It was a stormy and windy night at the Tel Aviv Port, but inside Hangar 11, it was nice and warm. White plastic candles were placed everywhere, mainly around the stage, giving it a mysterious and special beauty.
At 9:30 pm, Asaf Avidan, one of Israel’s premier singer/songwriters, came out on stage in his gray suit, handsome as always. Three stations were ready for him: a piano, a chair at the front of the stage near his guitar setup, and a chair at the back of the stage next to a small table where Asaf poured and mixed a drink for himself.
He started with the piano, performing his well-known song “Rock of Lazarus.” Moving on to the guitar and harmonica, he shared that it had been a while since he’d performed like this and he had forgotten how difficult and overwhelming it is, especially in Israel.
But the difficulty didn’t show as he continued with impressive versions of other well-known songs from his oeuvre, including “Over You Blues” and “A Man Without a Name.”
“Is this escapism?” he asked the audience rhetorically before answering, “No,” adding that accepting and embracing a full range of our emotions is the opposite of running away. The connection between performer and audience was visceral throughout the two-hour show.
When Avidan started the opening chords to “Bang Bang,” and the audience began clapping, he stopped and said, “How do you know which song this is? It could be any song in the world.” He then sang the beginning of “Circle of Life” from The Lion King, and everyone laughed.
Towards the end, Avidan sang his iconic “Reckoning Song” on guitar, gliding his fingers over the guitar strings, singing into the resonance box, creating sounds that echoed and reverberated magically and remarkably, bringing an entire orchestra to life all by himself.
After a final 'Your Anchor,' the audience demanded an encore
“What do we do now?” he asked. Someone from the audience requested “The Labyrinth Song.”
“A sad song, the first of the evening,” Avidan chuckled before performing it. “I don’t want to finish,” he said, returning to the piano. “Not everything in life is an Instagram filter,” he said. “Not everything needs to be beautiful, smooth, and perfect. When an artist is on stage, they need to be able to embrace the feeling of embarrassment from a live performance mistake, and the audience also needs to be able to embrace and support the artist, even in a moment of failure.”
He then closed the show with “900 Days.”
The port was still windy, but we felt different... because music changes you; that’s the whole magic of music and of Asaf Avidan.
Richard Gere's 'Longing' to premiere at Rahat Film Festival
The new Richard Gere film, Longing, will have its Israel premiere at the third Rahat Film Festival, taking place February 16-19.
The film is based on the acclaimed 2017 Israeli movie of the same name, directed by Savi Gabizon, who also directed the American version. Following the screening, there will be a question and answer session with Israeli actor Shai Avivi, who played the lead role in the original version.
The festival will also screen eight Israeli and international films, including the Moroccan opening film Everybody Loves Touda, followed by a discussion with two-time Ophir Award winner Reymond Amsalem on the status of women in Morocco, and Monsieur Aznavour, a documentary on Charles Aznavour, featuring rare footage of the singing legend.
All films will have subtitles in Arabic. For more information: l.ladanly.me/rff-2025