Naomi Shemer

Signposts, the play about Naomi Shemer, is not all that good as a play, but the actors and production were fine, and I certainly learned a lot a about her work. For one thing, if asked who wrote any Israeli song, your best guess is "Naomi Shemer" for words and music.

For her most-praised song, "Jerusalem of Gold," she wrote the words and sort composed e the music. I say sort of, because anyone who hears the Basque lullaby that inspired her, almost certainly unconsciously. will recognize the tune. According to the play, J of G is different enough that she would not have been guilty of copyright fraud, had the folk melody even been copyrighted or copyrightable. So the real shame is that she denied for so many years that there was any connection. Even when, near death, she wrote that she had undoubtedly heard the Basque melody before she composed J of G, she added nonsense about the origins of the folk tune. Why a woman who had composed and written so many songs would be so dishonest about this one, I do not know.

But the melody remains.

Copyright 2018 Jane S. Fox