Esther Har-Giti is a choral conductor and music educator with extensive experience in teaching, teacher training, and leading vocal ensembles in Israel and internationally. Her primary area of expertise is music education and choral conducting based on the Kodály approach, and she is actively engaged in promoting this methodology in both academic and professional contexts. She currently serves as a lecturer and instructor of Kodály-based courses at several academic institutions in Israel, including the Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance, Kaye Academic College of Education in Be’er Sheva, and Levinsky-Wingate Academic Center (Ron Shulamit program).
Har-Giti received her Master’s degree in Choral Conducting and Music Education according to the Kodály method from the Liszt Academy of Music in Budapest, Hungary. This training forms the foundation of her pedagogical and artistic work, which emphasizes the development of musical skills through singing, listening, and deep musical understanding.
During her years of professional activity in Israel, Har-Giti co-founded, together with Mia Shavit, the “HaEfroni HaTze’ira” Children’s Choir, which she conducted and directed for nearly a decade. Under her leadership, the choir achieved significant artistic success, including performances across Israel and abroad. Notable highlights include representing the State of Israel at an international choral festival במסגרת the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, and a dedicated concert at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. In parallel, she taught music in elementary and secondary schools under the auspices of the Israeli Ministry of Education and conducted additional school and community choirs.
Throughout her career, Har-Giti has led a range of distinctive artistic and educational projects, including the production of the children’s opera Brundibár, originally composed in the Theresienstadt ghetto, and performances of The Sixteenth Sheep by Yonatan Gefen and Yoni Rechter. She was also a senior contributor to the development and writing of Kod LaMusikodai, a pedagogical guide for music teachers based on the Kodály approach.
Since 2007, Har-Giti has been active internationally, delivering workshops and training programs for music teachers and choral conductors worldwide. She is a member of the professional team of the British Kodály Academy, where she contributes to the development of curricula and their alignment with academic and educational standards in the United Kingdom. In addition, she teaches at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London, where she provides Kodály-based solfège instruction and serves as conductor and artistic director of a children’s choir.
Her international work includes collaborations with leading institutions in Europe, China, and the United States, including the Kodály Institute in Hungary, Beijing Normal University, and Kodály organizations in Ireland, France, and Boston. In these contexts, she delivers courses, workshops, and training programs—both in person and online—for diverse audiences of teachers, students, and musicians.
In 2020, Har-Giti published Jewish-Israeli Music: Jewish Holiday Songs, Easy Choral Pieces and Dances for All Ages, a resource for teachers and musicians, issued by the Kodály Institute of the Liszt Academy in Budapest.
