About Us
The Ramat-Gan Chamber choir was formed in 1993 under the musical directorship of Ms. Hanna Tzur. The founders were a group of trained singers who were looking for an enjoyable and high-quality musical environment in which to express their love of vocal music.
Six months after its establishment, the choir performed its first concert. It has since performed all over Israel and completed successful concert tours in Spain and France. The choir can also be heard on the sound track of Steven Spielberg’s film, “Schindler’s List”.
Many of the singers in the choir are veterans of the Rinat National Choir and the Cameran Professional Choir. Many are music and music education professionals, and several are soloists in their own right, who have performed and continue to perform in a variety of venues.
The choir has a wide-ranging repertoire, from leading a capella works by major composers, to original Israeli music, to major orchestral compositions. Many of the pieces sung are based on Biblical themes, set to music by leading composers from the 15th century up to the present. The choir sings in a variety of languages, including Latin, German, Italian, English, Hebrew, Ladino, Czech and Greek.
The choir appears in all of the major music centers in Israel, including the Golda Meir Center for the Performing Arts, the Henry Crown Theater in Jerusalem, the Tel-Aviv Museum, the Diaspora Museum and the Israel Conservatory. It performs regularly at the Abu Gosh vocal festival, which is held twice a year and is considered to be Israel’s leading vocal festival. The choir has also appeared in the Jerusalem Liturgica Festival and the Musica Sacra Festival in Nazareth.
The choir has sung with many of Israel’s leading orchestras, performing such major works as the Verdi Requiem, the Brahms German Requiem, the Bach Mass in B Minor, Symphony No. 2 (“Lobgesang”) by Mendelssohn, and Glorias by Vivaldi, Puccini and Poulenc. The choir also participated in Mahler’s 2nd Symphony together with the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra and a choir from Japan, under the baton of Maestro Gary Bertini. Many of the performances have been broadcast live by the Israel Broadcasting Authority.
For a full roster of the Ramat-Gan Chamber choir members, please click here.
Assistant Conductor, Ray Parnes
Ray Parnes, Assistant Conductor of the Ramat Gan Chamber Choir, has been a member of the choir for the past 12 years. Born in Louisville, Kentucky, USA, he is a graduate of the University of Louisville School of Music. During his college years he appeared with various vocal ensembles, and he spent two summers performing in summer stock theater. Ray was principal trombonist of the Pittsburgh Symphony from 1956-58, under the musical directorship of William Steinberg. During this period he also taught trombone at the Carnegie Institute, and was choral conductor at the Chatham women's college.
In 1958 Ray was engaged as principal trombonist with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra. He maintained this position until his retirement in 1996. In his years with the Israel Philharmonic, he appeared as soloist with all the major orchestras in Israel, and performed in many brass ensembles - most notably, the Israel Philharmonic Brass Quintet - a group which toured Israel extensively for over 25 years. He also taught trombone at the Tel-Aviv University Rubin Academy.
Following his retirement, Ray decided to return to his original love, vocal music performance. As a choir member and as Assistant Conductor, his extensive musical knowledge and professionalism have made a significant contribution to the success of the choir.
Accompanist, Gabi Argov
Gabi Argov was born in South Africa, and immigrated to Israel
in 1976. She studied piano at the Rubin Academy of Music,
Tel Aviv, where she obtained her B. Music degree. She has
played in several chamber music ensembles, and has
accompanied many singers and instrumentalists in Israel
and abroad, with a specialization in vocal accompaniment.
Ms. Argov has been the accompanist for the Ramat Gan Chamber Choir since its inception 16 years ago.
For 7 years, Ms. Argov played all the keyboard instruments in the Israel Chamber Orchestra, under many world-renowned conductors. Her curiosity has led her to different musical genres, including theatre and musicals, and Israeli artistic music. Gabi's highly diversified musical activities have enabled her to attain enormous stage experience, and she feels equally at home in all disciplines.
For the last 14 years, she has also been collaborating with many of Israel’s foremost artists, including Matti Caspi, Dan Almagor, Sassi Keshet, Chani Livneh, Ori Harpaz, and Dafna Zehavi. She performs both locally and abroad, and appears regularly in various festivals, including the Abu Gosh Vocal Festival. Gabi Argov serves as the musical director of many special projects, including the Tzavta theatre in Tel Aviv and the Abu Gosh Winter Festival Concerts.