The Israel Philharmonic held a ‘global gala’ on 28 June, to benefit the orchestra three months after the start of the Covid-19 lockdown. The concert featured performances by Pinchas Zukerman and Amanda Forsyth; Gil Shaham and Adele Anthony; and a message from Itzhak Perlman. The virtual concert was hosted by Helen Mirren, who said: ’This is not just a way to support the future of a world-class cultural institution, since proceeds from the event will help recover some of the revenue lost during the current pandemic. This is also an opportunity to honor music’s power to unify us during challenging times.’

The live stream, for which 13,000 viewers had registered, was disrupted by a suspected cyberattack, which caused the IPO’s website to shut down, as well as the website of its streaming partner Medici.TV. ’It seems that hackers were determined to silence our message and stamp out our voice, but they will not succeed,’ said Danielle Ames Spivak, executive director of the American Friends of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra. ‘More than ever, we are determined to spread the Israel Philharmonic’s message of hope, peace, and beauty around the world.’ 

The string performances in the concert are:

3:46 Nigel Hess – Ladies in Lavender

Pinchas Zukerman, Amanda Forsyth, Bryan Wagorn

24:26 J. Massenet – Meditation from the opera “Thais”

Gil Shaham, Adele Anthony

30:31 A. Dvorak – Piano Quintet in A major, op. 81

Lahav Shani, David Radzynski, Miriam Hartman, Emanuele Silvestri, Dumitru Pocitari

59:00 Prokofiev – Symphony No. 1 “Classical”: IV. Finale

Israel Philharmonic Orchestra/Lahav Shani

Israel Philharmonic

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