Aviv Livnat
Aviv Livnat is a musician (guitar and vocalist), painter and composer. He did his military service as a guitarist in the Israel Air Force band, and later enrolled in Tel Aviv University to study philosophy and art, where he is presently doing his doctorate.
He underwent additional studies in composition and theory with Professor Sergio Natra, and with Professor Abel Erlich, Recipient of the Israel Prize for Music. He underwent training as a guitarist with Gil Dor and the American guitarist Pat Metheny. He studied voice development with Nicole Monnastaire in Paris. He performs and records on a regular basis with his brother Arik Livnat. They perform very successfully, on the Israeli stage and abroad, their special melting point of original music-cum-jazz and contemporary Jewish music; they have even appeared lately before Bill Clinton, the President of the US, and in a special concert performance held in the UN in New York.
He exhibited as a painter in Israel and abroad: 1986 - Israeli Artists Paint the Bible, the Bible House, a group exhibition; 1987 - the Sharett Gallery, Givatayim, a solo exhibition; 1987 - Oscar Gallery, Stockholm, Sweden, solo exhibition; 1987 - Helena Rubinstein, Winners of the Sharett Foundation Grants, Tel Aviv, group exhibition; 1988 - Merzer Gallery, Safed, solo exhibition; 1991 - Freiberg Gallery, Vetlanda, Sweden, solo exhibition; 1994 - "Yefet 28" Art Gallery, Jaffa, solo exhibition; 1997 - performance and exhibition, Camelot, Tel Aviv, solo exhibition; 1998 - Efrat Gallery, Tel Aviv, group exhibition; 1999 - "Round It Goes" Theater, Givatayim, group exhibition.
He was awarded "America Israel" Foundation grants for light music and jazz and, together with his brother, received ACUM's "Golden Feather" award for the year 2000 for the disc "A Child's Dream" (music that they wrote for the theater, movies, and dance). He was also awarded the British "Millenium Award" for original music he wrote together with his brother for a London West End theater production.
Aviv produced and recorded the following discs as a member of the Livnat Brothers:
The first disc, "The One You Can't See" (1990) includes original music that was dedicated to his late father, the pilot Arnon Livnat ,who was killed in the Six Day War. The second disc, "Meditation of the Sad Soul" (1997) is a fascinating adaptation of poems by various poets. The third disc, "Jewish Jazz live in Poland," (2000) was recorded live in the prestigious jazz club, Blue Note, in Poland and became part of the tour of 15 concerts throughout the country. The fourth disc, "A Child's Dream," (2002) won ACUM's "Golden Feather" award. He musically produced the fifth disc "Arik Livnat" (2002), original music and songs. The sixth disc, "Safed," music based on the town of Safed, is due to be released soon.
Apart from his prolific and wide-ranging musical activities, he inaugurated a special musical arts foundation, the Raz-Ram Foundation, that caters for orphaned and needy children through the arts. The organization functions within the framework of individual and group tutoring in various fields of art such as music, painting, theater, etc.
Aviv Livnat's website: www.avivlivnat.com >>