The Israel Center is proud to present

Adamai אדמיי

Jewish-Arab Music Ensemble from Israel

Funded by the Walter and Elise Haas Fund

“ADAMAI” is the outcome of a 5-year process which began when Shlomo Gronich (bio) and Lubna Salame (bio)met for the first time while recording “We Brought Peace Upon Us,” the anthem of Peace Child Israel. The CD and video clip were made at the beginning of the Intifada as a call for cessation of the violence. Mr. Gronich and Ms. Salame have since cooperated on numerous musical projects, but have now committed to establishing their own musical ensemble dedicated to the process of listening and understanding.

“Mankind” (Adam). “Earth” (Adama). “Blood” (Dam). ” Water” (Mayim). “Adamai”. Connectors and separators. The members of “Adamai” confront these complicated issues on personal, inter-personal and musical levels . . .

Emad Dallal (oud and vocals), Albert Piamenta (winds), Gadi Seri (percussion),Gilad Ephrat (bass), and Doron Picker (synthesizer) join Lubna and Shlomo in standing up to be counted on the long road from darkness toward light. A new bilingual arrangement of Gronich’s “Shalom L’Cha Shalom” has been prepared for the ensemble in memory of the late Ehud Manor, who wrote the original Hebrew lyrics. Special guest appearance: Michal Adler-Gronich, virtuoso harmonica soloist.

Media

SHLOMO GRONICH was born in Hadera, Israel, in 1949, the son of a talented musician. At the age of six he began playing piano, and at the age of seven presented his first recital in his home town.

Gronich spent his military service as a professional musician - creating original arrangements
and compositions for various Israel Defense Forces musical groups.

He is a graduate of the Academy of Music in Tel Aviv, and the Mannes College of Music in New York, where he majored in composition as the recipient of a scholarship from the "America - Israel Culture Foundation".

To date, Gronich has released 16 LP recordings as a soloist, and numerous presentations in which he was
featured as composer, singer, pianist, and musical arranger.

Classical Music Compositions (commissioned):
The Israel Chamber Orchestra, The Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra ("Flute 3000"), The Camerata Trio,
The Galilee Soloists, The Moran Children's Choir, The Jerusalem Theatre Cantus Choir, The Israeli
Camerata ("Michal" - Concerto for Harmonica and Orchestra), Upper Galilee Music Festival - "The Insane Renaissance", songs for a singer, recorder quartet and piano, "A Prayer for Jerusalem" - recorder, string quartet, and harpsichord, "Harmonicadence" - harmonica trio, 8 violins, and percussion, “For Teddy” – a special composition for harmonica, Arab violin, and symphony orchestra, commissioned in honor of the 90th birthday of Teddy Kollek, former mayor of Jerusalem.

Film Scores:
Transit, Hot Shot, Big Girl, A Thousand Little Kisses, Owl, Over The Ocean, Tel Aviv Stories, Palestine Circus, Facing the Forest, and others.

Music for Theatre:
Tartuffe, The Caucasian Chalk Circle, The Taming of the Shrew, Mephisto, A Comedy of Errors, Yair,
In Seventh Heaven, and more.

Music for Dance (Ballet):
Bat Sheva Dance Company, Inbal Dance Company, Kol Demama Dance Company, and others.

SHLOMO GRONICH composed the musical "Amerika", which was performed at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. in 1979, and was presented again at the Santa Fe Theatre in New Mexico in 1980.

In 1991 Gronich wrote the score for "The Dream Pilot", a production of the Otsaka Theatre in Tokyo, Japan.

Among the many honors that have been presented to Gronich are:
1983, 1991, 1998 - Judges Award for best film score (Israeli "Oscar"),
1991 - Judges Award - Israel Society of Authors, Composers, and Publishers,
"Bronze Lion Award" - for best composition of music for advertisments.
1998 - "Quality Project Award" for creating and maintaining the Sheba Choir.
2000 - Special Award - Israel Society of Authors, Composers, and Publishers,
for "Michal" - Concerto for Harmonica and Orchestra.
2000 - Gronich was requested to compose music for a poem of peace written by
Mr. Shimon Peres for a unique art exhibit based on the dreams of 22 personages.
2001 – “Volunteer of the Year“ Award was presented to Gronich by the
Hadassah International Women’s Organization

Gronich has collaborated recently with numerous Israeli artists:
The Adler Trio - harmonica virtuosos, Lubna Salame - a popular Arab Israeli singer;
"Touching Heaven Ensemble" - "klezmer" music - with Hanan Bar Sela,
"A Quarter to Seven" - religious rock, and "Two Grands" with Leonid Petashka - duo pianist concerts.

In 1991 Gronich established the "Sheba Choir" - composed of immigrant children from the Ethiopian Community. This unique group performs with great success both in Israel and abroad and represents the best of Israel's diverse ethnic cultures.

Gronich's special musical relationship with children and youth also led him to compose a prayer for peace, "We Bring Peace on Us", as the anthem for "Peace Child Israel, a movement of Jewish & Arab youth devoted to peaceful co-existence. This song was recorded as a video clip and was broadcast often on radio and television. As a continuation of Gronich's commitment he serves as musical director and conductor of the "Voices of Peace" Choir, consisting of Arab and Jewish youth from Tel Aviv - Jaffa.

Shlomo Gronich performs regularly as a soloist in Israel and throughout the world, and has just returned from a series of concerts in France, featuring guest artist Michal Adler-Gronich, harmonica virtuoso.

LUBNA SALAME: Born in Haifa and now living with her husband and children in Kfar Yassif in the Western Galilee, LUBNA SALAME began singing classical Arabic songs as a child with a church choir. Soon thereafter, she started concentrating on the repertoire of Layla Mourad, Yisman and the legendary Oum Kolthoum and soon became well known as an important interpreter of the Egyptian artist’s works. This reputation as an Oum Kolthoum specialist keeps her traveling abroad for engagements regularly. In 2000, when she appeared at the Israel Festival with Sapho and Zehava Ben, Lubna Salame won the heart and appreciation of the of the audience and became an overnight sensation.

Lubna Salame has performed as featured singer on an album saluting Lebanese music, “Habaytak” [MGD041]. She was then invited to be the soloist for the special tribute recording in honor of the 100-year anniversary of Oum Kolthoum, produced by the Magda label [MGD042]. Recorded live at the 2003 Peace Festival in Tel Aviv with the Nazareth Orchestra, with whom she performs regularly, reviews included:

“The emotion and strength emerging from Lubna Salame’s vocal work are similar to Oum Kolthoum’s practice. In her singing, Lubna gives the familiar songs fresh and interesting new life, while keeping her own unique taste and depth…”

Known for her stand on reconciliation processes, in 2000 Lubna joine dHSlomo Gronich and other volunteers in the recording of Gronich’s “We Brought Peace Upon Us” for CD and video clip, in a message of tolerance and as a call for cessation of violence at the outbreak of the intifada. She traveled with Komer Emil Shoffani on a journey of Arabs and Jews to Auschwitz, where she sang: “Take care of the world, child” at the gates of the crematorium. In 2005 she rejoined Shlomo Gronich in establish the new ensemble “ADMAI”, and premiered a new bi-lingual version of the song by Gronich originally written for the signing of the peace treaty with Jordan “Shalom L’cha, shalom” (“Hello, peace, hello”). She has appeared twice at the memorial rallies for slain Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin.

In 2005 Ms. Salame began collaborating with RADIOHEAD. They appeared together at the Soutgh Bank Centre;s Ether Festival, with the London Sinfonietta at the Royal Festival Hall (27 & 28 March). The “first night” review said:

“Arpeggi” and “Where Birds Fly” pulsed and ossilated impressively, with Sinfonietta enhanced by the Arabic colourings of the Naxzareth Orchestra and the sunburnt vocals of Lubna Salame…”

-The Sunday Times, March 29, 2005

Micahl Adler-Gronich (Harmonica Soloist)

Adamai is supported by the Alan B. Slifka Foundation. Co-sponsors: Israeli consulate, Berkeley Hillel, Silicon Valley Hillel, Santa Cruz Hillel, San Francisco Hillel