Musicאבי אביטל

Avi Avital

Avi Avital is an Israeli mandolinist and composer known for playing Baroque and folk music on the mandolin.

born 1978Classical mandolin performanceMandolin arrangements of BachGrammy nomination for mandolin concertoRecording for Deutsche Grammophon

Born: 19 October 1978, Beersheba
Occupation: musician, mandolinist, composer, music arranger
Education: Beersheba Municipal Conservatory, Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance, Conservatorio di Musica Cesare Pollini

Avi Avital was born in 1978 in Beersheba

Avi Avital was born on October 19, 1978, in Beersheba, to Rachel and Rafi Avital. He has 2 sisters. He began playing the mandolin at 8 and studied with Simcha Natanzon and Lev Haimovich at the Beersheba municipal conservatory.

He served in the IDF with musician status. At the same time he studied with Moti Schmitt at the Jerusalem Academy of Music. He then studied at the Cesare Pollini Conservatory in Padua, Italy, with a grant from the America-Israel Cultural Foundation.

Avital was a member of the Carmel Mandolin Quartet. He has played at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center and the Berlin Philharmonie, and at festivals in Lucerne, Ravenna and Spoleto. In 2011 he was nominated for a Grammy for his recording of Avner Dorman's Mandolin Concerto.

In 2012 he became the first mandolinist signed to Deutsche Grammophon and released his debut album, Bach. His album Between Worlds mixed classical music with Bulgarian, Welsh and Klezmer folk music. By 2016 he had added about 90 new pieces to the mandolin repertoire.

Avital is married with 1 son and lives in Berlin.