Yakov Strizhak was born in Russia and immigrated to Israel. He studied at the Rimsky Korsakov State Conservatory in St. Petersburg. His repertoire includes Prince of Galich in Prince Igor (Borodin), Dikoy in Katya Kabanova (Janacek), Zaccaria in Nabucco (Verdi) and other roles. He performed in opera productions in St. Petersburg as well as in concerts conducted by Valery Gergiev. He won several important prizes in major music competitions in Russia and the Eli Leon Scholarship in Israel. Yakov Strizhak is a member of the Israeli Opera's Meitar Opera Studio where his repertoire includes Dulcamara in L'elisir d'amore (Donizetti), the Commendatore in Don Giovanni, Don Alfonso in Cosi fan tutte (Mozart) and other roles.

His roles at the Israeli Opera:
Don Giovanni in Akko: The Comendatore (2014)
Rigoletto: Uusciere (2014)