Biography

ayala asherov kalus


Born in Israel in 1968 to a family of actors, including founders of the Habima National Theater of Israel, Ayala started writing songs at the age of 15. After completing her two year army service with the Israel Defense Forces serving as a performer with the entertainment troupe, Ayala continued her career with numerous television appearances, including serving as hostess of a children's television hour.

After a short acting career she decided to pursue her formal studies in music at Rimon School of Contemporary Music in Tel-Aviv. As she was completing her studies, Israel's renown singer, Ofra Haza released a recording of Ayala's song (words and music), "Along the Sea," (Le'Orech Ha Yam), one of Israel's most frequently performed and recorded songs. Since Ofra's recording of the song, it has been recorded and performed by multiple other artists††with various arrangements nationally and internationally.

In the summer of 1994, after recording a duet with Arik Einstein , one of Israel's most celebrated male†vocalists†and recording artists, Ayala continued her studies at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, graduating in 1998 Summa cum Laude with a Bachelor of Music in composition and film scoring.

She went on to complete her Masters of Fine Arts at North Carolina School of the Arts in Film Composition. After an internship at Cottrell Mangum Music Studios†in Virginia composing for The Learning Channel, Discovery Channel, and National Geographic, Ayala returned to Israel. She met her husband, Dr. Ram Kalus, an Israeli-born physician practicing†in Columbia, South Carolina, where they now reside with their twin boys, Ron and Daniel.

Ayala’s primary interests and activities include songwriting and media composition, with a particular interest in music for children and animated films. Ayala is passionate about children’s musical education, and believes that music should be both the message and the medium.

In 2005 and 2006, Ayala performed with renown Israeli singer/songwriter Yoni Rechter both singing her own songs, and accompanying Rechter with his famous repertoire, appearing in New York, Boston, New Jersey, Philadelphia, Minneapolis and Milwaukee. Her most recent accomplishments include the completion of “Porcupine Saves the Dance�, a musical chamber piece and story created to provide a short interactive experience in the spirit of Prokofiev’s Peter and the Wolf, and her debut CD of original songs and music, “Crossing the River� to be released in late 2007 on the Israeli label, Hed Artzi. Her most recent solo performances have been in Columbia, South Carolina in February, 2007, and most recently in April, 2007 as part of the Columbia Arts Festival.