Aviv Quartet Appoints New Second Violinist

American violinist Brandon Garbot will succeed Philippe Villafranca

The Aviv Quartet recently announced that the American violinist Brandon Garbot has been appointed to the ensemble as second violin. He will join Anna Göckel, Noémie Bialobroda, and Daniel Mitnitsky in the group, and succeeds outgoing second violinist Philippe Villafranca.

A past student of Ida Kavafian and Arnold Steinhardt at the Curtis Institute of Music, Garbot received his soloist's diploma from the Musik-Akademie Basel, where his teacher was Rainer Schmidt.

He has appeared at festivals including Verbier, Ravinia, Yellow Barn, Gstaad and Krzyzowa — and counts players such as Shmuel Ashkenasi, Sol Gabetta, Viviane Hagner, Kim Kashkashian, Ivan Monighetti, and Helena Winkelman among his chamber music partners.

Garbot was previously a substitute violinist for the Philadelphia Orchestra and has also been a guest musician with the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra.

Formed in Israel in 1997, the Aviv Quartet studied with the Amadeus and the Alban Berg Quartets, with Isaac Stern, and with Quatuor Ysaÿe. The ensemble were laureates of the Bordeaux, Melbourne, and Charles Hennen competitions, and recently recorded the complete cycle of Beethoven's string quartets for Swiss Radio and Television.

"Having found that miraculous combination of common values, musical vision, mutual trust — what one would simply call chemistry — we are proud to welcome Brandon, and look forward to this next chapter!" the quartet said in a statement.

"Looking back at our years together with Philippe, we acknowledge and cherish the beauty of the time we have had together, the music that we’ve made, and the friendship that goes well beyond the confines of the practice room or of the concert stage. Philippe has been such a supportive, loyal, and respectful partner throughout this transition, and we are deeply grateful to him."