<\/p>\n
‘Ehud Banai agreed to ask Shalom Hanoch, who is among the best Israeli blues players. Shalom agreed, and so we have these two talented musicians for our improvised opening of the festival.’<\/p>\n
Despite some hiccups caused by the war and trepidation of international performers to come to Israel, the Jerusalem International Oud Festival<\/a> is set to open on November 6.<\/p>\n \u201cObviously, there had to be changes,\u201d Effie Benaya<\/a>, director of the festival, told The Jerusalem Post<\/em>.<\/p>\n \u201cNormally, we open with a major new work, often based on a traditional Hebrew text, such as the Song of Songs or the poetry of Ibn Gvirol. But this year, I had invited a Greek musician with roots inGreece<\/a>, Syria, and Armenia. He agreed to perform, and he would have done so, but, despite the revolution in Syria<\/a>, he canceled. Since he has family in Syria, the war situation made him apprehensive, and he was being threatened, so he withdrew.\u201d<\/p>\n Benaya explained that because it usually requires about a year to arrange the lead performance from abroad, he turned to the tried-and-true \u2013 local hero Ehud Banai.<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s very much into Mediterranean music while open to other folk and world idioms. He actually wanted to do a session of blues, which was OK by me. So then I suggested he invite a guest to play blues. He agreed to askShalom Hanoch<\/a>, who is among the best Israeli blues players. Shalom agreed, and so we have these two talented musicians for our improvised opening of the festival.\u201d<\/p>\n Other foreign acts proved just as difficult. \u201cThree groups who promised to arrive canceled, one of them just a month ago. But the Indian group Guru Ravikiran, which is not known in Israel, is coming. Their leader, Ravikiran, plays on an unusual instrument called the chitravina, a 21-stringed instrument, a little like a canun. He is known as the Mozart of classical Indian music.<\/p>\n Of his playing, Ravi Shankar said: \u201cIf you don\u2019t believe in God, listen to Ravikiran.\u201d He appears with a young violinist and a percussionist. So we at least have one group from India, which provides us with musicians almost every festival.\u201d<\/p>\n Continuing with the festival tradition of premiering new works, the well-known local band Nikmat Hatraktor is offering works based on the writings of Moshe Ibn Ezra from 11th-century Granada in Spain<\/a> during the golden age of Spanish Jewry.<\/p>\n \u201cThis was similar to something we had done 15 years ago when I brought in Yoni Rechter<\/a> and his new work based on Pirkei Avot. In this way, I\u2019ve tried to mix the old and the new, to give a sense of a continuity within the festival.\u201d<\/p>\n Nikmat Hatraktor is appearing in the newly built National Library of Israel, which is also a first for the festival, as is the auditorium at Yad Ben-Zvi. These are being used in addition to the more usual locations at the Confederation House and the Jerusalem Theater.<\/p>\n Other performances include Bustan Avraham, one of the oldest groups of world music in Israel. Appearing this time with less than their maximum lineup, they are led by Taiseer Elias, a professor of musicology at the University of Haifa<\/a>, who is known internationally for his work with both Arab and Jewish musicians. He was among the founders of the Bustan Avraham group, which includes both Arab and Jews.<\/p>\n For this festival, however, the Arab members did not want to appear.<\/p>\n Another long-standing musician and an established figure in the festival, Yair Dalal<\/a>, celebrates his 70th birthday with his appearance. He will be celebrating his birthday by playing some of his first album, The Way of Incense (Derech Besamim), which reflects Dalal\u2019s excursions into India, the Persian Gulf, and the Mediterranean basin. He, too, sees music as a model for peace throughout the region. In addition, he introduces Dudu Tassa and his Friends, a very popular folk-rock ensemble.<\/p>\n A real innovation in this year\u2019s festival is a dance group. Benaya explains his motivation. \u201cI have always insisted on the inclusion of traditional Arab music. But this year I excised such programs and included a dance group instead, Al-Atlat (The Ruins), which uses modern dance routines to the background of Arab music. In this iteration, they are dancing to one song of the best-known Egyptian singer, Umm Kulthum<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\nLocal hero Ehud<\/h3>\n
Premiering new works<\/h3>\n
Yair Dalal turns 70<\/h3>\n