Yehoram Gaon, an Israel Prize laureate, grew up in Jerusalem's Beit HaKerem neighborhood. As a child he experienced the scenes of the War of Independence, and during his extensive career he recorded dozens of songs dealing with the capital, and even created the film "I am a Jerusalemite". Today he is releasing "With Every Stone Rolling," ahead of Jerusalem Day, which will be marked this week.
"Over the generations, hundreds of songs have been written for this city. Hundreds of them are in the book my father wrote, 'Oriental Jews in the Land of Israel,' and some ask what else can be sung to her," he says. "On top of that, every week I get at least three songs related to Jerusalem, because they think I'm a judge of this city," he laughs. "Everyone talks about the beauty of the city, but the song I'm putting out now is not just another song."
"With Every Stone Rolling" - Yehoram Gaon
The song was written by the poet Yehuda Karni and composed by Udi Turgeman, who also arranged and produced it. According to Gaon, "I compare it a bit to 'I Am Here,' which Haim Hefer wrote as a love song for the city to which he goes all his life. Here the man wishes to be a stone from the walls of the city. Total dedication of oneself. It sounds crazy, but it's a way of expression by a poet who wrote about a hundred years ago, and in my opinion he didn't fall short of the greats of that period like Bialik and Tchernichovsky.
"I knew this song 30 years ago west of Jerusalem, where I participated, and I sent it to Udi Turgeman. I think it's not just another song, it's the ultimate way to talk about this city. After '67 it was everyone's celebration, and slowly something happened and it was shrinking to religious Zionism, and that's a shame."
Jerusalem has been through many things. She also knew very harsh scenes, terror attacks, violence.
"True, but I've come a long way, of days of siege, famine, terrible fear that we won't be there in a day or two. Those who have gone through ups and downs in this city are not afraid of all kinds of events in the city, because there is already a perspective of processes that are going on, with more and less wonderful days. I will never forget the days of the terrible terror attacks, the exploding buses. I remember everything, but I look like a bird's eye view, and I believe we are on the way to good days. I have faith and hope, because otherwise what do we have here?"
Faith and hope also in the context of the current political and social reality?
"Without a doubt. Our country is in an ongoing process. For example, after the Yom Kippur War there was a terrible upheaval that shook the country. It began as a shock, and continued to the story of the greatest victory of all Israel's wars. I believe that what is happening today will lead us to a better place."
"I will forever be a Jerusalemite." Yehoram Gaon during his childhood in the city,
You haven't lived in Jerusalem for years, and you're still very identified with it.
"It's true that I don't live there, but there is no validity to the physical place a person is. I was and always will be Jerusalemite, forever. It's flattering that they connect me with the city, any connection with this city is joy in my heart. There are plenty of songs written for the city, unless it's the ultimate one-off phrase, like this one. And I also have to say that they won't make the mistake of thinking that I believe it will be in the playlist or that it will be played a lot. It's a song meant to be around Jerusalem Day, but its weight for future generations is greater than that of other songs I've sung."
You recently shared experiences from your family tour around Jerusalem following songs and stops in your life.
"I get phone calls from people who go to Jerusalem for tours following the songs and points in my life story: to the neighborhood where I was born, to school, to the synagogue. On one occasion, a tour guide spoke to me and asked for help because she was missing a few things. When I sat down with her, I suggested that I bring the whole family with me and sit with the travelers. And so it was. I didn't describe the magnitude of the experience. I've been on tours like this before, but when it's with the grandchildren, when I see the shine in their eyes, the experience is immense. It's something larger than life."
Tell me about the places that are meaningful to you in the city.
"The first place is undoubtedly Beit HaKerem Elementary School, where I started my career in the second grade, playing the High Priest in a play. The second place is the synagogue located within the compound of David Yellin's beit midrash, where I ascended to the Torah at the Bar Mitzvah. And of course – the house where I was born at 43 Hehalutz Street, where I spent my entire childhood, and the cemetery on the Mount of Olives, where my grandparents are buried."
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