What in the World?

“The air is something very unique,” says Idan Raichel. “Landing in Denver and taking the first breath is something you remember.” Raichel is from Israel, and he’s one of the biggest pop stars in the world — but Denver is one of his favorite cities to play. “For Israel, it’s...

By Alex Brown

October 10, 2013

Audio By Carbonatix

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“The air is something very unique,” says Idan Raichel. “Landing in Denver and taking the first breath is something you remember.” Raichel is from Israel, and he’s one of the biggest pop stars in the world — but Denver is one of his favorite cities to play. “For Israel, it’s the mainstream music, but for people outside of Israel, it’s world music,” he says. “I was very moved and touched by the warm welcome in Denver.”

He cultivated his renowned stage presence while playing in a band for the Israeli army. “It was kind of an experience to play every day,” he remembers. “Soldiers are the most honest audience after kids; if you’re not good, you’re wasting their time.” He went on to form the Idan Raichel Project, a collaboration of all kinds of musicians from all over the world, which he feels truly represents the diverse culture of his home country. But he’s always looking for even more diversity, and says that any Denver musicians who want to join the collaboration should reach out to him via Twitter or Facebook.

The Idan Raichel Project performs tonight at 8 p.m. at the Newman Center for the Performing Arts, 2344 East Iliff Avenue on the University of Denver campus; for tickets, $35 to $65, go to maccjcc.org or newmancenterpresents.org.
Tue., Oct. 15, 8 p.m., 2013

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Alex Brown is a freelance writer from Denver, Colorado. You can find him around town falling off his skateboard, eating burritos and petting dogs.

Contact: Alex Brown