Avi
Avital

A virtuoso with incandescent energy, Avi Avital is today one of the most distinctive artists in the classical music world. A true ambassador of the modern mandolin, he has reinvented the destiny of an instrument long confined to popular music, bringing it from traditional settings to the world’s most prestigious concert halls. Compared to Andrés Segovia or Jascha Heifetz for his virtuosity and expressiveness, he is celebrated as much for his technical mastery as for his magnetic stage presence.

The first mandolinist ever nominated for a Grammy Award in the classical category, Avital has constantly expanded the realm of possibilities. In addition to bold transcriptions, he has commissioned more than a hundred original works, turning the mandolin into fertile ground for contemporary composers such as Jennifer Higdon, Anna Clyne, Avner Dorman, and Giovanni Sollima. In doing so, he has redefined the instrument’s role in chamber music and concertos, while building a critically acclaimed discography on the Deutsche Grammophon label. His latest album, Concertos — recorded with Il Giardino Armonico under the direction of Giovanni Antonini — was awarded an Opus Klassik in 2024.

The year 2024 marks a new wave of creative expansion with the tour of his Between Worlds Ensemble, a cross-disciplinary project that explores the connections between classical music, folk traditions, and cultural identities. From Berlin to Bucharest, Hamburg to Antwerp, Avi Avital and his collaborators weave a musical dialogue between the mandolin and the sounds of the Black Sea, the Iberian Peninsula, and Southern Italy, in a spirit of exchange and musical curiosity.

Moving seamlessly between Vivaldi, traditional music, and contemporary creations, Avi Avital embodies an art of connection, breath, and boldness. His path — at the crossroads of genres and generations — reminds us how music can be a space of invention, dialogue, and freedom.