Chava Alberstein

Chava Alberstein ( , born 8 December 1946 in Poland) is an Israeli musician, lyricist, composer, and musical arranger. She moved to Israel in 1950 and started her music career in 1964. Alberstein has released over sixty albums in Hebrew, English, and Yiddish. She is known for her liberal activism and advocacy for human rights and Arab-Israeli unity, which has sometimes stirred controversy, such as the ban of her song "Had Gadya" by Israel State Radio in 1989. Alberstein has received numerous accolades, including the Kinor David Prize, the Itzik Manger Prize, and honorary doctorates from several universities.

Biography Born Ewa Alberstein in Szczecin, Poland, her name was Hebraized to Chava when she moved to Israel with her family in 1950. She grew up in Kiryat Haim.

In 1964, when she was seventeen, Alberstein was invited to appear at the Hammam Nightclub in Jaffa. She sang four songs, accompanied by herself on guitar and her brother Alex on the clarinet. The program was broadcast live on the radio. After a guest appearance on Moadon Hazemer, recorded on Kibbutz Beit Alfa, she signed a recording contract with CBS.

Alberstein was drafted into the Israel Defense Forces in 1965 and became one of many Israeli artists to rise to stardom by entertaining the troops.

Musical career Alberstein has released more than sixty albums. She has recorded in Hebrew, English, and Yiddish. In 1980, she began to write and compose. Most of the songs on her album Mehagrim are her own work. Levitan died in 2010. Alberstein's songs have been included in a number of multi-artist collections, among them Songs of The Vilna Ghetto and The Hidden Gate – Jewish Music Around the World.

Critical acclaim According to Israel's second largest daily newspaper, Yedioth Ahronoth, Alberstein is the most important female folk singer in Israeli history:

Political views and controversy Alberstein is a champion of liberal causes. Throughout her career, she has been an activist for human rights and Arab-Israeli unity. with an additional verse in which she implicitly criticizes Israel's policy towards Palestinians ) was banned by Israel State Radio. The song was later used in the film Free Zone by director Amos Gitai in Natalie Portman's seven-minute crying scene.

Alberstein is also a proponent of the Yiddish language, both in her recordings and in a video titled "Too Early to Be Quiet, Too Late to Sing", In 1999, she received the Itzik Manger Prize. On 28 January 2011, she received the Lifetime Achievement Music Award from the Israel Association of Composers, Authors and Publishers of Musical Works, and holds honorary doctorates from Tel Aviv University and the Weizmann Institute of Science of Israel. On 13 May 2018, she was awarded an honorary doctorate in music from Brandeis University. In 2022, she received the Israeli Artists' Association Lifetime Achievement Award.

Discography Number Album name Release date Language References 1 Hine Lanu Nigun 1967 Yiddish 2 Perach haLilach 1967 Hebrew 3 Tza'atzueiah shel Osnat 1967 Hebrew 4 Mirdaf 1970 Hebrew Gold 5 Mot haParpar 1968 Hebrew 6 Chava Alberstein beShirei Rachel 1969 Hebrew 7 Margaritkalach 1969 Yiddish 8 Mishirei eretz ahavati 1970 Hebrew 9 Chava beTochnit Yachid 1 1971 10 Chava beTochnit Yachid 2 1971 11 Isha ba'Avatiach 1971 Hebrew 12 Chava vehaPlatina 1974 13 Chava veOded be'Eretz haKsamim 1972 14 Lu Yehi 1973 Hebrew 15 K'mo Tzemach bar 1975 Hebrew 16 Lehitei haZahav 1975 Hebrew Gold 18 Elik Belik Bom 1976 19 Halaila hu shirim 1977 Hebrew 20 Karusella 1 1977 21 Karusella 2 1977 22 Karusella 3 1977 23 Shirei Am beYiddish 1977 Yiddish 24 Hitbaharut 1978 25 Chava vehaGitara 1978 26 Chava Zingt Yiddish 1979 Yiddish 27 Ma Kara ba'Eretz Mi 1979 28 Ani Holechet Elai 1980 29 Shir beMatana 1980 30 Kolot 1982 31 Shiru Shir im Chava 1982 32 Nemal Bayit 1983 Gold 33 Avak shel kochavim 1984 34 Mehagrim 1986 35 Od Shirim beYiddish 1987 Yiddish 36 HaTzorech baMilah, haTzorech baShtika 1988 37 London 1989 38 MiShirei Eretz Ahavati 1990 Hebrew 39 Ahava Mealteret 1991 Hebrew Gold 40 HaChita Zomachat Shuv 1992 Hebrew 41 The Man I Love 1992 42 Margaritkalach 1994 Yiddish 43 Derech Achat 1995 44 London beHofaah (Live) 1995 45 Yonat ha'Ahava 1996 Hebrew 46 Adaber Itcha 1997 Hebrew 47 The Collection (Box set) 1998 Hebrew Gold 48 Crazy Flower 1998 Hebrew 49 The Well – with The Klezmatics 1998 Yiddish 50 Chava Alberstein – Yiddish Songs 1999 Yiddish 51 Tekhef Ashuv 1999 Hebrew 52 Children's Songs – The Collection 2000 Hebrew 53 Foreign Letters 2001 54 The Early Years – The Box Set 2003 55 End of the Holiday 2004 Hebrew 56 Coconut 2005 Hebrew 57 Like a Wild Flower (New Version) 58 Lemele 2006 59 The Milky Way – Songs for Children 2007 60 Human Nature 2008 61 From Alberstein's Live Concert 2008 62 Chava Alberstein – The Original Albums – four-CD set 2008