Choir singing
My most active hobby is singing in a choir. Since 1998 I have been a part of the "Accord" choir in Giv'atayim, tenor voice.
Sing Galilee festival, March 2022:
The festival was canceled in 2021 and postponed for two months in 2022. We participated and performed twice for small audiecnces. I also joined the Tritonus choir in a concert performing Argentinian pieces, mostly by Piazzolla. I performed with Tritonus in a second concert a few weeks later.
Halel day, December 2021:
Many choirs met in a closed space to sing together, still with masks due to Covid. The main piece was a requiem by Aaron Harlap, to celebrate the composer's 80th birthday.
Halel meeting, June 2021:
Choirs met in an open air concert to celebrate singing after a long break. Since it was not possible to practice and learn a new piece, the choirs sang together a variety of short and relatively simple pieces that were known to most participants.
The Covid pandemic, 2020-2021
The Covid pandemic shut down almost all activity. The choir continued to practice, though online meetings were not that effective, and when we did meet it was in small groups and singing with a mask on. All concerts were canceled, it took a long time for the choir to recover - the whole world in fact.
Joint concert with the Tritonus ensemble, February 2020:
We continued to collaborate with the Tritonus ensemble, this time in a "gypsy" oriented concert. We performed Brahms' Zigeunerlieder with piano, as well as Romancero Gitano by Tedesco (text by Garcia Lorca) with guitar. There were three concerts which also included guitar solo pieces and a Flamenco performance.
Sing Galilee festival, January 2020:
We participated in the festival, spending the weekend on the shores of the Sea of Galilee. We gave two short performances, but the highlights for me were the opening concert (featuring Vocal group and the Moran youth choir), and the excellent concert by the Real Group from Sweden.
Accord concert, July 2019:
End of year concert in Giv'atayim. The highlight was a full performance of Bach's 4th cantata, "Christ lag in Todesbanden", including soloists and a string quartet. The concert also included choir pieces by Telemann, Britten and Barber, as well as solo Arias. A home video of the concert.
Europa Cantat, Tallinnn, July 2018:
We participated in the Europa Cantat Festival in Tallinn, Estonia. WOW, what a wonderful and unique experience. Singers from all over the world in a celebration of choral singing, in a country that is one of the leaders in this area both in performers and in composers. We were part of the B11 workshop, Choir meets Organ, conducted by the excellent Johannes Prinz. The selection of pieces we sang was great, with many different styles from Baroque to modern, including a piece commissioned for the festival. Singing with an organ and performing in a large church were also something we never have the opportunity to experience. My choir also had two performances that went quite well, nothing compared to the high level of choirs we saw perform. Two highlights for me were Vox Clamantis - based on Gregorian chant and the best choir I have ever heard, and the Te Deum concert - not for the music but for the conductor Tonu Kaljuste coordinating three choirs and an orchestra, and for the appearance of the composer Arvo Part. Another highlight was the 100 years for Estonia event in the singing grounds in Tallinn, both as a viewer and as a singer in the open singing with 6000 singers under the large shell. The only caveat was the extreme heat and lack of air conditioning during the festival.
Christmas Oratorio workshop, Ma'agan Michael, December 2017:
The choir attended the second workshop organized by Nona, this time singing parts 1 and 3 of Bach's Chrismas oratorio. The conductor was again Tim Brown, still wonderful as last time.
Accord concert, July 2017:
We performed at our home base in Giv'atayim, to sum up the year. This concert also featured a young flute player. A home video of the concert.
Misa a Buenos Aires, January 2017:
Together with the Tritonus ensemble we performed Martin Palmieri's Misa a Buenos Aires, a beautiful piece combining the religious text of the Mass with music of the Tango dance. We were conducted by Avi Cohen Tarika, and accompanied by a string ensemble, piano, a Soprano soloist, and especially a bandoneon played by Itallian virtuoso Mario Pietrodarcchi. We gave three concerts in one week and had a lot of fun. A video of the concert, recordings of the parts: Kyrie, Gloria, Credo part 1, Credo part2, Sanctus+Benedictus, Agnus Dei.
Zimriya, Acre, August 2016:
There was only one workshop, choral pieces from Puccini's operas conducted by Federico Bardazzi. This type of music is quite different from what we usually sing, especially parts of La Boheme where a lot is happening simultaneously and timing is everything. I got a solo part in one of the pieces, which I had to learn very quickly since it was unexpected.
The Zimriya was a bit sad with only one workshop and few participants. There were problems with the organization as well, especially in the final concert. Will the Zimriya tradition continue?
Accord concert, July 2016:
We performed at our home base in Giv'atayim, to sum up the year. A home video of the concert.
'Messiah' workshop, Ma'agan Michael, February 2016:
I participated in a 2-day workshop on Handel's Messiah with conductor Tim Brown. The workshop took place in Ma'agan Michael and was organized by Nona - Vocal Arts. We performed the first part of the oratorio and the famous Hallelujah chorus, 250 singers in the choir with a small orchestra and soloists (see video here). Working with Tim Brown was great, he has so much energy and is very funny, but very serious about the music at the same time. My throat was sore and I couldn't reach the high notes properly, a bit unfortunate, but still a great experience.
Concert celebrating Accord 20th anniversary, July 2015:
We performed at the Givatayim theater. The choir was accompanied by a string quartet and an oboe in addition to the usual piano. The two choir's vocal trainers also gave solo performances. The concert included the premier performance of two pieces especially composed for the occasion by Ron Weidberg to lyrics by Nathan Zach. Clips from this concert can be found on my youtube channel.
Halel day, Acre, June 2014:
Together with several Israeli choirs and a small orchestra we performed Gloria by Poulenc, conducted by Andre de Quadros. A demanding modern piece, not a very good performance but we had only a few hours to practice together. The main drawback was that there were very few people in the audience, the choirs occupied most of the hall.
Choral fantasy, Jerusalem, November 2013:
I participated in the concert conducted by Stanley Sperber, singing two parts of Mozart's Requiem "with audience participation".
Setmana Cantant Vic, July 2013:
We participated in a workshop with conductor Lluis Vilamajo (excellent!!, so much fun!!), performing with soloists and a small ensemble of musical instruments. We performed several catalan renaissance pieces, the main one was "La Justa" by Fletxa. The workshop concert can be found on YouTube (part1, part2, part3, part4 - La Justa, part5). A longer film is also available, summarizing the whole experience including the other workshops and additional activities of the week. A short excerpt of the Accord choir concert appears at minute 15:38, and I can be seen performing the Beatles' "When I'm 64" at minute 19:20.
Mediterranean Zimriya, Acre, April 2012:
We participated in the Turkish workshop, with conductor Cemi'i Deliorman. As always in such events the conductor was excellent, again showing that music has no boundaries of language or political tension.
Dido and Aeneas, March 2012:
We participated in a production of this small opera by Henry Purcell in Givatayim Theater. The music was performed by a string quartet and harpsichord. The soloists and dancers were terrific. I had a small solo part, the sailor aria. Too bad there was only one show.
Abu-Gosh Festival June 2011:
I joined the Kibbutz Artzi Choir for a performance of Bach's Matthaus Passion, together with the Barocada orchestra and soloists. Such beautiful music, a wondefrul experience.
We participated in workshop 5, Mozart's mass in C minor with conductor Volker Hempfling. The final performance at Binyenei Ha'Uma Jerusalem can be found on youtube, part 1, part 2 and part 3. A more professional clip containing part of the performance can be found here.
"Accord" 2010 concert:
My choir performed at the Felicia Blumenthal music hall in Tel-Aviv. Several clips from this concert can be found on my youtube channel, featuring Handel's coronation anthem #3, and Braun's cycle of 6 songs on birds and other animals (we had the privilege of having the composer Yehezkel Braun in the audience).
Joint concert with Noam Choir December 2008:
The two choirs performed together and separately, including Vivaldi's Magnificat and Braun's "Vehaya Be'akharit Hayamim" for choir, trumpet, harp and solo bass.
21st Zimriya August 2007:
We participated in the spirituals workshop, conducted by Walt Whitman and his Soul Children of Chicago. Performing with Walt Whitman is an experience you never forget. You can see some of the energy in the clip showing the final number from the performance in the Jerusalem theater, Crown hall.
9th Alta Pusteria choir festival, June 2006:
A wonderful gathering of choirs from all over the world, in a beautiful valley in the Dolomite mountains, north Italy.
20th Zimriya August 2004:
We participated in the Catalan songs workshop with conductor Josep Prats. We only performed a few short pieces but the quality level reached was quite high.