Re: Bracha Zefira

[Noa Lachman <jmduk...>]

Joel

IMI in Israel have all the recordings of Bracha Zefira, but, I believe they 
have for years now stoped producing the CDs or tapes. If they still have the 
originals, I may be able to convince them to make one off copies for me. I 
will try. They list three recordings -  one with Orchestra and small 
ensembles, performing Partos, Lavry, Boskovich and Ben Haim. Second with 
Nahum Nardi on piano performing Israeli songs, and the third recording songs 
by her performing with an ensemble. Her songs (which were only melodies) 
were arrnaged on this recording by Lakner, Maayani, Avni, Paul Ben Haim, and 
Haim Alexander. It looks like she is not singing on it but H. Ben Haim, 
soprano is the singer.

Incidentally, as a soprano myself, I have performed two years ago in London 
with an Israeli Dancer, Nima Jacoby (the grand daughter of the composer 
Jacoby) a programme dedicated to Bracha Zefira. Nima visited Bracha Zefira?s 
archive, which contains all the music she collected herself, and we 
performed (me singing, Nima dancing) music from that archive. The Library 
contains hundreds and hundreds of songs written and arranged for her, by all 
the Israeli composers at the time, who all admired her voice and 
personality, together with some of her own songs. There was also a book 
published about her life I believe, with music, and a documentary which is 
available on Video (for sale??? I will need to find out) produced by the 
Israeli TV ? very interesting indeed.

I found her most fascinating and will try to find out if the recordings are 
available.

I will let you know soon.

Yours

Noa



>From: Joel Bresler <jbresler (at) ma(dot)ultranet(dot)com>
>Reply-To: jewish-music (at) shamash(dot)org
>To: World music from a Jewish slant <jewish-music (at) shamash(dot)org>
>Subject: Bracha Zefira
>Date: Mon, 22 May 2000 06:13:22 -0400
>
>Chevra:
>
>Is anyone familiar with the Ladino recordings of Bracha Zefirah? Born of
>Yemeni parents, raised by several "eastern" families; steeped in their
>music, while also learning traditional Sephardic songs from Yitzhak Navon.
>Accompanied first on piano by Nahum Nardi, in 1930s, her repertory was
>later re-set by Paul Ben-Haim, Marc Lavry and Oedoen Partos, among others,
>in a Western Art song idiom.
>
>I have a cassette of Israeli CBS recordings, but it's obviously from much
>earlier masters and I'd love to know when the original recordings were made
>and distributed.
>
>Thanks,
>
>Joel
>
>
>Joel Bresler
>250 E. Emerson Rd.
>Lexington, MA 02420 USA
>
>Home:           781-862-2432
>Home Office:    781-862-4104
>FAX:            781-862-0498
>Email:          jbresler (at) ma(dot)ultranet(dot)com
>
>

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