Aviv Gefen

In 2004 Gefen invited Caspi to sing a duet with him for his album.
The song “Spinning” won great success and was played many times on the radio.

From the press:

From 1995 Aviv Gefen has been waiting for an opportunity to record a song with Matti Caspi, and now in his new album it finally happened. “He’s the greatest musician of all”, he explained - and Caspi tells: “It was easy, I like his lyrics”.

The decision to release together the single “Spinning” wasn’t easy for Aviv Gefen and Matti Caspi. The sensitive national security situation has shaken the music world and made the two musicians wonder if the war-truce and uncertainty days we’re in, are the right time to release a happy Israeli wandering song - very different than Gefen’s other last two singles - “A New World” and “Pain on Pain”. Finally the two decided on releasing it today (Tuesday), and they had some good reasons for it too.

“Honestly it’s going to sound horrible, but it’s such a good song that anyone who hears it smiles, it’s impossible not to” says Gefen. “But in my opinion, this pause that was between ‘A New World’ and ‘Pain on Pain’ and this new single is also good, they really are different songs. One is Japanese and the other more Israeli. “Spinning” is an on-the-road song, a very open one, which talks about love, about meetings in life”.

The connection of Gefen-Caspi is also a big deal. The two have many differences of age and genre - where Caspi’s introverted personality almost teases Gefen’s need for provocative statements. Matti Caspi, for his part, recognizes it’s an unusual combination, yet to him it wasn’t really challenging: “I have no problem connecting to any musical world I like, and from here it was the easiest thing in the world”, he says. “We may be different, but we have the same statement. This song should bring our musical personality as it is, without anyone of us giving it up. Then this inter-personality bond was created.

The reason I got into this is because I really like Gefen’s harmonies and of course, lyrics. I just really appreciate him, so I simply followed my natural feeling”.

Military operation or truce aside, the song “Spinning” recorded by Gefen and Caspi together and which is being released now, will be included in Gefen’s new album which will be released mid-September. To Gefen, who has worked in the past with Matti Caspi during many different opportunities - among them the collaboration in 2000 with the song “Like in a Song”, this time it’s the real thing - a duet with a musician who has influenced his life and work, a non-trivial inter-generational encounter, but one that sprang an Israeli song with a Russian shade and a high hit potential.

“I’ve been on to Matti Caspi since 1995, ever since I’ve been trying to work with him” tells Gefen excitedly. “It’s a real collaboration. It’s a song I’ve had for years. If Shalom Hanoch is Israel’s first singer-songwriter, then Matti Caspi is the greatest musician of all. He’s really on another sphere and everyone will agree with me, he really is a genius. As a boy and an adolescent, I’ve always looked up on his model albums, and my experience with him in the studio really was chilling in a good way. Because a song is something that stays with you, a performance and hosting a guest star is totally different. I hope that in October this collaboration will be backed by his guest-starring in my show at Caesariya”.

The age gap between the two of you could be professionally problematic. Was it felt in the studio?

“I can say that Matti wants to try new things and he has a very open mind. He met with producer Yoad Nevo, listened to him a lot and we worked together. He listened. Some artists, when they record a duet, just come to the studio and sing. But he was also involved in vocals, singing and mixing, and has made many remarks. That’s something that doesn’t happen in most collaborations. Here he really brought all of him to work and it shows in the song too. He had some really brilliant points there. It was very important to him. That’s actually Matti at his best, in my opinion”.

(Source: YNET)]