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Sergio & Odair Assad and Avi Avital

Sergio and Odair Assad, guitars
with Avi Avital, mandolin

Presented in partnership with Butler School of Music, Austin Classical Guitar, and KMFA-FM

Brazilian-born guitarists Sérgio and Odair Assad’s exceptional artistry and uncanny ensemble-playing have led to great success in exploring different styles of classical and world music with collaborators as diverse as Latin jazz clarinetist Paquito D’Rivera, Lebanese-American singer Christiane Karam, and cellist Yo-Yo Ma.

For this tour, they team up for the first time with Israeli mandolin player Avi Avital who last performed on the UT campus with the Venice Baroque Orchestra. Passionate and “explosively charismatic” (The New York Times) in live performance, Avital is a driving force behind the reinvigoration of the mandolin repertory. The trio will present a brand-new program that explores both classical repertoire reimagined for guitar and mandolin, and traditional Choro music, a popular genre in Brazil known for its upbeat rhythms and brazen virtuosity.

Call it one of the most engaging musical presentations of the season. Better yet, call it a stunning display of the music of the Western Hemisphere.

Los Angeles Times

Avi Avital: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert from NPR Music on YouTube.

Sérgio and Odair Assad play Albéniz: Córdoba, from Cantos de España Op. 232, No. 4 from 92nd Street Y on YouTube.

Fun Facts:

  • The Assads won a Latin GRAMMY in 2001 for their album, Sérgio and Odair Assad Play Piazzolla.
  • The Assads were featured performers on James Newton Howard’s soundtrack to the movie Duplicity.
  • The Assad brothers have an ongoing collaboration with Yo-Yo Ma and were featured on his popular release Songs of Joy and Peace in 2009.
  • In 2014, the Assads began a Brazilian tour celebrating their 50-year career.
  • Avi Avital is the first mandolin player to receive a GRAMMY nomination in the category Best Instrumental Soloist.
  • In July 2016, Avital released an InstaConcerto, an experimental project he commissioned to reach a wider audience. The concerto was released via Instagram over five days, and was made up of five 15-second movements. WATCH