Israeli rock star Aviv Geffen heading down under
His concerts are supported by Zionist Council of NSW (ZCNSW) in Sydney and Zionism Victoria together with Habayit in Melbourne.
Israeli rock legend Aviv Geffen is coming to Australia to play live in Sydney on July 23 and Melbourne on July 24. Geffen will be performing some of his greatest hits, interwoven with personal stories and reflections on his life since October 7.
His concerts are supported by Zionist Council of NSW (ZCNSW) in Sydney and Zionism Victoria together with Habayit in Melbourne.
ZCNSW CEO Yossi Eshed told The AJN, “My ‘romance’ with Aviv Geffen started a few years ago when we met for coffee, then we started to dream together on bringing him to perform in Australia. And it happened last July, and after the huge success of his concerts both in Sydney and Melbourne, we knew the next tour will be bigger. Then October 7 hit us all, and since then Aviv was … giving all his time in performing in funerals, with soldiers, family members of our hostages, people that have been displaced from their homes both in the south and the north of Israel, and I thought there is not a chance he’ll come.
“Then … surprise! He can make it, and both Aviv and myself knew we would not miss this opportunity. Aviv is returning to Australia to share his tunes and take us all on a journey that highlights the strength, hope and enduring spirit of the Israeli people.”
Habayit director Hallely Kimchi commented, “Given the current climate facing our community, it has never been more important to bring Israeli artists to Australia and ensure they, and we, are not silenced.”
Zionism Victoria executive director Zeddy Lawrence said, “We don’t want any disappointed fans missing out this time around so we’ve got a larger venue. But don’t leave it too late, as hundreds of tickets have already been snapped up.”
Geffen has long been associated with the peace movement in Israel. He was one of the last artists to perform at the November 1995 peace rally where Israeli prime minister Yitzhak Rabin was assassinated.
In Geffen’s Hope Song, he sings, “Let’s bury the guns and not the children/Let’s try, until it will be better, until it will be/Let’s conquer the peace and not the settlements.” However, while Geffen has identified with the left of Israeli politics, he has in recent years reached out to the right calling for unity.
Following the devastation of the October 7 massacre, Geffen wrote a song titled Black Sunrise, which he sings alongside 17-year-old Israeli former hostage Mia Leimberg, who became known for having her dog Bella with her in Gaza captivity for almost two months. Leimberg is a voice student at Jerusalem High School for the Arts.
The song captures the trauma of the October 7 massacre – “Children that woke up in the morning, will no longer play in the yard, and since then it follows us and doesn’t leave, and nothing goes away.”
Geffen has been active in social media supporting Israel following the massacre. He used to be a fan of Pink Floyd frontman Roger Waters but following Waters’ anti-Israel rhetoric, Geffen wrote on Instagram to Waters on July 3 that he had left his albums behind and added, “I pray for the return of hostages and await your apology to all the victims and captives of October 7th.”
Tickets: Melbourne – events.humanitix.com/aviv-geffen,
Sydney – moshtix.com.au/v2/event/aviv-geffen-returns-to-oz/168622
comments