Musical Life in Israel

Musical Life in Israel Samuel Lewis he land area of the State of Israel traditional folk melodies with new words musicians to leave their homelands and T(8,019 square miles) would fit over written in the Hebrew language. An exam - many of these musicians came to what eleven times into the area of the United ple of this is the song that became Israel’s was then still Palestine. The immigration Kingdom and with a population of National Anthem “Hatikvah”. The words by consisted of some of the leading classical 7,881,000 (similar to Switzerland), 75% the Hebrew poet Naftali Herz Imber, musicians of Europe including the concert - are Jewish, 20% are Arabs, and those not express the longing of the Jewish people master of the Berlin Philharmonic Orch - identified as either, make up the remaining to return to the land of Zion. The melody estra, the composer Oedoen Partos, opera 5% of the population. In this small area is based on a popular Eastern European conductor and composer Paul Ben-Haim today, one can find four full time prof- folk melody – not to be mistaken for and composer Alexander Boskovitz. Just as essional symphony orchestras (one of Smetana’s “Vltava”. In 1895 settlers estab - writers of popular music sought a new them world renowned), three excellent lished the first western style orchestra in Hebrew style, many classical composers professional chamber orchestras, an inter - Palestine. It was a wind band located in the looked for new modes of composition that national opera house, a classical ballet town of Rishon LeZion and entertained its would give expression to their new company, three contemporary dance listeners with light classics and marches. national identity. “One cannot cont inue in comp anies as well as many fine classical Avraham Zvi Idelsohn, a trained cantor this country writing works which are based and modern ensembles. In the cities of and musicologist from Russia settled in on purely western concepts” wrote music Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Haifa, Beer-Sheva and Jerusalem in 1906 with the objective of critic David Rosolio. “The landscape, the Ramat Gan there are universities with studying and documenting the music of lifestyle, the environment, all require a music departments that are growing the various Jewish communities of Yemen- change and fundamentally different app - rapidly. The Ministry of Education supports ites, Hassids, Syrians and other ethnic roach”. Boskovitz in his “Semitic Suite” for 41 conservatories in towns throughout the groups living there. He meticulously doc - piano writes in a homophonic style with a country that offer programmes for all age umented the songs and musical idioms of drone accompaniment and repeated groups. these groups and made the first efforts to notes, imitating the sound of the Arabic It was in 1882 that efforts were first bring these songs to the attention of all the oud and kanun. Ben-Haim wrote “Sonata made to create a corpus of music suitable settlers aiming to create a new Jewish A Tre” for cembalo, mandolin and guitar, for a new Jewish entity that would even - musical genre. Idelsohn was later joined in which also has a distinctly Middle Eastern tually become Israel. This was the year Palestine by a few more classically trained sound. when the first wave of immigrants came musicians and ethnomusicologists who By 1935, Jewish musicians in Nazi to build a Jewish national homeland in worked to disseminate traditional ethnic Germ any were faced with dismissal, Palestine. As there were no songs or music tunes and styles to the general public of persecution and expulsion. To meet the as yet written for this national movement, Palestine. pressing need to rescue these musicians, Zionist youth movements in Germany and It was in the 1930s and the rise of concert violinist Bronislaw Huberman elsewhere published song books, using Nazism in Europe that forced Jewish decided to form a symphony orchestra in Palestine – both as a safe haven and as a unique musical endeavour. Huberman recruited Jewish musicians from Europe’s Frederic Mann Auditorium leading orchestras and the newly formed Palestine Philharmonic Orchestra made its debut in Tel Aviv in December 1936 under the baton of Arturo Toscanini who was one of several conductors who refused to perform under German or Italian Fascism. Re-named the Israel Philharmonic Orch - estra in 1948, it has become a leading force in Israeli music and culture. Debuting many works by Israeli composers, it has 22 JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2013 MUSICAL OPINION also helped launch the careers of num- ed on the State Radio. Israeli musicians erous Israeli musicians. It was in Dec- Because of the Six began to perform abroad with increasing ember 1960 that the Israel Philharmonic frequency and European and American embarked on its first tour of the United Day War of 1967, the artist came to Israel to perform. All the States and has since played a number of latest popular Broadway Musicals with concerts that have had historic significance people of Israel came their songs and words translated into the for Israel. In 1967, immediately after the modern Hebrew language were staged at Six Day War, the late Leonard Bernstein led of age. It marked the the Alhambra Theatre in Tel Aviv-Jaffo. In the orchestra on a tour to the Sinai desert, this growth of diversification, much Israeli the sight of fighting only days before. They transition from music lost its national flavour and became also performed on the Lebanese border in largely inspired by international styles. the 1980s playing to an audience of mixed Nonetheless, many Israeli musicians, both Lebanese and Israelis who gathered on adolescence to classical and popular, continued to be both sides of the border fence to listen. concerned with defining a distinctly nat- Zubin Mehta who has been the Musical maturity ional identity in their music. Although Director of the Israel Philharmonic Orch - geographically not in Europe, Israel is estra for over 40 years is now the IPO’s after the war saw a burgeoning of cultural within the European Broadcasting Area conductor for life. Regularly, the orchestra activity. Within a few years the number of and a member of the European Broad - travels the globe appearing at the most art galleries increased by a third and casting Union. ACUM (the equivalent to prestigious festivals and venues, and theatres doubled. Economic growth went the Performing Rights Society in the United Maestro Mehta ensures that the world’s from 1% per annum before the war to Kingdom) represents the interests of Israeli leading conductors and soloists are invited 13% the following year. The Israeli music composers, authors and artists. to work with his orchestra. The IPO’s scene opened up to the rest of the world. Jerusalem, Israel’s capital with a pop- permanent home is the Frederic Mann Rock music, which prior to the war had ulation of over three quarters of a million Auditorium in the centre of Tel Aviv which almost no audience was hardly ever play - is home to Israel’s largest auditorium, the was opened in 1957 when Leonard Ussishkin Auditorium at the International Bernstein conducted the inaugural concert Conference Centre with 3,000 seats. with Arthur Rubinstein as soloist. The stage When the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra is equipped with a hydraulic lift which pays their monthly visit to the capital, they raises and lowers the piano on and off the perform at this very large venue. The concert platform and each one of the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra, which in 2,760 seats offers a full and clear view of fact is Israel’s Radio Orchestra, performs the stage. The Israel Philharmonic Orch - weekly at the 850 seat Henry Crown Hall estra is “self governing”, the General and all their concerts are relayed “live” to Secretary is Avi Shoshani and it enjoys the the nation on Israel Radio’s “Voice of support of 26,000 subscribers in Israel as Music” station. Their present musical well as many “Friends of the Orchestra” director is the French conductor Frederic throughout the world. Chaslin who shares the podium with guest The Six Day War in June 1967 marked conductors from both Israel and abroad. an important turning point in Israeli culture. Cantorial and liturgical music is prog- In the words of Viennese born historian rammed for both the Jewish Festivals as Amos (Sternbach) Alon who emigrated to well as for the Easter and Christmas Mandate Palestine in 1933, “Because of period. Jerusalem of course is home to the Six Day War of 1967, the people of many different ethnic groups comprising Israel came of age. It marked the transition Henry Crown Hall of a large Arab community and the Ultra from adolescence to maturity”. The period Orthodox Jewish (Hasidim) comm- ▼ MUSICAL OPINION JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2013 23 establishments: a-capella choirs, Arabic Tel Aviv Performing Arts Center music and early music. The story and history of Opera in Israel began in 1923 when a Russian “opera buff” from Moscow named Mordechai Golinkin arrived in Palestine. His ambition was to create an opera company in pre- state Israel and in the same year he arrived, succeeded in putting together a group of singers for a performance of Jerusalem Academy of Music & Dance Verdi’s La Traviata. As no opera house was in existence at that time in Tel Aviv and unity so an effort is made to please as which was still partly sand dunes, Golin - and most welcome guest conductor. This many as possible. The Israel Camerata kin’s Palestine Opera had to perform on coming season 2012-2013, their reper- Jerusalem, an outstanding chamber orch - the small stage of a cinema acc omp anied toire includes Berg’s Wozzeck, Benjamin estra, is one of Jerusalem’s jewels with a by an old Bechstein upright.

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