‘Miracle’ saves mandolin star Avi Avital’s latest tour

Israel classical music star Avi Avital had to pull more strings than the eight on his mandolin so his Musica Viva tour could go ahead.

Israeli mandolinist Avi Avital performing with Erin Helyard on harpsichord in a Musica Viva concert at City Recital Hall, Sydney. Picture: Mark Gambino

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Israel classical music star Avi Avital had to pull more strings than the eight on his mandolin so that his latest tour with Musica Viva could go ahead.

He was to have performed with Italian cellist and composer Giovanni Sollima in nine concerts throughout Australia, but less than a week before the tour was due to start Sollima came down with Covid, leaving Avital scrambling for a partner.

Acclaimed harpsichordist and artistic director of Pinchgut Opera Erin Helyard seemed an obvious choice for a replacement – the pair had played together in Tasmania in 2018 – and “by a miracle”, Avital told the audience, the in-demand Sydney Baroque specialist was available for this concert on the Sydney leg of the tour. Pianists Gladys Chua and Konstantin Shamray will fill in for the remainder of the dates.

Four works by Baroque favourites Domenico Scarlatti, Antonio Vivaldi and J.S. Bach were performed at this concert, interlaced with a couple of solos – Bucimis, a traditional Bulgarian dance, and Sollima’s Prelude for Mandolin Solo, written for Avital.

The two musicians combined seamlessly for the 80-minute straight-through performance, the centrepiece being a superb performance of Bach’s Sonata in G Major BWV 1019, a work in five movements originally written for violin and harpsichord, with a gorgeous keyboard solo middle movement.

Other works on the program included two Trio sonatas by Vivaldi – originally for lute, violin and keyboard – and Scarlatti’s Sonata for mandolin and continuo in D minor.

Avital first appeared here with the Australian Brandenburg Orchestra in 2014 and has been back several times since, establishing himself as a firm favourite with Sydney audiences. It’s a shame we missed out on hearing him play with the exciting Sollima, but those who attended this recital with Helyard certainly didn’t feel short-changed.

Shamray will join Avital for the remaining Sydney concert at City Recital Hall on October 6, performing a program of works by Mozart, Bartok, de Falla and others.

DETAILS

• CONCERT Avi Avital and Erin Helyard

• WHERE City Recital Hall

• WHEN Monday, September 26