Zamir Bavel, Lawrence, Kansas, died in his home at age 92 on August 5, 2021. He was born February 8, 1929, in Tel Aviv.
He was an Israeli veteran of the 1948 war for Israel’s independence, a member of the 1952 Israeli Olympic track and field team, and seven-time long jump champion of Israel.
In 1947, he graduated from Shulamit Conservatory in Tel Aviv and after moving to the United States, he earned three degrees in two years: a BA in Music, a BS in Mathematics, and a BSEd in 1954, all from Southern Illinois University. In 1955 he earned an MA in Mathematics from the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign. He went on to earn his PhD in Mathematics in 1965 from Southern Illinois University, where he taught until moving to Lawrence, KS, in 1968.
At the University of Kansas, he was a professor of computer science and symbolic logic for 47 years. In 1984, he was a visiting professor of electrical engineering and computer science at the Polytechnic Institute of New York. In 1988, Zamir was part of the Faculty of Mathematics and Computer Science at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot, Israel.
Bavel was an internationally renowned violinist and composer. He studied composition with Ben Haim, Alexander Boskovich and Roy Harris. He was a violinist in the Lawrence Symphony, the Lawrence Chamber Players (now known as Lawrence Community Orchestra), and the Topeka Symphony where several of his compositions premiered, including “Hanukkah Fantasy,” “Hanukkah Light,” “Lament” and “David and the Ark.”
His compositions included: “Israeli Rhapsody” for orchestra, “Erev Bakfar,” “David and the Ark,” “Lament,” “Shereleh,” and “Freilach” for klezmer orchestra, and “Hanukkah Fantasy,” “Hanukkah Light,” “Odyssey,” and his final composition, “March of the Paladins.” He also composed several popular Israeli folk songs and music, some of which still play on the radio today.
Bavel was an active member of the Jewish Community Center in Lawrence, KS, where he led and composed music for High Holiday services for many years. Zamir Bavel was preceded in death by his sister, Miriam Novik, and is survived by sons Ari Lloyd Bavel and Gil James Bavel, daughter Elana Bavel Goldberg, and grandchildren Nathan Julian Goldberg and Hannah Estelle Goldberg.
Interment was in a private service in Pioneer Cemetery, Lawrence, KS. The family requests donations in Dr. Bavel’s memory to the Topeka Symphony Orchestra at www.topekasymphony.org/support/.
