Re: Israeli Music Today

[Ari Davidow <ari...>]

>I obviously have a bias toward the music of the Chalutzim and their
>successors (we play a number of Naomi Shemer tunes in my band), and I
>obviously realize that I as a kid threw away the music of my parents and
>embraced Rock and Roll (back when it was good in the early-mid 50's :-),
>but I find it difficult to see this music as Jewish. There must be a
>difference between Jewish music and music sung in Hebrew by pop singers
>who are Israeli.
>
>Comments? 

Israel is much more complex than the idealized version you might
have imagined from back then. Those =were= wonderful songs. But
there is a lot wonderful still happening.

What is worrisome is this idea of seeing the music as "Jewish,"
or judging it on the basis of what you are used to thinking of
as "Jewish." As David Julian Gray (long time ago of the Klezmorim,
now of a klezmer trio in DC, and digital audio person for NPR) is
fond of saying, there are more "Jewish's" than you can count.

If we can accept Debbie Friedman as representing something--and
accept that she has made music that has much meaning to millions
of Jews in this country, despite melodies that some find trite,
with what ears are we judging Israeli music in its diversity--including
its freedom to be mediocre?

Finally, and perhaps most important, music from specific Jewish
contexts (nusach, for instance) is not a major influence on Israeli
popular music, any more than here.

ari


Ari Davidow
ari (at) ivritype(dot)com
list owner, jewish-music (at) shamash(dot)org
the klezmer shack: http://www.klezmershack.com/

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