Attracted by its sophistication and profound sound, Ana dedicated three years to teaching herself this instrument in Toledo city. This album is a reflection of the hard work involved in this musical quest and was encouraged by Carlos Beceiro, producer and collaborator. The originality of the music consists in the use of this peculiar instrument, the Swedish nyckelharpa, combining it with Spanish music. Rebecs, violas and violins are also used alongside the Viola de teclas in this original presentation of Sephardic melodies, Castilian and flamenco rhythms and Renaissance pieces that make up the album.

Ana Alcaide first became known in May 2006, when she presented her first album in Toledo, which was greatly received by the public and critics. With this piece of work, Ana began her musical career by touring all over Spain and abroad, accompanied by Carlos Bereiro.

In the city of Toledo, the music of 'Viola de Teclas' has had a special repercussion, being listened to on different occasions and being used in promotional videos and many festive occasions thus becoming for many people the `soundtrack´ of the city.

‘Ana Alcaide certainly has a fantastic history. While studying Biology in Sweden, this Madrilenian violinist became fascinated by the "nyckelharpa", a native instrument of Sweden that is a cross between the viola de gamba and the hurdy gurdy. She saved enough money to bring one back and when she returned she took shelter in the Jewish quarter of Toledo, where she learned how to play it outside of its original environment and without alien interferences. The result was her first album, ‘Viola de teclas’ which has made history by being the first recording made in Spain with the “nyckelharpa” and a selection of pieces from the peninsula’s traditional songbook. Her second piece of work ‘Como la Luna y el Sol’ is completely based on a repertoire of Sephardic origin, and approached as (unlike her first album) a question of ethics, using it as raw material to shape it in her own particular way. On this album, Carlos Beceiro de la Musgaña once again plays all the plucked string instruments (guitars, lutes, mandolas, sitar, saz...).

This is a magnificent piece of work that has expanded the sights and horizons of this young performer, who now no longer limits herself to the reinterpretation of songs but establishes a new language that goes way beyond a mere traditional recreation. Which without a doubt can be appreciated in the beautiful piece “Pasacalles sefardí”, “Como la luna y el sol” o “Tishri”, in which she even shines as a brilliant multi-instrumentalist.

‘Its been almost a year and a half since Ana Alcaide caused a sensation amongst the lovers of traditional and folk music, with her first album titled ‘Viola de teclas (2006). It’s not very often that someone bring to Spain an ancient Swedish instrument (known in Sweden as the Nyckelharpa), dedicates three years self teaching one self to play it and then recording a debut album so beautiful and creative. Where the peculiar sound of the ‘viola de teclas’ is combined with Spanish instruments interpreting traditional Sephardic melodies, Cantabrian, Castilian and flamenco pieces, with out forgetting a Swedish Polska.

In ‘Como la Luna y el Sol’, her new piece of work, Ana widens her panoply of sound, her range of influences and especially, she surprises us with a voice that is light, clear and full of magic, which she uses to interpret the Judeo-Spanish texts, dispersed in all of the Mediterranean.

Songs like these which give the album its title, the stunning ‘La Galana’ y el Mar’ or the lullaby ‘Durme, Durme.’ are but only three songs that transport us to the past, to forget our worries and where ones emotion flows spontaneously.

As with her previous album, ‘Como la Luna y el Sol’ was co-produced with Carlos Beceiro from La Musgaña. His work as a multi-instrumentalist (saz, oud, bass, guitar and mandola) is noted. Ana also plays her Viola de Teclas and violins with a sound that pleasantly surprises us with its neatness and brilliance, as well as other instruments like the santur, harp, harmonium, or the peculiar Hardanger violin. Alongside her regular collaborators Dimitri Psonis playing the santur, lyre and the bouzouki, Josete Ordoñez playing the mandola and vocals, and William Cooley on the percussions, Ana presents us with an exceptional piece of live work.

Ana has lived in the old part of Toledo for seven years now and is used to playing in the streets on the weekend and, as you can see in her guestbook on her webpage, both visitors and tourists to this Castilian city usually fall under the spell of her melodies. Nearly 15,000 copies of ‘Viola de Teclas’ have been sold, a figure that many groups in the limelight with multinational support do not reach even in their dreams. On the other hand, Ana has worked hard by bringing her music to audiences and festivals all over Spain and to other European countries such as Germany and Italy.

At present and now having completed her degree in biology, Ana Alcaide is completing her tertiary education in music at the Malmö Academy of Music of the University of Lund (Sweden). She attends a syllabus in which she herself designs her own programme on the grounds of her particular interests. In this way, Ana has been able to combine her interest in folk music with learning more modern techniques all of which allow her to create her own way as a performer, interpreter and a composer.