Naomi Shemer

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Naomi Shemer (Hebrew: נעמי שמר) (July 13, 1930 – June 26, 2004) was one of Israel's most important and prolific song writers. During her lifetime, she was hailed as the "First Lady of Israeli Song."

Born Naomi Sapir, Shemer did her own songwriting and composing, as well as setting famous poems to music, such as those of the Israeli poet, Rachel, and adapting well-known songs into Hebrew, such as the Beatles song "Hey Jude" and "Let it Be." ("Lu Yehi").

Israeli songwriter Naomi Shemer's grave on the shores of the Sea of Galilee (Kinneret)]. The stones were left by visitors, in keeping with an ancient Jewish custom
Israeli songwriter Naomi Shemer's grave on the shores of the Sea of Galilee (Kinneret)]. The stones were left by visitors, in keeping with an ancient Jewish custom

Naomi Shemer was born and raised in Kevutzat Kinneret, a kibbutz on the shore of Sea of Galilee, which her parents had helped to found. In the 1950s she served in the Israeli Defense Force's Nahal entertainment troupe and studied music at the Rubin Academy in Jerusalem. She married Mordechai Horowitz and had two children, Lali and Ariel.[1]

In 1983, Naomi Shemer received the Israel Prize for her contribution to Israeli culture.

Several of Naomi Shemer's songs have the quality of anthems, striking deep national and emotional chords in the hearts of Israelis. Her most famous song is "Yerushalayim shel zahav" ("Jerusalem of Gold"). She wrote it in 1967, before the Six Day War, and added another stanza after Israel captured East Jerusalem and regained access to the Western Wall. In 1968, Uri Avnery, then a member of the Israeli parliament, proposed that "Jerusalem of Gold" become the Israeli anthem. The proposal was rejected, but the nomination itself says something about the power of Shemer's songs.

Naomi Shemer continued to write and perform until her death. Shemer died of cancer in 2004 at the age of 73.

Contents

[edit] Notable songs

  • "Yerushalayim Shel Zahav" ("Jerusalem of Gold") (ירושלים של זהב)
Written and composed in 1967 just before the Six Day War and later rewritten to describe the liberation of the Old City and the revival of united Jerusalem.
  • "For all these things" (על כל אלה), also known as "The Sting and the Honey" (על הדבש ועל העוקץ)
Famous for the line: "uproot not that which has been planted" (אל נא תעקור נטוע), which is sometimes quoted in political contexts, originally by settlers in the Sinai.
  • "Lu Yehi" ( לו יהי) ("May It Be")
A song meant to be the Hebrew version of the Beatles' "Let it Be", and written to fit that tune. Writing during the Yom Kippur War in 1973, Shemer changed the words to reflect her perspective and gave the song her own music.
Translated from the Walt Whitman poem, and set to song after the death of Yitzhak Rabin.
  • "Od Lo Ahavti Dai" ("I Have Not Yet Loved Enough") (עוד לא אהבתי די)
  • "In Our Yard" (אצלנו בחצר)
  • "Il Gioco dell'alfabeto" (45° Zecchino d'Oro) (אב)

[edit] Influences

A year after her death, the Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported that the Shemer confessed on her deathbed to using parts of a Basque lullaby in her song “Yerushalayim Shel Zahav” (“Jerusalem of Gold”).[2][3]

[edit] References

  1. ^ Naomi Shemer 1930-2004. Haaretz. Haaretz.com. Retrieved on 2007-08-27.
  2. ^ Questions Over Israel's 'Second Anthem'. All Things Considered. NPR.org (May 22, 2005). Retrieved on 2007-08-27.
  3. ^ Avrahami, Idit; Nurit Wurgaft (May 06, 2005). Naomi Shemer had no reason to feel bad, says Basque singer. Haaretz. Haaretz.com. Retrieved on 2007-08-27.

[edit] External links

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naomi_Shemer"
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