David Bar-Illan (February 7, 1930 – November 5, 2003) was an Israeli pianist, author and newspaper editor.

Biography

Bar-Illan was born in Haifa during the Mandate era, and studied music at the Dona Weizman Conservatory. At age 17, he won a scholarship to study music in the United States, at the Juilliard School in New York City. In 1948, following

Israeli Independence The Israeli Declaration of Independence, formally the Declaration of the Establishment of the State of Israel ( he, הכרזה על הקמת מדינת ישראל), was proclaimed on 14 May 1948 ( 5 Iyar 5708) by David Ben-Gurion, the Executive ...

, he interrupted his studies and briefly returned to the new state of Israel to join the

Israel Defense Forces The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; he, צְבָא הַהֲגָנָה לְיִשְׂרָאֵל , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the Israel, State of Israel. It consists of three servic ...

and fight in the

1948 Arab-Israeli War Events January * January 1 ** The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) is inaugurated. ** The Constitution of New Jersey (later subject to amendment) goes into effect. ** The railways of Britain are nationalized, to form British ...

. Bar-Illan died in Jerusalem in 2003 at age 73, from complications of a heart attack he had suffered three years earlier. He was survived by his wife, three children, two stepchildren, and a younger sister.

Music career

In 1950, he graduated from the Juilliard School and settled in the United States, regularly touring internationally as a concert artist. His London debut was at the Wigmore Hall in 1953. His debut with the New York Philharmonic was in 1960 under conductor Dimitri Mitropoulos. In 1961, he became the first Israeli musician to perform in Germany after World War II, receiving much criticism from fellow Israelis. Bar-Illan's debut recording on RCA included works by Beethoven and Liszt. Later in his career, he recorded six albums on the Audiofon label. He taught at Southern Methodist University, the

University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, the ...

and at the Mannes College of Music (now the

Mannes School of Music Mannes School of Music is a music conservatory in The New School, a private research university in New York City. In the fall of 2015, Mannes moved from its previous location on Manhattan's Upper West Side to join the rest of the New School cam ...

). Bar-Illan had a successful career as a concert pianist that lasted more than fifty years, and he played with every major orchestra in the US and in Europe. His long association with composer

Robert Starer Robert Starer (8 January 1924 in Vienna – 22 April 2001 in Kingston, New York) was an Austrian-born American composer, pianist and educator. Robert Starer began studying the piano at age 4 and continued his studies at the Vienna State Academy ...

led to Starer's dedication of several works to Bar-Illan.

Journalism and media career

In the 1960s, Ralph Ginzburg invited him to write for his new publication ''Eros'' Magazine, a 1962 quarterly hardbound periodical containing articles and photo-essays on love and sex. Bar-Illan's contributions included entertaining and well-researched articles such as "The Love Life of

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

," "The Unicorn as Phallic Symbol," and "What

Mark Twain Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30, 1835 – April 21, 1910), known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist, entrepreneur, publisher, and lecturer. He was praised as the "greatest humorist the United States has p ...

Reveals About Himself in '1601'." He also wrote for the

Saturday Evening Post ''The Saturday Evening Post'' is an American magazine, currently published six times a year. It was issued weekly under this title from 1897 until 1963, then every two weeks until 1969. From the 1920s to the 1960s, it was one of the most widely c ...

, and was a regular opinion contributor to U.S. newspapers, notably as a vocal advocate for Israel and Soviet Jewry. From 1990 to 1992, he served as Executive Editor of '' The Jerusalem Post'', Israel's leading English-language newspaper, and was a regular columnist from 1992 to 1996. In 1996, he became Director of Communications and Policy Planning for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, serving until 1999. During this period, he served as the State of Israel's key spokesman with the foreign media, appearing in hundreds of television and radio interviews. In 1999, he returned to the ''Jerusalem Post'' as an occasional columnist.

Legacy

To honor the memory and legacy of Bar-Illan, friends and family helped establish an annual event, The David Bar-Illan Conference on the Media & the Middle East, at the Ariel University Center of Samaria. The forum, held every November in Israel, is a full-day academic conference on media relations and ethics.

References

External links

David Dubal interview with David Bar-Illan (1 of 2)
WNCN-FM, March 27, 1981
David Dubal interview with David Bar-Illan (2 of 2)
WNCN-FM, October 28, 1983 *Causley, Charles

''news.telegraph'', November 6, 2003 (retrieved January 29, 2010) *Fettmann, Eric
Israel Loses a Warrior
'' New York Post'', November 6, 2003 (retrieved July 14, 2011) *Lueck, Thomas J
David Bar-Illan, Ex-Israeli Aide, Dies at 73
'' The New York Times'', November 5, 2003 (retrieved January 29, 2010)
Profile and recordings by Audiofon
*http://www.ynet.co.il/articles/0,7340,L-2812582,00.html *Joffe, Lawrence
Obituary: David Bar-Ilan
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bar-Ilan, David 1930 births 2003 deaths People from Haifa Israeli classical pianists 20th-century classical pianists Jewish classical pianists Juilliard School alumni University of Cincinnati – College-Conservatory of Music faculty Southern Methodist University faculty Mannes College The New School for Music faculty Spokespersons The Jerusalem Post editors Israeli columnists