E-Book of Articles - World Federation of Music Therapy

Amir, Dorit: The Role Of Music Therapy In Establishing Cultural Identity ...
occupy the settlements in the west bank (Jews who will not give up the land
that they think belong to the Jews), Jews who keep their tradition but who
are not considering themselves religious and go against the religious groups,
etc. In addition, due to Israel’s constant struggle to survive and constant
being in a war state, there are sub-cultures that are unique to the state of
Israel, and go across all ethnic groups mentioned above. I am talking about
war widows, families who are bereaved of offspring and families who lost
their loved ones in wars and in terrorist attacks, each of them present a
personal, yet a national tragedy
Carlo Strenger, a philosopher and psychotherapist, who was born in
Switzerland and immigrated to Israel, who came from a religious family and
later on rejected this tradition, describes the Israeli society as being "in a
critical point: the main stream is towards openness and pluralism, but the
forces that need historical certainties are still strong, and there are many
reasons for that. Israel, during its most years, has lived under threat, and as
such it needs high unity around mutual ideals. A second reason is that the
struggle on the representation of the Israeli society is in its midst. Most of
the population don't trust that various life styles, belief and value systems
can exist side by side without pushing one of the groups to the edge of
society or completely deny its right to exist. This social tendency is
reflected in the individual experience of many Israelis. Every time, says
Strenger, I am newly impressed how much the fear of being abnormal
haunts people, until they can't even ask the question of who are they and
what is their real will. Instead, they try to imitate collective successful
models instead of searching for authentic individuality" (Strenger, 1999, p.
9).
Israeli folksongs (SLI – Songs of the Land of Israel) play a special role in
contemporary Israeli culture and serve many functions in Modern Hebrew
culture. The functions are context-related. When sung at “Shira Betzibur”
gatherings (communal singing), SLI function as entertainment, creating a sense
of “togetherness” and a special joyous atmosphere. On Independence Day, SLI
represent feelings of victory, heroism, national pride, military strength and
camaraderie. When heard on the radio in the context of regular programs,
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