David D'Or and Amir Benayoun Discuss Music, Faith and Shabbat
Musicians David D'Or and Amir Benayoun discuss their spiritual paths, the music industry, and how Shabbat serves as a sacred weekly anchor of rest and renewal.
In a deeply personal and soul-searching conversation, renowned Israeli musicians David D'Or and Amir Benayoun sat down to discuss their spiritual journeys, the challenges of the music industry, and the profound anchoring role of Shabbat in their lives.
The Anchor of Shabbat in a Busy World
Amid the relentless noise of the music industry, both artists view the seventh day as a sacred anchor that reconnects them with their true selves. "A person who performs on Shabbat, I don't know how they live," Benayoun says. "When do you rest? When do you refuel?"
For Benayoun, the earliest memories of Shabbat are deeply rooted in his childhood in Beersheba, around the table of his late grandfather Avraham. "It's the synagogue, it's the candies, all the customs we know from childhood." Although life propelled him to the forefront of the Israeli music scene, the price of preserving his values was not always simple. Benayoun recalls the only time in his career when he gave in and performed on Shabbat:
«I paid for it with inner torment. I told myself: 'Why did you do that?' I was angry with myself, and it has never happened again.»
Returning to Childhood Simplicity
When D'Or asks Benayoun if the path he has traveled over the years has changed his perception of Shabbat, Benayoun speaks of a desire to turn back the clock. "I am trying to return to what it used to be. Simplicity," he says. D'Or sympathizes with the feeling, noting that for him too, there is something uniquely special about the moments right before Shabbat enters, when the shift is already palpable in the air.
For Benayoun, this connection extends through the younger generation of his family. His brother's three sons are piyyutim chanters. When they return from the synagogue to his parents' home, he describes how their singing lifts him up and restores something of those old memories.
Navigating Music and Faith
The conversation naturally shifts to music itself. When D'Or asks about his children's musical talent, Benayoun replies that there is no real choice involved: "The field chose them." He speaks similarly of himself, viewing creation not as a profession that can simply be set aside, but as a force that takes hold of you whether you want it to or not.
Reflecting on the early days of his career, Benayoun notes that he received offers to perform on Shabbat during a time when many concerts took place precisely on Friday nights and Saturdays. As a new artist wanting to succeed, the temptation was real. D'Or recalls encountering the exact same reality at the beginning of his path, noting how much the Israeli music industry has changed since then.
Concluding the conversation, Benayoun offers a message to anyone wishing to observe Shabbat but finding it difficult: "I would want everyone to know what I remind myself of all the time: you need to know how to use Shabbat like a gift. Shabbat is a gift. And often, if you are given a gift, it might frighten you because it is too big... The message is to take from it what you can, because it was made for you."
