About Matan Ariel & Friends

Songs in Hebrew for Children and Toddlers

Matan Ariel is an Israeli singer and a graduate of the Thelma Yellin High School of the Arts. He served as a military entertainer in the Israeli Navy Entertainment Unit where he met his collaborators on the Matan Ariel & Friends musical project. After his military service, Matan Ariel decided to record new versions of the beloved Jewish Holiday songs and children’s music on which he was raised. The series became an immediate success, with popular Holiday CDs as "Hanukkah Songs", "Passover Songs," "New Year and Sukkot Songs," "Purim Songs" and a collection of "Jewish Holiday" songs. Other CDs in the series’ include "Birthday Songs", "Animal Songs", "Lullabies", "Travel in Israel Songs", "A Song is Born", "Rolling Along", "Summer and Winter Songs", "Tasty Songs", "Family Songs", "Shabbat Songs", "Israeli Memorial Day and Independence Day Songs", and a collection of "Naomi Shemer songs".

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Fans of Matan Ariel & Friends, children and parents alike, clamored for additional avenues through which to discover the Israeli classics. Matan Ariel approached Eytan Schwartz to write and direct a movie series based on the hit CDs. Eytan, who has over a decade of experience in media and entertainment, wrote and directed the family films to accompany the popular CDs: "Animal Songs", "Tasty Songs", "Adventures in Israel", and "Rolling to the Treasure". In addition, Matan and Eytan created two films for toddlers, "Animal Symphony" and "Animal Symphony 2", that combine classical music with remarkable wildlife footage.