Natan Mishori (1928-2001)
Pianist, musicologist, educator and critic. Born in Tel Aviv, he began his professional training as a piano student; among his teachers were Ilona Vincha Kraus in Tel Aviv. Later on, he continued his training abroad, mainly in Juilliard. Mishori Taught at the Tel Aviv University Music Academy, where he worked on developing and refining his musical ear. Mishori was a pianist in Anna Sokolow’s Lyric Dance Theater, where he accompanied many dancers and choreographers with improvisations – from Tehila Ressler in Tel Aviv to Gertrud Kraus and Inbal Company in its early beginnings. He also accompanied Martha Graham’s, Anna Sokolow’s, Antony Tudor’s and Jerome Robbins’s companies in New York.
For many years, Mishori was the music critic of leading daily Haaretz. He also sat on various public committees and published many essays. Among other things, he wrote articles for The Encyclopedia of Dance & Ballet and the Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians. He wrote original soundtracks for several dance pieces, including Anna Sokolow’s The Treasure (1962).
One of Batsheva’s founding members, Mishori accompanied the company’s first rehearsals on the piano.
Natan Mishori passed away in 2001.