20th edition of Singer's Warsaw Festival: Official Opening

NOA (Achinoam Nini) is not only the most appreciated contemporary Israeli singer, songwriter and drummer, but also a great personality. The artist, whose roots go back to Yemen and Israel, and who also spent a lot of time in the United States, is considered the most outspoken advocate for dialogue in Israel. Currently, she also devotes a lot of her time to the issue of climate change. She has been recognised with many international awards for her activities; she is also the first Israeli ambassador to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Affairs and an active member and spokesperson for many peace and human rights organisations in Israel and abroad.

Her commitment to these important matters extends to her work. NOA was the first Jewish woman to perform in the Vatican, where she performed Ave Maria with her own lyrics in front of millions of listeners. Building bridges between cultures and religions became an integral part of her career and mission. An equally significant moment was her historic participation in the 2009 Eurovision Song Contest, where she represented Israel together with the Israeli-Palestinian artist Mira Awad, performing her original song There must be another way in English, Hebrew and Arabic.

NOA is a successful artist who gained international recognition, love and admiration on the strength of the lyrics and rendition of the theme song to Roberto Benigni's Oscar-winning film Life is Beautiful. For many years now, the artist has been working with the excellent musician Gil Dor. The duo has released 16 well-received albums, played hundreds of concerts around the world and visited the most prestigious venues, including Carnegie Hall and the White House. She can boast collaborations with Pat Metheny and Quincy Jones, and has shared the stage with a long list of international music icons, including Stevie Wonder, Andrea Bocelli and Sting.

As a child of the soloists of the Mazowsze folk enseble, Anna Maria Jopek grew up surrounded by art. As a singer-songwriter, she draws on three pillars that define her style: the love of folklore brought from home, classical musical education and love for jazz. Her music extends over a wide stylistic spectrum, from modern pop, to singularly original compositions, to what is often described today as contemporary eclectic jazz. What defines AMJ as an artist is continuous growth and the highest standard of songwriting, production, performance. Her consummate professionalism, artistic excellence and continual improvement are the reasons why she can boast successful collaborations with the most important Polish performers and such international giants of jazz as Pat Metheny, Branford Marsalis, Gonzalo Rubalcaba, Makoto Ozone, or Richard Bona.

PERFORMERS:

NOA – vocals, percussion
Gil Dor – guitar, sound director
Omri Abramov – EWI saxophone
Daniel Dor – drums
Omri Mor – piano
Anna Maria Jopek – vocals