years ago by the celebrated Jewish poet, spiritual leader, and scholar Shmuel HaNagid (Samuel ibn Naghrillah).

I was searching for inspiration for a contemporary album in the endangered Ladino language, and suddenly found myself reading a poem that felt remarkably modern. Tender, sensual, and unapologetically queer, it challenged many assumptions about the past. It reminded me that history is often far more diverse, nuanced, and progressive than we imagine.

That discovery became El Gacela (“The Gazelle”).

♥️ El Gacela is on my album Ke Haber
♥️ Listen on: Spotify / Apple / Deezer / Tidal / YouTube

Love is gentle, love is kind, and it deserves expression in any language and form.