Rika Zaraï ( he, ריקה זראי; 19 February 1938 – 23 December 2020) was a

Franco Franco may refer to: Name * Franco (name) * Francisco Franco (1892–1975), Spanish general and dictator of Spain from 1939 to 1975 * Franco Luambo (1938–1989), Congolese musician, the "Grand Maître" Prefix * Franco, a prefix used when ...

- Israeli singer and writer.

Early life

Rika Gozman (later Zarai) was born in

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

. Her father came from

Odessa Odesa (also spelled Odessa) is the third most populous city and municipality in Ukraine and a major seaport and transport hub located in the south-west of the country, on the northwestern shore of the Black Sea. The city is also the administrat ...

(now

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian invas ...

) in the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the List of Russian monarchs, Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended th ...

, and her mother from

Valozhyn Valozhyn, Vałožyn or Volozhin ( be, Вало́жын, , russian: Воло́жин, lt, Valažinas, pl, Wołożyn, yi, וואָלאָזשין ''Volozhin''; also written as Wolozin and Wolozhin) is a town in the Minsk Region of Belarus. The pop ...

(now

Belarus Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by ...

), then in

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, , is a country in Central Europe. Poland is divided into Voivodeships of Poland, sixteen voivodeships and is the fifth most populous member state of the European Union (EU), with over 38 mill ...

. She passed her baccalaureate at the age of 17 and enlisted directly in the Israel Defense Forces, a year before her compulsory service would have drafted her. She attended the Jerusalem Music Conservatory where she obtained a first prize in piano. During her 18 months of army service, she was appointed producer of the entertainment troupe of the IDF Central Command. On November 9, 1969, she was the victim of a car accident. The singer sank into a coma for six days and remained immobilized in a cast for eight months. Despite a reserved medical prognosis, she recovered completely after three years. It was during her painful convalescence that Rika composed, as a snub to her suffering, the song ''Balapapa'', with joyful lyrics and which would be a great success. In addition to her musical career, Rika Zaraï distinguished herself in the promotion of herbal medicine from the 1980s. After having studied alternative medicine for eleven years, she published under her name in 1985 a book ''Ma médecine naturelle'' (English: ''My natural medicine''), which has sold 2 million copies. Its positions in this field have met with strong opposition, particularly from French pharmacists. On June 3, 2008, Rika Zaraï was hospitalized urgently following a stroke. She was placed in intensive care at the

Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital Pitié-Salpêtrière University Hospital (french: Hôpital universitaire la Pitié-Salpêtrière, ) is a teaching hospital in the 13th arrondissement of Paris. Part of the and a teaching hospital of Sorbonne University. History The Salpêtri ...

, suffering in particular from partial paralysis on the left side of the body.

Music career

In the 1950s, the Israeli writer,

Aharon Megged Aharon Megged () (10 August 1920 – 23 March 2016) ( Hebrew year 5680) was an Israeli author and playwright. In 2003, he was awarded the Israel Prize for literature. Biography Aharon Greenberg (later Megged) was born in Włocławek, Poland. ...

, wrote a musical for the IDF Central Command entertainment troupe about five soldiers falling in love with five country girls. In 1956, it was produced commercially by the

Ohel theater Ohel Theatre (, ''Teat'ron 'Ohel'') was a Hebrew-language theatre company, active between 1925–1969 in Mandate Palestine and Israel . History Ohel (Hebrew for "tent"), originally known as the Workers' Theatre of Palestine, was established in 1 ...

starring Rika Zarai. The music was written by her husband Yochanan Zarai, with lyrics and melodies by

Naomi Shemer Naomi Shemer ( he, נעמי שמר; July 13, 1930 – June 26, 2004) was a leading Israeli musician and songwriter, hailed as the "first lady of Israeli song and poetry." Her song "Yerushalayim Shel Zahav" ("Jerusalem of Gold"), written in 1967, ...

. In 1969, Zarai rose to fame with her songs ''Casatschok'' and ''Alors je chante'', the French version of

Vivo Cantando "Vivo cantando" (; "I Live Singing") is a song recorded by Spanish singer Salomé. The song was written by María José de Cerato and Aniano Alcalde, and it was produced by Augusto Algueró. It is best known as the at the Eurovision Song Conte ...

. She went on to have a successful career in Europe,A game of fives

Haaretz ''Haaretz'' ( , originally ''Ḥadshot Haaretz'' – , ) is an Israeli newspaper. It was founded in 1918, making it the longest running newspaper currently in print in Israel, and is now published in both Hebrew and English in the Berliner ...

where she popularized Israeli classic songs such as ''

Hava Nagila Hava Nagila ( he, הָבָה נָגִילָה, ''Hāvā Nāgīlā'', "Let us rejoice") is a Jewish folk song. It is traditionally sung at celebrations, such as weddings. Written in 1918, it quickly spread through the Jewish diaspora. History ...

'', ''

Yerushalayim shel zahav "Jerusalem of Gold" ( he, ירושלים של זהב, ''Yerushalayim Shel Zahav'') is an Israeli song written by Naomi Shemer. Often contrasted with the official anthem Hatikva, the original song described the Jewish people's 2,000-year longing t ...

'' and '' Hallelujah''. After publishing other books in the 1990s and continuing to study health, she returned to singing in 2000 with the album ''Hava''. She sang at the Queen in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. ...

in 2000, and the oriental version of ''Hava nagila'' was successful in nightclubs where she sang until 2004. On February 3, 2020, twelve years after her stroke, she sang in public during the Night of the Depression party organized by Raphaël Mezrahi at the

Folies Bergère The Folies Bergère () is a cabaret music hall, located in Paris, France. Located at 32 Rue Richer in the 9th Arrondissement, the Folies Bergère was built as an opera house by the architect Plumeret. It opened on 2 May 1869 as the Folies Trév ...

in Paris. Zarai sang in Hebrew, English, French, Italian, Spanish and German. She lived in Paris but visited Israel periodically.

Discography

*''Chante Israël'' (1962) *''Rika Zaraï'' (1964) *''Un beau jour je partirai'' (1967) *''Alors je chante'' (1969) *''Moi le dimanche'' (1971) *''Les Dessins animés'' (1973) *''Chansons d'Israël'' (1973) *''Ma poupée de France'' (1975) *''Dad li di'' (1979) *Chante l'ami (1982) *''L'Espoir'' (1983) *''Sans rancune et sans regret'' (1985) *''Story'' (1988) *''Hava'' (2000) *''Quand les hommes'' (2007)

Published works

* ''Ma médecine naturelle'', Michel Lafon, 1985 * ''47 recettes de plantes'', Mangina, 1986 * ''Soins et beauté par l'argile et les plantes'', Mangina, 1987 * ''Mes secrets naturels pour guérir et réussir'', J-C Lattès, 1988 * ''Ces émotions qui guérissent'', Michel Lafon, 1995 * ''Le Code secret de votre personnalité'', Michel Lafon, 1996 * ''L'espérance a toujours raison'' (mémoires), Michel Lafon, 2006

References

External links