Andre Rieu and His Orchestra Return to Tel Aviv With a Concert Including Hava Nagila and Jerusalem of Gold

Famous Dutch violinist and conductor Andre Rieu is best known for creating the waltz-playing Johann Strauss Orchestra. Together they have turned classical and waltz music into a worldwide concert touring act, as successful as some of the biggest global pop and rock music acts.

Last week Rieu and his orchestra swept into Tel Aviv for a few days of performances at the Menora Mivtachim Arena. It was the second visit to Israel for Rieu and his 75 singers, dancers, and musicians. Their first visit was in 2018, when they toured Tel Aviv, Jaffa, and Jerusalem. Rieu and his son met with Holocaust survivors who were saved from the Nazis by Rieu's wife's mother, who was active in the Dutch Resistance.

Rieu's father was conductor of the Maastricht Symphony Orchestra. Showing early promise, André began studying violin at the age of five. From a very early age, he developed a fascination with orchestra.

Rieu created the Johann Strauss Orchestra in 1987 and began with 12 members, giving its first concert on 1 January 1988. Over the years it has expanded dramatically, nowadays performing with between 80 and 150 musicians. Rieu and his orchestra have performed throughout Europe, North and South America, Japan, and Australia. The size and revenue of their tours are rivaled only by the largest pop and rock music acts.

Here is the complete concert from 2018. The musical numbers and the commentary are worth watching, but if you only have time to watch Hava Nagila and Jerusalem of Gold, they are at 18 minutes and 33 minutes from the start of the concert.

Enjoy! 

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Celebrating Yom Yerushalayim (Jerusalem Day) on the Mount of Olives with Yonina and "Jerusalem of Gold"

Today is Yom Yerushalayim - Jerusalem Day — the most recent addition to the Hebrew calendar. It is celebrated on the 28th day of Iyar (six weeks after the Passover seder, one week before the eve of Shavuot). 

Although Jerusalem has been considered the capital city of the Jewish people since the time of King David — who conquered it and built it as the seat of his monarchy in approximately 1000 B.C.E.–there has never been a special day in honor of the city until the Israeli army took over the ancient, eastern part of the city on the third day of the Six-Day War in June 1967.

Shortly after the Six-Day War, “a municipal unification” of the two sections of the city took place, ending 19 years of separation between predominantly Arab and Jewish suburbs of Jerusalem, following the War of Independence in 1948.

Today we celebrate Yom Yerushalayim with Jerusalem of Gold sung by the duo of Yoni and Nina Tokayer, who perform as Yonina, a combination of both their first names.

The married musical duo live in the small town of Pardes Chana, Israel. They have been uploading home videos to Facebook and Youtube and reaching millions. They have both been singing and writing since they can remember, and have been making music together ever since they met.

The song was written in 1967 by Naomi Shemer and first performed by Shuly Natan, who was then a soldier in the Israel Defense Forces teaching Hebrew to new immigrants from Morocco in Israel's Negev desert.

Most people think the song was written to commemorate Israel's victory in the Six Day War, but it actually was written shortly before war broke out. It was commissioned by Teddy Kollek, mayor of Jerusalem at the time, as a background song to be sung while the votes were counted for a radio song competition, similar to today's American Idol. It has grown in popularity over the years and is now second only to Hatikvah as Israel's national anthem.

Chag Sameach!

A SPECIAL NOTE FOR NEW EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS:  THE VIDEO IS NOT VIEWABLE DIRECTLY FROM THE EMAIL THAT YOU GET EACH DAY.  YOU MUST CLICK ON THE TITLE AT THE TOP OF THE EMAIL TO REACH THE JEWISH HUMOR CENTRAL WEBSITE, FROM WHICH YOU CLICK ON THE PLAY BUTTON IN THE VIDEO IMAGE TO START THE VIDEO.

16 Female Cantors From Around the World Sing "Jerusalem of Gold"

In honor of Jerusalem’s 53rd reunification anniversary this week, 16 female cantors from around the world united to sing Yerushalayim Shel Zahav (Jerusalem of Gold).

Naomi Shemer wrote the original song for the Israeli Song Festival held on 15 May 1967, the night after Israel's nineteenth Independence Day. She chose the then-unknown Shuli Natan to sing the song.

The cantors are from Israel, Germany, and 13 cities in the USA. Here is a list of the cantors, their synagogues, and their cities. 

Adi Arad, Petach Tikva, Israel 
Hazzan Alisa Pomerantz-Boro, Congregation Beth El, Voorhees, NJ, USA 
Atalya Lavi, Beit Tefilah Israeli, Tel Aviv, Israel 
Cantor Aviv Weinberg, Celle Synagogue, Berlin, Germany
Cantor Elizabeth Shammash, Tiferet Bet Israel, Philadelphia, PA, USA 
Cantor Julia Cadrain, Central Synagogue, New York, NY, USA 
Laurie Akers, Congregation Or Shalom, Vernon Hills, IL, USA 
Cantor Lisa Peicott, Wilshire Boulevard Temple, Los Angeles, CA, USA 
Cantor Lizzie Weiss, Temple Emanu-El, Beverly Hills, CA, USA 
Cantor Magda Fishman, B'nai Torah, Boca Raton, FL, USA 
Cantor Rachel Goldman, Congregation Ner Tamid of South Bay, Los Angeles, CA, USA 
Cantor Rebecca Garfein, Congregation Rodeph Shalom, New York, NY, USA 
Cantor Roslyn Barak, Congregation Emanu-El, San Francisco, CA, USA 
Cantor Sara Hass, Temple Israel, Long Beach, CA, USA 
Cantor Shira Lissek, Temple Israel, Charlotte, NC, USA 
Cantor Vicky Glikin, Temple Emanu-El, Dallas, TX, USA

Enjoy!

A SPECIAL NOTE FOR NEW EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS:  THE VIDEO IS NOT VIEWABLE DIRECTLY FROM THE EMAIL THAT YOU GET EACH DAY.  YOU MUST CLICK ON THE TITLE AT THE TOP OF THE EMAIL TO REACH THE JEWISH HUMOR CENTRAL WEBSITE, FROM WHICH YOU CLICK ON THE PLAY BUTTON IN THE VIDEO IMAGE TO START THE VIDEO.

Musical Showcase: Kol Esperanza Sings "Jerusalem of Gold" in 3 Languages

Kol Esperanza is a new young operatic pop trio, founded as a power-vocal group to perform classical songs, opera great hits, standards, Broadway hits and music that can bridge different generations and audiences around the world. 

Kol Esperanza consists of Israeli singers Nimrod Grinboim, Nadav Inbar, and Omer Shaish together with Musical Director Tomer Adaddi. The group started performing in 2014 and have been touring worldwide.

We saw them in February 2017 during our winter tour of South Florida. They will be performing again in South Florida next winter.

In this video they sing Jerusalem of Gold in Hebrew, English, and Spanish.

Enjoy!

A SPECIAL NOTE FOR NEW EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS:  THE VIDEO IS NOT VIEWABLE DIRECTLY FROM THE EMAIL THAT YOU GET EACH DAY.  YOU MUST CLICK ON THE TITLE AT THE TOP OF THE EMAIL TO REACH THE JEWISH HUMOR CENTRAL WEBSITE, FROM WHICH YOU CLICK ON THE PLAY BUTTON IN THE VIDEO IMAGE TO START THE VIDEO.