page_title: Music of Israel
section_title: Greek, Latin American, Ethiopian and other influences
hierarchical_section_title: Music of Israel / Global influences / Greek, Latin American, Ethiopian and other influences
caption_attribution_description: עברית: גליקריה בהופעה בחגיגות היין, סוכות 2013, ראשון לציון. English: Glykeria. Rishon Le-Zion, 2013.
context_page_description: The music of Israel is a combination of Jewish and non-Jewish music traditions that have come together over the course of a century to create a distinctive musical culture. For almost 150 years, musicians have sought original stylistic elements that would define the emerging national spirit. In addition to creating an Israeli style and sound, Israel's musicians have made significant contributions to classical, jazz, pop rock and other international music genres. Since the 1970s, there has been a flowering of musical diversity, with Israeli rock, folk and jazz musicians creating and performing extensively, both locally and abroad. Many of the world's top classical musicians are Israelis or Israeli expatriates. The works of Israeli classical composers have been performed by leading orchestras worldwide.
  Music in Israel is an integral part of national identity. Beginning in the days of the pioneers, Hebrew songs and public singalongs were encouraged and supported by the establishment. "Public singalongs were a common pastime [of the early settlers], and were for them a force in defining their identity", wrote Nathan Shahar. This view of music as nation-building continues to this day.
context_section_description: Greek-style bouzouki music became increasingly popular in the early 1960s. Aris San, a non-Jewish Greek singer who moved to Israel and became an Israeli citizen, was the driving spirit behind this trend. One of Aris San's hit songs was "Sigal" (lyrics by Yovav Katz). Aris San, who worked at the Zorba club in Jaffa, owned and opened by Shlomo Bachramov wrote songs for Aliza Azikri (Bahayim hakol over, Yesh ahava ata omer), that effectively broke down the barriers between Israeli song and the world of Greek and Mizrahi music. The songs of the iconic Greek singer Stelios Kazantzidis were translated into Hebrew and performed by the country's leading singers. Being Greek, Yehuda Poliker has many songs that use bouzouki.
  A number of young musicians traveled to South America in the late 1960s, and brought back Latin rhythms and sonorities which became a force in popular music through the 1970s. An example is the song "Noah" by Matti Caspi.
  The American folk movement of the 1960s and 1970s influenced the Israeli national style, and Israeli folksingers, among them Chava Alberstein – patterned themselves after Judy Collins and Joni Mitchell. In the 1960s, guitar duos such as the Dudaim and the Parvarim performed not only "canonical" Israeli songs, but also Hebrew versions of American and British folk songs.
  The 1970s saw the growth of a new eclecticism in Israeli music.  Rock, jazz and other genres began to strike roots, influenced by worldwide trends but also adding elements that were uniquely Israeli.
  The Idan Raichel Project, a successful pop/ethnic group formed in the 2000s, merges Ethiopian and Western music. Raichel collaborated with Ethiopian Jewish immigrants to produce a unique sound, combining Electronic music sounds, classic piano, electric guitar, traditional drums and Ethiopian-style singing, with its complex quartertone scales and rhythms. The songs are sung in a combination of Hebrew and Amharic.
caption: Glykeria during a concert held in Rishon Le-Zion, September 2013.
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