Izhar Cohen

Cohen was born in Tel Aviv and grew up in Givatayim as the third child in a musical family. His parents, singers Sarah and Shlomo Cohen—known as “Suliman the Great”—were associated with the Palmach’s Chizbatron entertainment troupe and were pioneers of communal singing in Israel. His siblings include singers Hofni, Pinhas (Pini), and Veredina.[1][3]

Music was part of Cohen’s childhood: his parents arranged lessons, and he studied instruments, classical music, singing, and acting. He performed with his parents around the country and took part in musical ensembles and talent competitions. As a teenager, he studied at Thelma Yellin High School of the Arts.[1][4]

Cohen joined the Nahal military entertainment framework in 1970, having performed for soldiers as a teenager. He recalled receiving his first solo, “Kol Shehaya Beineinu” (“All That Was Between Us”), within about two months of joining the troupe. The song became a major radio hit and established him as a young star.[5][6] His military-entertainment work also included the troupe’s 1971 program and later performances of “Hayona” (“The Dove”) and “Boker Tov” (“Good Morning”).[6]

In 1973, while on release leave from military service, Cohen took a leading role in the musical “Lili Gam,” written by Ehud Manor, with music by Mati Caspi and direction by Tzadi Tzarfati, at Haifa Municipal Theater. That year he performed “Shir Kelulot” (“Wedding Song”), written by Nissim Aloni and composed by Oded Lerer, at the Israel Song Festival. It did not place among the top three, but became popular and was later familiar at weddings.[5]

Cohen formed the quartet HaKhnufiya (“The Gang”) with Margalit Tzan’ani, Esti Katz, and Razi Amitai. He composed “Al HaKifak,” with lyrics by Haim Hefer, which appeared on a record of Yom Kippur War songs. Other 1970s songs included “Nigunah Shel HaShkhunah,” written and composed by Uzi Hitman during an overseas tour, and “Bedidut,” which Cohen said he recorded after his friend Ilanit introduced him to Serge Lama’s French song “Je Suis Malade.”[5][6]

His popularity grew through the 1970s. Other songs from the decade included “Shir Kelulot,” “Halomot Shmurim,” “Yerushalayim Ha’acheret,” “Bedidut,” and “Nigunah Shel HaShkhunah.” He toured in Israel and abroad.[1][5]

Cohen’s defining international success came in 1978, when he represented Israel in Paris with “A-Ba-Ni-Bi,” performing with Alphabeta. Written by Ehud Manor and composed by Nurit Hirsch, the song won the contest and gave Israel its first Eurovision victory.[1][2] The song’s refrain drew on the children’s coded “Bet” language game.[1]

The song’s path to the stage began with a proposal from Manor for a children’s festival song. In Hirsch’s account, she suggested the phrase “Ani ohev otach” (“I love you”) in the language game, sang Manor the melody she had in mind, and he wrote the verses. They reportedly completed the song through several telephone conversations in one day, then decided it was too good for the children’s festival and submitted it to the Song and Choral Festival, which served as Israel’s Eurovision selection.[1][7]

The song was first offered to Hakol Over Habibi, which declined it as “too childish”; Ofra Manor then suggested Cohen as its performer.[1] At the 1978 Israel Song Festival, “A-Ba-Ni-Bi” tied at 66 points with “Balav Echad” (“One Heart”) by Hadva Amrani and the band White Pepper. It was selected for Eurovision after receiving more first-place votes.[7]

The victory brought Cohen and Alphabeta success beyond Israel. They toured abroad and recorded an English-language version; the song was also performed in languages including Spanish, Chinese, Japanese, Dutch, and Hindi. A group member recalled appearances with ABBA, Cliff Richard, George Benson, and B.B. King.[7] A radio presenter later recounted recognizing the melody in shops in Bangkok, where it was playing in Thai.[8] Its English version also spent an extended period in Britain’s top 20.[4]

The sudden fame and international offers were difficult for Cohen. In an interview, he described panic and anxiety after the victory and said he experienced a nervous breakdown. He recalled withdrawing for a period and knitting sweaters and scarves as occupational therapy, which he said helped him through the crisis.[4]

Cohen returned to Eurovision in 1985 with “Oleh Oleh,” finishing fifth. The song was written by Hamutal Ben-Ze’ev and composed by Kobi Oshrat. He later entered Israel’s Eurovision selection competition in 1996, where his song placed tenth.[5][9] Other hits associated with his 1980s career included “Shacharer K’tzat Et Hachevel,” “Marina,” “Yam BaLayla, Yam BaYom,” and “Kmo Tzipor Meturefet.”[5]

Across his career, Cohen released five albums, wrote lyrics and melodies, and performed in Israel and abroad. His work extended to musicals, festivals, Festigal events, and television programs. His repertoire included Israeli music as well as Yemenite and Mizrahi piyyutim.[1][4]

Cohen also pursued jewelry design, opening a shop in Tel Aviv and making handmade pieces from materials such as pearls, silver, gold, gold-filled metal, and crystals.[4] In 2019, he performed “Blue Jeans & Bloody Tears,” an unofficial Eurovision anthem whose musical and lyrical material was generated by a machine-learning system fed 200 earlier Eurovision entries. Songwriter Amir Sheinfeld selected material for the completed song.[10]

In 2024, Cohen competed on the Israeli television dance competition “Dancing with the Stars” with professional dancer Polina Chiktunov. He described ballroom dancing as a new challenge and its training as physically demanding.[11] In 2025, he received a lifetime-achievement award from the Israeli Artists’ Association. He told the audience that surgery to remove a non-cancerous growth from his vocal cords meant he could not sing at the ceremony and would be unable to sing for several weeks.[12]

Cohen’s 1978 win remains a landmark in Israel’s participation in Eurovision: “A-Ba-Ni-Bi” gave the country its first victory in the competition and helped make Cohen internationally known.[1][2] The performance is remembered as both a major moment in his career and a breakthrough for Israel at the contest. Cohen later described the song as something new to Eurovision, saying its look, band, and attitude were imitated in Europe for years.[13]

His career has continued well beyond that victory, encompassing popular recordings, live performance, stage and television work, jewelry design, and later public appearances.[1][4] A 2026 report said Cohen was to be named a Yakir Tel Aviv (Worthy Citizen of Tel Aviv) on Independence Day.[14]

Sources differ on when Cohen’s post-victory nervous breakdown occurred: one interview places his withdrawal in the year of the win, while a later retrospective says the breakdown came two years afterward.[4][7]

A Maariv retrospective and a Ynet report say Jordanian television cut away from the Israeli broadcast and later named Belgium as the winner; these reports present the episode as an account of the broadcast rather than as an uncontested detail.[7][9]