Departures of note

Erez Halevi was an Israeli musician and songwriter remembered as one of the distinctive voices of Israeli music in the 1980s. Born in 1954 in the Sha'arayim neighborhood of Rehovot, he began playing guitar at fifteen, influenced by the Beatles, Bob Dylan and James Taylor, and started performing in pubs before writing his own material. In the early 1980s he took part in a young-talent competition run by Matti Caspi at the Shamayim club in Tel Aviv, alongside Meir Banai, and Caspi was so impressed that he produced Halevi's debut album. His 1984 album HaLayla, with all songs written and composed by Halevi and produced by Caspi, blended soft rock, folk and Middle Eastern influences, received heavy radio play and produced several of his best-known songs. His most identified song, Kach Bara Otcha HaTeva, became associated with self-acceptance and the freedom to be oneself, later covered by Ivri Lider and featured in a film by Tomer Heyman. Although his follow-up album did not match that success, he returned in 2008 with HaSha'ar Niftach and in 2012 initiated a tribute project to his songs featuring Ehud Banai, Kobi Oz, Ariel Zilber and others. He died in 2026 at the age of 71, leaving three children.