David Bar-Illan (February 7, 1930 – November 5, 2003) was an Israeli pianist, author andnewspaper editor.
Bar-Illan was born inHaifa during theMandate era, and studied music at the Dona Weizman Conservatory. At age 17, he won a scholarship to study music in the United States, at theJuilliard School in New York City. In 1948, followingIsraeli Independence, he interrupted his studies and briefly returned to the new state of Israel to join theIsrael Defense Forces and fight in the1948 Arab-Israeli War.
Bar-Illan died inJerusalem 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.[citation needed]
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.[1] His debut with the New York Philharmonic was in 1960 under conductorDimitri 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 atSouthern Methodist University, theUniversity of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music and at the Mannes College of Music (now theMannes School of Music). 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 composerRobert Starer led to Starer's dedication of several works to Bar-Illan.[citation needed]
In the 1960s,Ralph Ginzburg invited him to write for his new publicationEros 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 ofNapoleon," "TheUnicorn as Phallic Symbol," and "WhatMark Twain Reveals About Himself in '1601'." He also wrote for theSaturday Evening Post, 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 ofThe Jerusalem Post, Israel's leading English-language newspaper, and was a regular columnist from 1992 to 1996.[citation needed]
In 1996, he became Director of Communications and Policy Planning for Israeli Prime MinisterBenjamin 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 theJerusalem Post as an occasional columnist.[citation needed]
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 theAriel University Center of Samaria. The forum, held every November in Israel, is a full-day academic conference on media relations and ethics.[citation needed]
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