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Holocaust Martyrs 'and Heroes' Remembrance Day
On German soil, with clothing that hints at the yellow badge: When Ofra Haza sang at the Eurovision "Am Yisrael Chai"
Israel sent a song to the 1983 Eurovision Song Contest in Munich with a special message: "Live, live, live - yes, I'm still alive."
When the backing singers are dressed in yellow, Ehud Manor's words have taken on a special meaning, especially in Germany.
During the song, she recounted, "I was thinking about an older couple I met in Dachau. They said: On stage - remember us"
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Holocaust and Heroism Day
Ofra Haza
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Thursday, 08 April 2021, 10:47 Updated: 11:02
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In front of all of Europe.
Chest (Photo: Screenshot, YouTube)
In the late 1970s and early 1980s, two countries stood out in the Eurovision Song Contest: Israel, which won in 1978 and 1979, and Germany, which finished second in 1980 and 1981, and won for the first time in its history in 1982.
As the winning country, Germany hosted the Eurovision Song Contest a year later, in Munich.
Although the country also hosted the Eurovision Song Contest in the 1950s, Israel did not participate in the competition at the time.
For the competition that year, Israel chose - one point apart - the song "Live" performed by Ofra Haza, with lyrics by Ehud Manor, a melody by Avi Toledano and an arrangement by Nancy Brandes.
Among all concerned, it was no longer a song - but a statement of intent, specifically in Germany, specifically in Munich - and in front of all of Europe.
"Live, live, live - yes, I'm still alive," sang Haza on stage in Munich, where 11 Israeli athletes were murdered about a decade ago, in words that made it clear that this message refers to the whole chain of generations: "A psalm passes, from generation to generation, ".
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"Am Yisrael Chai" on stage in Munich
In an interview with Maariv in 1985, Haza described the excitement she felt when she represented Israel with this message, after visiting Dachau, a suburb of Munich, where a large concentration camp was located in the days before the competition.
"I was moved when I sang 'Am Yisrael Chai' in Germany and I thought of an older couple I met in Dachau. They told me - when you stand on the stage, remember us, that we went through Dachau."
Ofra Haza along with five escorts - six in all as a hint of the six million who were murdered in the Holocaust - stood and performed the song on stage.
Doreen Frankfurt designed a yellow outfit for the escorts, in what was supposed to hint at the color of the badge the Jews were forced to wear.
Israel almost won the competition - it came in second place - but the song, and the message, became a bigger symbol, and one of Israel's highlights at the Eurovision Song Contest.
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