summer performances at Camp Tamarack, he de-
"We support each other,"
cided to try his luck before the passing of time Jackier said about their being
would have rendered his chances impossible.
apart. "There's a lot of e-mail
A friendship with an Israeli entertainer stop- and phone calls. When I was
ping in New York gave him the cue to return to there last summer, I stayed
the country where he had spent one year of his in the recording studio with
childhood, and he moved to Israel at the end of the group, and it was neat to
1995.
see how much effort went into
"I gave myself four months in Tel Aviv," ex- one song.
plained HarPaz, who has conducted seminars on
"I'm happy he's enjoying
writing music. "My goals were to be signed by a of this, and we do get to see
modeling agency, get gigs and have one of my each other every few months.
songs played on Israeli radio."
He was in for Passover."
The modeling work and the gigs came quickly.
Natan and Norma
The enormous recording opportunity was slower HarPaz recently traveled
and very grueling.
to Israel to visit their son.
"None of us knew each other be-
"We went to rehearsals
fore we were chosen for HFive," and fan club meetings,
HarPaz said about the group and we've seen news-
that includes Eyal Dassau, paper and magazine
24; Idan Yeskin, 23; Eyal
articles," Norma
Shahar, 23; and Amir
HarPaz re-
Saye Guttman, 21.
, called about the
"The record corn-
visit.
pany worked us re-
"Our family always has
ally hard. We went
been musical, singing and
through 10 hours of in-
playing instruments to-
tensive preparation
gether, but I never antic-
every day for nearly a year
ipated anything like this.
— aerobics, dance classes
I look at it as an incred-
and singing practice."
.1!„*., ible experience for him.
Although all the time together cre-
We talk to him fre-
ated some tension among the
quently and feel he
group members, they have
is very grounded."
worked out their differences
HarPaz's par-
and feel close and excit-
ent,s have built on
ed about their success
their profession-
— using a name
al backgrounds
HarPaz imported for
to counsel and
them. They are thrilled that one of
encourage
their CD songs, "Ani" ("Me"), now
their son. His
is being played regularly at wed-
father is a psychotherapist,
dings after the glass is bro-
and his mother is a clinical so-
ken.
cial worker. Although they were
Another song, "The Heart
taken aback a bit by Michael's
of the Sea," written by
punky look, they think of it as a
HarPaz, was meant for his girl-
costume.
friend since high school, Tracey
"We want him to do what he
Jackier, who will visit him this sum-
loves, and then he will be suc-
mer before heading to the University of Chica-
cessful," Norma HarPaz said.
go to work on her master's degree in clinical
David Krivoshei, a music pro-
psychology.
ducer and arranger in both Israel
About a guy sitting on the seashore missing his
and the United States, recently
love on the other side of the water, the song has
worked with HFive on a television
brought her to public attention in the Israeli press. show that recalled songs about the Six-Day War.
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu was in
the audience.
"The way they're copying music from
the Western world is quite fresh, and
they're becoming very popular,"
Krivoshei said. "They all are
very nice, and Michael certain-
ly sings very well."
As HFive begins to intensify
its concert appearances,
the combo also has
been signed to appear
on two series for Israeli
TV.
"We do a show, not just
a song," HarPaz said. "It's
fun to watch the crowds and
the young girls chasing after us. We feed off their
energy."
Even in the midst of all the excitement that re-
cently included a photo shoot at Tel Aviv's Plan-
et Hollywood, HarPaz misses family and friends
back home. He is looking forward to returning to
the U.S. to be in the wedding parties of two
friends, Bradley Hyman and Randall Horton, to-
ward the end of the year.
Then it's back to facing the music where the
record company wants him.
"All of our efforts are being concentrated in Is-
rael, and I know that music always will be a part
of my life," HarPaz said. 0
HFive is turning
the Israeli pop
music world
upside down with
a CD that's gone
to No. 1 on the
charts.
ti
CT)
a)
-J
73