Concert Review: Ishay Ribo Brings ‘Solidarity and Soul’ to Harvard

In the midst of the Israel-Hamas war and multiple shows throughout North America, Israeli singer Ishay Ribo’s soulful sound graced The Sinclair on Feb. 27, after he was invited to perform by Harvard Chabad. Due to overwhelming demand, Ribo pushed his original show time from 8 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., to accommodate a second, earlier show time at 6 p.m. Although the concert started twenty minutes late, the wait was well worth it. Ribo began the concert with “Achat Ule’tamid,” a slower acoustic song that he sang and played the guitar to. In addition to his acoustic guitar, Ribo was accompanied by his band, featuring unique instruments such as the melodica, accordion, and kanun.

While attendees sang and danced, across the street from the venue was filled with protestors shouting slogans and holding signs that read “Queers for a free Palestine” and “venue workers against genocide,” the latter a poster supporting the Sinclair staff’s decision to boycott the event by refusing to work. The logistical hiccup didn’t seem to have an impact on the success of the concert, with both shows going off without any major interruptions.

During the concert, Ribo seamlessly weaved his meaningful, slower songs with higher energy songs throughout the set list. He also drew large crowd engagement from his fifth song, “Zocher Ani,” which was in a standard Jewish “call and response” format. Regardless of whether he was directly asking for crowd participation or not, he got it. The liveliness inside The Sinclair was at a high with Ribo striking an innate, deep pride in Judaism and being Jewish with his songs and words, speaking in Hebrew throughout the whole show. Many times throughout the concert, he stopped to thank everyone for coming out and commented on how he could sense the “ruach,” or spirit, in the room. Just like Ribo’s music, his performance mixed his popular songs with more traditional Jewish ones such as “Ve’hee She’amda,” a song about the cyclical oppression Jews have faced for thousands of years and how each time G-d has stood up to save the Jewish people.

Ribo also debuted a previously unreleased song “Porchim Lashuvam,” released March 11. “When there is darkness, then one should take care to multiply in goodness to add light,” Ribo said when commenting on his inspiration for the song.

He later spoke more about how the war has shaped his songwriting process, acknowledging that, at the beginning of October, he was in shock. He described visiting shivas and funerals daily, sometimes going to upwards of five in one day, volunteering wherever he was needed.

“I didn’t have the time to sit a moment alone to concentrate and create,” Ribo said.

In the past few months, he has been able to return to songwriting and come to North America to tour, spreading his light to the global Jewish community.

Ribo ended the concert by accepting an Israeli flag from the crowd and wrapping himself in it. He first sang one of his more popular songs, “Sibat Hsibot,” and then spun into a medley of Jewish songs such as “Ma’aminim” and “Mi Shemaamin,” both about having a belief and hope that G-d will lead the Jewish people out of darkness and fear. He finally closed out the concert by bringing out world-champion accordion player, Cory Pesaturo, to perform “Hatikva,” the national anthem of Israel. “Hatikva” translates to “the hope” and expresses the wish of the Jewish people to live in “the land of Zion and Jerusalem” in peace. As Ribo walked off the stage, the crowd chanted “Od Echad,” translating to “another one,” not wanting to let the singer — or the magic he brought with him — go.

Although Ribo doesn’t speak much English and only addressed the crowd in Hebrew, the message was clear: unity.

“Unity between Jews in Israel and Jews around the globe, everywhere,” said Ribo. “The fact that we are Jewish, wherever we are, is not for no reason and that it has a deeper meaning and deeper purpose.”

When asked whether he thought Jews and Israelis were turning towards more spiritual music in these difficult times, he replied with a resounding yes.

“Music itself has power, just the music itself without words is empowering. And I totally feel that this is what is happening now with music,” Ribo said. “In the place you end up with no words – the music starts to talk and it’s not just a cliche. The music has a role to cure and heal wounds, especially now.”

Ribo’s performance — the energy, the soul, and the togetherness of the night — sought to do exactly that: give attendees strength and revitalized hope that they could take back with them.