The Israeli Philharmonic Orchestra
and the Tilles Center
BY LORRAINE BERTAN,
MEMBER OF THE
CULTURAL AFFAIRS
COMMITTEE
Photo courtesy
Oof Lorraine Bertan n Saturday, February 2,
2019, the Israeli Philharmonic
Orchestra
performed at Tilles Center in
Brookville, with the following
program: Symphony #3 in D
Major by Franz Schubert, and
Symphony #7 in E Major by
Anton Bruckner, conducted by
Yoel Levi, replacing an ailing
Zubin Mehta. Although not part
of the Tilles “Great Music Series”
subscription, the concert
was a sought after ticket. The
concert hall was full, with the
audience greeting the orchestra
enthusiastically when the National
Anthem and Hatikvah
were played.
The Israeli Philharmonic
was founded in 1936 under a
different name, the Palestine
Orchestra, by Polish violinist,
Bronislaw Huberman, when
Jewish musicians were expelled
from European orchestras. The
Palestine Orchestra enjoyed a
surplus of Jewish Concert Masters
at that time. The first concert was
conducted by Arturo Toscanini,
and the program included works
by Rossini, Brahms, Schubert,
Mendelssohn and Weber. A copy
of that program accompanies this
article.
During World War II, the
Palestine Orchestra performed
140 times for Allied soldiers and
the Jewish Brigade, who fought
alongside Allied soldiers during
the El Alamein campaign. During
1948, the name of the orchestra
was changed to the Israeli
Philharmonic Orchestra (IPO).
Conductors associated with the
IPO have been Leonard Bernstein
and Zubin Mehta, who is now
stepping down after 50 years, and
the new leader is Lehav Shani, a
conductor and pianist.
The IPO is based in Tel Aviv, and
its concert venue is the Charles R.
Bronfman Hall. The orchestra and
its educational programs are funded
by the “American Friends of the
Israeli Philharmonic Orchestra,”
based in New York, since there
is no Israeli government funding.
The Tilles Center for the
Performing Arts at Long Island
University in Brookville has been
in operation for 38 years, thanks
to the $2,000,000 auditorium
construction donated by the Tilles
Real Estate Family. The programs
offered at the Tilles Center are
quite varied, from the “Great
Music Series”—four symphony
orchestras—“Russian National
Ballet Theatre,” “One Night
of Queen,” “The Illusionists,”
“Family Fun series,” and many
others which can be accessed on
tillescenter.org. There are interesting
restaurants nearby, like Diane’s
and Bryant & Cooper in Roslyn,
Bar Frites and Ben’s in Greenvale.
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April 2019 ¢ NORTH SHORE TOWERS COURIER 27
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