MUSIC 74 & 139: MUSIC IN ISRAEL

WEEKLY LISTENING ASSIGNMENTS

Week 9 (March 13 & 15)

Israeli rock and SLI [Songs of the Land of Israel], the music cultures that express the variants of Israeliness we have labeled global Israeliness and Hebrewism, are conventionally associated with the dominant sectors of Israeli society, that is, the establishment, or the secular Ashkenazi middle and upper classes. Musiqah mizrahit (lit. Eastern or oriental music) is the popular music associated with mizrahiyut, the cultural variant of Israeliness created by Jews who came to Israel from Arab and Muslim countries in North Africa and the Near East. Referred to in earlier periods as edot ha-mizrah (the Eastern communities), these Jews were relegated by the dominant Western perspective to an ethnic component of Israeli Jewish culture and typically occupy the less-privileged socioeconomic positions (Arab-Israeli Palestinians are another such component) (Regev-Seroussi, p. 191). This week we are adding to the multifaceted mosaic of modern Israeli musical culture by looking at the contribution brought by the music of the Jews from the Lands of Islam. Initially a subculture, musiqah mizrahit has become a fully accepted component of mainstream Israeli culture: a long way from the early-day Orientalism expressed in the falling in love for Yemenite music by the early generations of immigrant composers! A classic Cinderella story, musiqah mizrahit started out as cassette music, distributed in the old Tel Aviv bus station. It then became the banner for the cultural/political/economic claims of non-Ashkenazi (i.e., non-Western) Israeli Jews. Later, it hit the charts, becoming one of the major forces in the Israeli music market. Finally, it started blending with other musical cultures, such as rock, Mediterranean sounds, and world music. No wonder it became such a sexy topic for academics, attracting all kinds of scholarly interests (Regev-Seroussi, p. 193-195). With the addition of musiqah mizrahit to our research path, it may seem that we have somehow come in a full circle: the early exoticism represented by Oriental sounds is now the bread and butter of everyday music in the State of Israel. Oriental sounds can be freely incorporated in rock, ethnic, and early world music contexts; they can become part of mainstream pop culture (such as TV programs); they can also carry the message of religious Israeliness. Grove, paragraphs IV:1 and V:1 will provide you with a synthetic background on the role of non-liturgical music in traditional Jewish life, with a particular stress on the communities located in the Lands of Islam. Once again, the audio anthology Gadalnu yachad can guide us step-by-step into the development of the oriental sounds of Israeli popular music. Listen to the following tracks, using Regev-Seroussi, chapter 9, as your guide. The songs are presented here chronologically from the early 1970s to the mid-1980s (when possible with references to the book by Regev and Seroussi), but you may want to organize them according to different principles. CD 5 11: Eini yachol (I cannot), by Nessim Saroussi (see Regev-Seroussi 202), 1973 12: Chanale hitbalbela (Chanale was rattled), by Tzlile haoud (see RS 213-214), 1974 CD 6 20: Etzlenu biqfar Tudra (In our home village, Tudra), by Habrerah Hativit (see RS 193), 1979 CD 7 4: Haperach beganni (The flower in my garden), by Zohar Argov (see RS 207), 1982 11: Ganavim (Thieves), by Army Radio DJ Dori Ben-Zeev, who plays with the mizrahi genre, 1985 17: Todah (Thank You), Greek tune on religious lyrics by Yemenite leader of musiqah mizrahit Haim Moshe (see RS 216), 1986 18: Eizo medinah (What a country), by Eli Louzon, a pure example of musiqah mizrahit from 1987 CD 8 12: Ba lashkunah bachur chadash (A new kid on the block), by former Kaveret Alon Olearchick, 1985 17: Ekh hu shar (How he sings), by Dani Robas (possibly dedicated to Z. Argov), 1989: echoes of Mizrahi synagogue song in the opening CD 9 2: Lamah libekh kmo qerach (Why is your heart like ice?), by Gidi Gov and Eli Louzon, 1991 15: Magia yom chadash (A new day is coming), by Hachamishiyah Haqamerit (the Chamber Quintet); and 16: Shir cham weyefet (Song of heat and beauty), by Haqomedi Stor (the Comedy Store) were featured in 1995 TV comedy shows 17: Ma asit (What did you do?), by rock group Tea Packs (see RS 193), 1995

Note: All required sound files and CD booklets available on bSpace.