Naomi Polani wins the Israel Prize/Tsiloo: Ministry of Information
The director, choreographer and Israel Prize winner Naomi Polani is being laid to rest in Kinneret Cemetery after she passed away last night at the age of 96.
Public singing priestess Sharlah Sharon paid tribute to her in a conversation with Walla Tarbut: "There is no memory that is not good of Naomi Polani. All memories of Naomi Polani are a pile of Stunning things. This is our childhood in this country, and for me it is a modest, simple woman who has left us so many things to enjoy shoulder There are only good things about her and she is truly an inspiration to many generations. I so hope that the younger generation will also know her songs. You have to keep playing for the children, play them and tell them about it. She sat on the mountain, with great modesty, in the Kinneret settlement. She would walk and catch rides downstairs, which would take her to Tiberias for shopping. Just like before. I hope that many more people will get to pass on her rich, joyful, funny and meticulous legacy."
Shaika Levy paid tribute to Polani last night in a conversation with Walla! Culture: "I started my career in the army with Naomi, when I was in the Gdansk troupe and she was a choreographer. After that in the roosters of course. Later on I went to see all kinds of her work, whether it was rehearsals in the Nahal band or the Shirion band. I followed her. We really, really connected. She really caught my attention. I chased her everywhere. I was curious and she caught my heart."
"Although you cannot live forever, there is no doubt that this is a great loss, because she is the mother of all culture in this country. She simply educated entire generations of artists, singers and actors, who today are great, well-known and successful. Naomi Polani is a whole world. For an artist, there was nothing Better than working with Naomi Polani. There was no school like Naomi Polani: singing, acting, understanding what you say. She taught you to be an artist. She gave a lot to our creativity And sticking to the goal, it's a shame that such a woman won't give more."
The country's president, Yitzhak (Boji) Herzog, paid tribute to Polani: "Naomi Polani, the winner of the Israel Prize, who was called the 'Queen of Military Bands', left us this morning at the age of 96. We will remember with love and appreciation the founding mother of the unforgettable chicken band and who contributed with her immense talent For the development of the original Israeli culture. Thanks to her, the music of many of us was shaped. May her memory be blessed."
Minister of Culture and Sports Miki Zohar gave a eulogy: "I was sorry to hear about the passing of the wife of the military bands and the bride of the Israel Prize, the late Naomi Polani. Naomi has served for decades as the face of the Israeli stage world, and has been a significant and influential part of Israeli culture and creativity from its beginnings until today. The energy and passion for the stage that characterized her will be remembered forever. Her name and work reached every home in Israel, crossed generations and reached every home in Israel. Her legacy and her path were burned forever in the hall of honor of Israeli culture, may her memory be blessed"
Naomi Polani was born on August 4, 1927 in Tel Aviv. After finishing her studies at the Herzliya Gymnasium, she joined the Palmach and during the War of Liberation she was one of the stars of the Palmach band, the Chizbetron. Polani was married to singer and actor Lior Yeni. The two have two children.
After the war of liberation, Polani started acting in the Chamber Theater and studied music. In the fifties she became the director of the military bands. She worked with the Northern Command Band, the Armored Forces Band, and the Nahal Band. Her work with the military bands perpetuated a special style of performance: the body movements of the dancers expressed the meaning of the lyrics with the help of acting and pantomime
. The Rooster Band The band's repertoire consisted of IDF band songs, other familiar songs and new and original material. Polani divided the band's programs into different themes and chose songs based on those themes. The Roosters broke up in 1963.
After the disbandment of the Roosters, Polani founded in 1966 the group of Hammitzes which consisted of four members of the Roosters, but the band did not have much success. Polani later worked as a music lab at Kol Israel and was involved in learning music and directing various events in her area of residence in the Jordan Valley. In 1998, as part of the Israel Festival, she staged the show "The Roosters Return", which was a novelty of the songs of the Roosters performed by young singers.
In 2001 she received the Moshe Halevi Award for Performing Arts from the Municipality of Tel Aviv. In 2006 Polani played in Oded Davidoff's film, "Someone to Run With". A year later, she received the Acomm Award for Lifetime Achievement and in 2009, when she was 82 years old, she acted in the play "Little Iolf" by Henrik Ibsen at the Theater. In 2019, she won the Israel Award in the field of performing arts: theater and dance.