Music scene in Israel so far

The music scene here in Israel is incredibly diverse. American Pop music is a favorite, but the music made by Israeli artists is something completely different. I have noticed that the music created by Israeli artists has influences from around the world. Israeli society as a whole is a melting pot with many people coming from around the world. Thus, Israeli music has taken those musical forms from its different sections of society and created something truly amazing. For instance, Yemen Blues and The Idan Raichel Project are two Israeli bands that have used the different music from the different groups that make up Israeli society to create something beautiful. I had the luck to see both of them play, but at separate concerts. Yemen Blues and The Idan Raichel Project are forever connected in that the frontman for Yemen Blues and the percussionist also play with The Idan Raichel Project. Yemen Blues takes its influence from the Yemenite population. Many of its songs are in Arabic, but they also have songs in Hebrew. I saw them with a few friends from my program in North Tel Aviv. It was a fantastic show. It was in a smallish club, but was filled. The concert itself had a fantastic vibe and everyone was having a blast. The frontman was absolutely insane dancing and pumping up the crowd. I would highly recommend checking them out online.

I saw The Idan Raichel Project in Jerusalem with the program. It was part of an event called MASA Fest. MASA is a organization with affiliation with the Jewish Agency and the Government of the State of Israel that specializes in Israel programs for Jews from the Diaspora. The Idan Raichel Project takes its influence from traditional Ethiopian, African, Sephardic, Mizrachi, and other world influences to become something very Israeli and very different from any music I have heard before. Many of their songs are sung in different languages such as Hebrew, Amharic(the language spoken in Ethiopia), and Arabic for instance. If you are interested in music you should check them out.

I know there is more music to be discovered here in Tel Aviv and in Israel in general. This is just a small portion of the music scene here. More to come in the coming weeks.