Mordechai Zeira
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Mordechai Zeira (; July 6, 1905 – August 1, 1968), born in
Kiev Kyiv, also Kiev, is the capital and most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city of Ukraine. Located in the north-central part of the country, it straddles both sides of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2022, its population was 2, ...
as Dmitry Greben, was an Israeli composer. Mordechai Zaira (Greben) was one of the most important Israeli composers and songwriters. He wrote melodies for the best poets and songwriters, including Jacob Orland,
Nathan Alterman Nathan Alterman (; August 14, 1910 – March 28, 1970) was an Israeli poet, playwright, journalist, and translator. Though never holding any elected office, Alterman was highly influential in Labor Zionist politics, both before and after the es ...
, Aharon Ashman and Alexander Penn. His works are still played today, some in modern versions by young artists. At the time he was called "the troubadour of the Hebrew singer".


Biography

Mordechai Zaira was born Dmitry Mark (Mitya) Greben in the city of Kiev in the
Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...
(now the capital of
Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...
). He studied mechanics at the Polytechnic of Kyiv, but due to the difficulties of earning a living, he stopped his studies after two semesters and moved to sewing shoes. In 1924 he was arrested for being in the Zionist youth movement
Hashomer Hatzair Hashomer Hatzair (, , 'The Young Guard') is a Labor Zionism, Labor Zionist, secular Jewish youth movement founded in 1913 in the Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria, Austria-Hungary. It was also the name of the Hashomer Hatzair Workers Party, the ...
, but received a permit to leave the
Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
and immigrated to
Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...
at the age of 19. In Israel, he joined Kibbutz
Afikim Afikim () is an Israeli kibbutz affiliated with the Kibbutz Movement located in the Jordan Valley three kilometers from the Sea of Galilee. It is within the jurisdiction of the Emek HaYarden Regional Council. In it had a population of . Etymo ...
(then called "Kibbutz Hashomer Hatzair S.S.S.R."), which was then located near
Yavne'el Yavne'el (, ) is a moshava and Local council (Israel), local council in the Northern District (Israel), Northern District of Israel. Founded in 1901, it is one of the oldest rural Jewish communities in the country. According to the Israel Centra ...
. The members of the kibbutz staged a performance of a
Hebrew Hebrew (; ''ʿÎbrit'') is a Northwest Semitic languages, Northwest Semitic language within the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family. A regional dialect of the Canaanite languages, it was natively spoken by the Israelites and ...
opera Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...
called "Carmela". The orchestra, which included a concertina and comb players, was conducted by Zeira, who was talented in playing combs. According to his friends, he was then called "Masreki" (translated as Comb-i, referencing also to his surname Greben - Гребень which means in
Russian Russian(s) may refer to: *Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *A citizen of Russia *Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages *''The Russians'', a b ...
comb). After a few months, the group moved to
Afula Afula () is a city in the Northern District of Israel, often known as the "Capital of the Valley" due to its strategic location in the Jezreel Valley. As of , the city had a population of . Afula's ancient tell (settlement mound) suggests habit ...
and staged a new show, "Blue Shirt", in which Zeira's first song (lyrics and lyrics) also called "Blue Shirt", which gained great popularity among the socialist youth movements in the Land of Israel. Moshe Halevy, the founder of
Ohel Theater Ohel Theatre (, ''Teat'ron 'Ohel'') was a Hebrew-language theatre company, active between 1925–1969 in Mandate Palestine and Israel . History Ohel (Hebrew for "tent"), originally known as the Workers' Theatre of Palestine, was established in 1 ...
, convinced Zeira to move to
Tel Aviv Tel Aviv-Yafo ( or , ; ), sometimes rendered as Tel Aviv-Jaffa, and usually referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the Gush Dan metropolitan area of Israel. Located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline and with a popula ...
and study acting. In 1927 Zeira decided to stop his acting studies and study composition, mainly with the musicologists Shlomo Rozovsky and David Shor. His decision to switch from acting studies to music studies was made following his meeting with the composer Yoel Engel at the Ohel Theater. After Engel's death in 1927, Zeira kept being in touch with the composer Shlomo Rosovsky, who also wrote music for the same theater (for 'Yaakov and Rachel'). Zeira then worked in the
Dead Sea The Dead Sea (; or ; ), also known by #Names, other names, is a landlocked salt lake bordered by Jordan to the east, the Israeli-occupied West Bank to the west and Israel to the southwest. It lies in the endorheic basin of the Jordan Rift Valle ...
factories and for about a year went to
Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...
on weekends to Rozovsky's house, to study with him. In exchange, Zeira copied notes for him, for the purpose of researching Biblical cantillation notes that the composer wrote at the time. With Rozovsky's encouragement, Zeira became familiar with the music of the various Jewish denominations in Jerusalem, in order to get to know the "sources" of Jewish music from which he would draw in the future. In addition, he also studied with Prof. David Shor - in public lectures and private lessons, which the professor, who noticed his talents, and was aware of his financial situation, taught him for free, in his home. In 1927 he met Sarah Gutman, a student of the Lewinsky College of Education, who studied when they both sang in Menashe Rabina's "Beit HaLevi'im" choir in Tel Aviv. The two were partners, a few years later, in January 1933, they got married in
Kfar Vitkin Kfar Vitkin () is a moshav in central Israel. Located near Netanya, it falls under the jurisdiction of Hefer Valley Regional Council and was the first Jewish settlement in the valley. In it had a population of . History The community was esta ...
, and in 1935 their only son, Yuval, was born. In 1928, together with Yitzchak Shanhar, he published a collection of songs for Aliyah to Jerusalem, in which Shanhar wrote the words and Zeira the melodies. Zeira saw this as the beginning of his work as a composer. In this year he changed his last name to "Zeira", due to his short stature, on the advice of the writer Aharon Ashman. Since end of 1933, he earned his living by working at
Israel Electric Corporation Israel Electric Corporation (IEC; ) is the largest supplier of electrical power in Israel and the Palestinian territories. The IEC builds, maintains, and operates power generation stations, sub-stations, as well as transmission and distribution ...
, initially as a meter reader and then, following a heart attack, he switched to
bookkeeping Bookkeeping is the recording of financial transactions, and is part of the process of accounting in business and other organizations. It involves preparing source documents for all transactions, operations, and other events of a business. T ...
. In this context, he wrote and composed the song "The Network Song" ("Hazaken Me-
Naharayim Naharayim ( literally "Two rivers"), historically the Jisr Majami area ( literally "Meeting bridge" area), is the area where the Yarmouk River flows into the Jordan River. It was the site of the "First Jordan Hydro-Electric Power House", con ...
") about Pinchas Rotenberg. In 1966 he retired. In
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, Zeira enlisted in the
British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...
, was one of the founders of the band "Me'ein Zeh" of the
Jewish Brigade The Jewish Infantry Brigade Group, more commonly known as the Jewish Brigade Group or Jewish Brigade, was a military formation of the British Army in the World War II, Second World War. It was formed in late 1944 and was recruited among Yishuv, Y ...
and composed some of its songs, among them "Shalechet" ("Deep sadness in the eyes"). He also wrote the words of the "Shir Ha-Hodaya" on his way by train to Egypt, and then also the melody. Zeira was attentive to what was happening in Israel, and some of his songs are real-time responses to the events that happened. For example, his poem "Five left a to build a homeland" is a response to the murder of the five Jews by
Arab Arabs (,  , ; , , ) are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in West Asia and North Africa. A significant Arab diaspora is present in various parts of the world. Arabs have been in the Fertile Crescent for thousands of years ...
rioters, after whom the Kibbutz
Ma'ale HaHamisha Ma'ale HaHamisha () is a kibbutz in central Israel. Located in the Judean hills just off the Jerusalem–Tel Aviv highway, It falls under the jurisdiction of Mateh Yehuda Regional Council. In it had a population of . History The kibbutz was fou ...
was named. His famous song "Layla Layla" was composed during one of the curfew days of the British rule. Zeira composed two of Alexander Penn's songs in memory of
Alexander Zaid Alexander () is a male name of Greek origin. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here are A ...
. Upon completing a year to Zaid's death, he composed the song "Zaid's song" ("Once and more"), and two years later he composed "Adama Admati" (it is mistakenly believed that this song was composed upon completing a first year since the death). Another famous song written by him and his friend Orland was "Shir Same'ah" written after the
Ma'ale Akrabim massacre The Ma'ale Akrabim massacre, known in English as the Scorpions Pass Massacre, was an attack on an Israeli passenger bus, carried out on 17 March 1954, in the middle of the day. Eleven passengers were shot dead by the attackers who ambushed and b ...
in 1954 by infiltrators from
Jordan Jordan, officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is a country in the Southern Levant region of West Asia. Jordan is bordered by Syria to the north, Iraq to the east, Saudi Arabia to the south, and Israel and the occupied Palestinian ter ...
. The two met in a club in Tel Aviv with Prime Minister
Moshe Sharett Moshe Sharett (; born Moshe Chertok (); 15 October 1894 – 7 July 1965) was the second prime minister of Israel and the country’s first foreign minister. He signed the Israeli Declaration of Independence and was a principal negotiator in th ...
, who urged them to write a song that would dispel the oppressed atmosphere that prevailed In Israel following the murder, the song was written immediately and became a big hit in those years. In Zeira's songs there is a fusion of East and West, but the tone of the
Hasidic Hasidism () or Hasidic Judaism is a religious movement within Judaism that arose in the 18th century as a spiritual revival movement in contemporary Western Ukraine before spreading rapidly throughout Eastern Europe. Today, most of those aff ...
singer that he picked up as a child from home as well as the influence of Russian music stands out in his songs. The success of his songs is explained by the fact that they are catchy but at the same time have an interesting poetic development and a melodic grace. His work was greatly appreciated and earned him the title "The
Troubadour A troubadour (, ; ) was a composer and performer of Old Occitan lyric poetry during the High Middle Ages (1100–1350). Since the word ''troubadour'' is etymologically masculine, a female equivalent is usually called a ''trobairitz''. The tr ...
of the Hebrew Singer". When he was later asked how he composed his poems, he replied: "I love poetry and read many poems and repeat and read them. And there are times when, upon reading a particular poem, something vibrates in my heart suddenly. So it's as if the melody is sown and its 'germination' begins, which can take hours, days, months and even years - until the song appears and goes out into the world". Zaira died of a
heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when Ischemia, blood flow decreases or stops in one of the coronary arteries of the heart, causing infarction (tissue death) to the heart muscle. The most common symptom ...
in 1968 and was buried in the
Kiryat Shaul cemetery Kiryat Shaul Cemetery () is a 320-dunam (32 hectares) Jewish burial ground in Northern Tel Aviv near the neighborhood of Kiryat Shaul. On the east side of the cemetery is a large military cemetery. Founded in 1943, it includes more than 80,000 gr ...
in Tel Aviv. He left after him his wife, Sarah, and their only son, Yuval. Sarah was involved in the distribution of his songs after his death. She initiated the publication of two books of his poems - "One more song" and "Layla Layla". In addition, the song album "Layla Layla" was also produced, which includes 43 songs on 2
CDs CDS, CDs, Cds, etc. may refer to: Finance * Canadian Depository for Securities, Canadian post-trade financial services company * Certificate of deposit (CDs) * Counterfeit Deterrence System, developed by the Central Bank Counterfeit Deterrence ...
. His archive is deposited in the music department of the
National Library of Israel The National Library of Israel (NLI; ; ), formerly Jewish National and University Library (JNUL; ), is the library dedicated to collecting the cultural treasures of Israel and of Judaism, Jewish Cultural heritage, heritage. The library holds more ...
in Jerusalem.


Songs

*''Layla, Layla'' *''Shnei Shoshanim'' ('Two Roses') *''What Say Your Eyes?'' *''Shir Hashamisha''


References

1905 births 1968 deaths Israeli composers Soviet emigrants to Israel 20th-century Israeli composers Israeli male composers Musicians from Kyiv 20th-century Israeli male musicians Burials at Kiryat Shaul Cemetery {{Israel-musician-stub