Ofra Haza

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Ofra Haza (around 1994)

Bat-Sheva Ofra Haza ( Hebrew עפרה חזה Ofra Chaza ; born November 19, 1957 in Tel Aviv ; died February 23, 2000 in Ramat Gan ) was an Israeli singer .

Life

Ofra Haza was the ninth and youngest child of Yemeni Jewish immigrants . She grew up in one of the poorest suburbs of southern Tel Aviv, in the Sh'chunat HaTikva district. When she was twelve years old, a theater company organizer, Bezalel Aloni, discovered her talent for singing. Over the years she went from supporting actress in the theater to a very popular singer in Israel; she won many prizes and was named "Singer of the Year" four times. Because of her origins, she faced many difficulties. In the 1970s and 1980s, for example, some producers refused to work with her. Haza still released numerous albums.

In 1979 she made her film debut and played the leading role in the Israeli film The Way Up . In 1983 Haza represented Israel at the Eurovision Song Contest , where she won second place with the song Chai . In 1984 she released the album Yemenite Songs , which also made it to Europe and was very successful there, especially in Great Britain . Ofra Haza received excellent reviews. That was the start of her international career.

In spring 1988 she achieved a worldwide chart success with Im Nin'alu . The song reached number two in Austria and number one in Germany and Switzerland . In the summer of the same year, the single Galbi followed , which still rose to medium chart positions. Since then, Haza has been a synonym for oriental and Israeli pop music for many . She has since performed in various famous concert halls and shows around the world.

In the spring of 1992 Ofra Haza sang the hit Temple of Love with The Sisters of Mercy . The song reached the top five in both the German and British charts and received gold status in both countries. In a duet with Stefan Waggershausen , she sang Jenseits von Liebe (1993), which hit the German charts. She was also featured on Paula Abdul's single My Love is for Real (1995) . Haza released 24 international albums and received many awards. In 1992 the album Kirya was nominated for a Grammy .

Ofra Haza later composed not only songs for albums, but also film music and sang on the soundtracks of several films, including Die Bartholomäusnacht and Wilde Orchidee . Between 1997 and 1998 she spoke and sang the role of Moses' mother in The Prince of Egypt in both the German and English versions.

1994 Haza joined the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony to Yitzhak Rabin , Shimon Peres and Yasser Arafat on. She also sang at Rabin's funeral ceremony.

In 1997 she married businessman Doron Ashkenazy, but the marriage lasted only two years. During this time Haza had gradually withdrawn almost completely from career life, separated from her manager Aloni and devoted herself to her husband and their adopted son Shai.

Death and controversy

Ofra Haza's grave in Yarkon Cemetery

In the winter of 1999/2000, Haza was admitted to Sheba Medical Center in Ramat Gan, unconscious with symptoms of what appeared to be severe flu . After a 14-day stay, which was documented by the press, she died on February 23, 2000 of organ failure as a result of an HIV infection . Her family members first tried to keep their HIV infection a secret, but the information was spread by the press. She was buried on February 24, 2000 in the Yarkon Cemetery in Petach Tikwa in a grand and solemn ceremony.

In addition to many fans from all over the world, politicians such as Ehud Barak and Shimon Peres and many well-known Israeli personalities such as the singers Shoshana Damari and Jardena Arasi as well as Jitzchak Rabin's widow Leah Rabin attended the funeral .

“Ofra came from the slum and reached the top of Israeli culture. It stood for everything that is good and noble in Israeli society. We owe her a lot. "

- Ehud Barak in his funeral oration

After her death, a bitter argument broke out between her family, her widower and her former manager Aloni. Her family suspected her husband of having infected her with HIV - an accusation that Aloni reinforced in his autobiography, in which he described that Haza, a devout Jew, had entered the marriage as a virgin, while Ashkenazy had been married for one before the marriage dodgy lifestyle and drug addiction was known. Ashkenazy vehemently denied any infection. He claimed Haza was infected from a blood transfusion she received during a miscarriage and announced a blood test would be published. Less than a year after Haza, he died of an overdose himself. The results of the blood test were never published.

Aftermath

On March 21, 2008, the album Forever Ofra Haza - Her Greatest Songs Remixed was released . This album contains songs like Im Nin'alu , Galbi or Ya Ba Ye as exclusive remixes and also a previously unreleased track, The Poem .

In 2008, the DVD Ofra Haza Live in Montreux Jazz Festival was released by Globus United / United King Films in Israel . Ofra Haza's only official concert recording from the Montreux Jazz Festival in July 1990 in Switzerland is then shown. As a bonus, the DVD also contains three previously unknown video clips (including from I Want to Fly and Desert Wind from 1989).

Discography

Chart positions
Explanation of the data
Albums
Yemenite songs
  DE 9 07/11/1988 (10 weeks)
Shaday
  DE 6th 08/01/1988 (13 weeks)
  AT 4th 09/01/1988 (14 weeks)
  CH 3 
gold
gold
08/07/1988 (10 weeks)
  US 130 01/21/1989 (9 weeks)
Desert wind
  US 156 02/10/1990 (5 weeks)
Singles
In the Nin'alu
  DE 1Template: Infobox chart placements / maintenance / NR1 link 
gold
gold
06/13/1988 (18 weeks)
  AT 2 07/15/1988 (14 weeks)
  CH 1Template: Infobox chart placements / maintenance / NR1 link 06/19/1988 (15 weeks)
  UK 15th 04/30/1988 (8 weeks)
Galbi
  DE 20th 08/22/1988 (10 weeks)
  AT 19th 10/01/1988 (4 weeks)
  CH 21st 08/28/1988 (5 weeks)
Beyond love (with Stefan Waggershausen )
  DE 71 04/05/1993 (9 weeks)
Babylon (Black Dog feat. Ofra Haza)
  UK 65 04/03/1999 (1 week)

Albums

  • 1974: Ahava Rishona (+ Shchunat Ha'Tikva Workshop Theater)
  • 1976: Ve-Chutz Mizeh Hakol Beseder (+ Shchunat Ha'Tikva Theater)
  • 1977: Atik Noshan (+ Shchunat Ha'Tikva Workshop Theater)
  • 1979: Song of Songs with Fun (Shir ha'Shirim be'Sha'ashu'im) (+ Shchunat Ha'Tikva Workshop Theater)
  • 1980: About Our Loves ('Al Ahavot Shelanu)
  • 1981: Let's Talk (Bo Nedaber)
  • 1982: Temptations (Pituim)
  • 1982: Songs for Children (Li'Yladim)
  • 1983: Chai (Alive)
  • 1983: Shirey Moledet A (Heimatlieder 1)
  • 1984: A Place for Me (Bait Cham)
  • 1984: Yemenite Songs (Shirey Teyman)
  • 1985: Earth (Adama)
  • 1986: Shirey Moledet B (Heimatlieder 2)
  • 1986: Broken Days (Yamim Nishbarim)
  • 1987: The Golden Album (Albom ha'Zahav)
  • 1987: Shirey Moledet C (Heimatlieder 3)
  • 1987: Fifty Gates of Wisdom
  • 1987: Yemenite Songs
  • 1988: Shaday
  • 1989: Desert Wind
  • 1992: Kirya
  • 1994: My Soul (Kol ha'Neshama)
  • 1997: Ofra Haza
  • 1998: Live @ Montreux Jazz Festival
  • 2001: Greatest Hits Vol. 1
  • 2005: Greatest Hits Vol. 2
  • 2008: Forever Ofra Haza - Her Greatest Songs Remixed (incl. Unreleased title)
  • 2008: Ofra Haza Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival
  • 2018: Kol Ha'Neshama (Voice Of The Spirit)
  • 2020: Queen In Exile (The Unreleased Album)

gallery

  • Memorial plaque on the parental home

  • Monument in Sh'chunat HaTikva, where Ofra Haza grew up

swell

  1. ↑ Chart discography albums / Billboard 200
  2. ↑ Chart discography Singles
  3. ↑ Awards: DE CH

Web links

Commons : Ofra Haza  - collection of images, videos and audio files
personal data
SURNAME Haza, Ofra
ALTERNATIVE NAMES עפרה חזה
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Israeli singer
DATE OF BIRTH November 19, 1957
PLACE OF BIRTH Tel Aviv , Israel
DATE OF DEATH February 23, 2000
Place of death Ramat Gan , Israel