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| Israeli singer-songwriter Idan Raichel holds his autograph for The Korea Times readers during an interview Thursday. / Korea Times photo by Kim Hye-kyung |
By Kim Hye-kyung
A turbaned man started singing in a soft yet husky voice with piano accompaniment at Hanbit Park, central Seoul, on a rainy Thursday evening. Many wet seats were empty at first, as a few passersby stopped to listen. But soon the square was filled with people listening to the unfamiliar but attractive melody on a chilly autumn night.
The singer was Idan Raichel, a musician from Israel. He sang a few songs including his hit "Bo'ee" (Come with Me) and "Im telech" (If You Leave) and collaborated with "geomungo" (Korean six-string zither) player Heo Yoon-jeong, reinterpreting his song "Mi'ma'amakim" (Out of Death). The audiences could not understand his Hebrew lyrics, but Raichel's music tugged at their heartstrings.
The Israeli singer-songwriter, 37, is in Korea for the first time to take part in the Korea Foundation Cheonggyecheon World Music Festival and the Jarasum International Jazz Festival this week.
Raichel has built his reputation through his multicultural music.
"I am a musician who builds bridges between countries. Traditional music from each country can make people understand and communicate each other," Raichel told The Korea Times. "I think music can unite people from different ethnic backgrounds as my Seoul concert showed."
Raichel is from Kfar Saba, a city near Tel Aviv. "Israel is a melting pot filled with many immigrants from various countries," he said. "So, I was able to encounter various genres of music and fascinated by them."
About 90 young and old musicians from diverse backgrounds took part in recording his album the "Idan Raichel Project."
"I composed all the songs and wrote lyrics, but singers translated the lyrics to their own languages and played the music with their traditional instruments. That made the album special," the musician explained.
Raichel wants to contribute to better understanding of different cultures through music and he is open and ready to learn about other cultures. For him, Korea is an unfamiliar country and Koreans are unaccustomed to Israeli music.
"It's my first time to Korea," he said. "The only things I knew about Korea were the Red Devils of the 2002 World Cup and Hodori, the mascot of the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul.
"I believe there is something common between South Korea and Israel. Both countries have been in prolonged conflicts, although the reasons are different.
"I heard that there are separated families in the two Koreas. I don't know about the political situation, but I want them to communicate soon as I wish to communicate with Palestinians or Syrians through music in the near future."
Raichel will perform at the 2014 Jarasum International Jazz Festival at Gapyeong, Gyeonggi Province on Saturday.
He has also established an email account to help him collaborate with Korean musicians.
"Please email me at koreatlv@gmail.com and I will write back with seven tracks of my music," he said.
The writer is an intern for The Korea Times.
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