Jacob Gilboa

Erwin Goldberg (later Jacob Gilboa) was born in Košice, Czechoslovakia. Some years later he lived in Vienna, where he received training in playing the piano. In 1938 he immigrated to Palestine, where he initially studied in Haifa at the Institute for Technology. Starting in 1944 he studied at the Jerusalem Academy of Music with Josef Tal and Paul Ben-Haim.

His participation in the Courses for New Music in Cologne in 1963 and 1964 under Karlheinz Stockhausen and Henri Pousseur made a strong impact on his style, which changed to include clusters, quarter tones, electronics, and unconventional instrumental combinations (Eppstein 2001; Stockhausen 1971, 196 and photo 27, unnumbered page between 200 and 201).

His best-known work is Twelve Glass Windows of Chagall in Jerusalem, for voice and instruments (1966). In addition, he composed Thistles, for horn, percussion, piano, and cello (1967), Pastels for two pianos, the piano suite Seven Little Insects (1956), and The Grey Colours of Käthe Kollwitz for mezzo-soprano, chamber orchestra, and tape.

He died in Tel Aviv, Israel.

• Music of Israel

• Eppstein, Ury. 2001. "Gilboa, Jacob". The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, second edition, edited by Stanley Sadie and John Tyrrell. London: Macmillan Publishers.
• Stockhausen, Karlheinz. 1971. Texte zur Musik 3 (1963–1970), edited by Dieter Schnebel. DuMont Dolumente. Cologne: Verlag M. DuMont Schauberg.