Maayan Gabel

Maayan Gabel

Maayan Gabel (b. 1998) is a violist currently based in Basel, Switzerland. He is pursuing a master’s
degree in Contemporary Performance at the Hochschule für Musik Basel (FHNW). Before moving to
Basel, he completed an Artist Diploma at the Escuela Superior de Música Reina Sofía in Madrid, where
he studied under Professors Nobuko Imai and Wenting Kang. Maayan previously earned both his Master
of Music degree with thesis (summa cum laude) and his Bachelor of Music degree (magna cum laude) at
Tel Aviv University’s Buchmann-Mehta School of Music (BMSOM), in the viola class of Dr. Lilach
Levanon. His master’s thesis, Reception, Absorption, and Domestication in the Music of Tōru Takemitsu,
was supervised by Dr. Ofer Gazit.

Maayan’s orchestral experience includes performing with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra as a
tutti violist (Colton Scholarship 2021–22) and serving as principal violist of the Orquesta Sinfónica
Freixenet in Spain and the BMSOM Symphony Orchestra in Tel Aviv. As a freelance musician, he has
appeared with ensembles such as the Orquesta Sinfónica de Madrid, Santa Cecilia Orchestra (Madrid),
Israel Chamber Orchestra, Jerusalem Baroque Orchestra, Galilee Orchestra, Jerusalem Street Orchestra,
and The Revolution Orchestra.

As a chamber musician, Maayan has been a member of the Stoneshield Quartet (Madrid),
Mendelssohn Quartet (Madrid), and Gertler Quartet (Tel Aviv), and has appeared as a guest violist with
the Affinity Quartet (Australia) and the Motus Quartet (Vienna). He has collaborated with distinguished
artists including Michela Martin, Ralf Gothóni, Nobuko Imai, Wenting Kang, Noémie Bialobroda, Jens
Peter Maintz, Yovan Markovitch, Christophe Poiget, Pauline Sachse, Philippe Pierlot, Vadim Gluzman,
Kati Debretzeni, and Qian Zhou.

His solo performances include appearances with the Beer-Sheva Sinfonietta, where he premiered
A. Levanon’s The Sacrifice of Isaac, as well as with the BMSOM Baroque Orchestra Project, Haifa
Symphony Orchestra, Israel Chamber Orchestra, and Thelma Yellin Symphony Orchestra.

Maayan has participated in viola masterclasses with Pauline Sachse, Miguel da Silva, Lawrence Power,
Tabea Zimmermann, Hartmut Rohde, Tatjana Masurenko, Roland Glassl, and Veit Hertenstein, as well as
chamber music masterclasses with Vera Martínez Mehne, Valentin Erban, Franz Helmerson, Tim
Frederiksen, Luc-Marie Aguera, Guillaume Sutre, Heime Müller, and Krzysztof Chorzelski.
His festival appearances and professional programs include the Lucernce Forward Festival
(2025), Bad Elster Masterclasses (2025), Schiermonnikoog Festival (2024–25), Musique à Flaine (2023–
24), Santander Encuentro (2023–24), Tenerife Viola Masterclasses (2021), Triple Viola Masterclass
(2021), Carl Flesch Akademie (2019), Keshet Eilon (2016–18), The Perlman Music Program (2015–16),
and The Jerusalem Center Music Program (2013–16).

He is the winner of the 2021 BMSOM Chamber Music Competition, recipient of the Audience
Favorite Award at the 2020 Aviv Competition and was awarded a Certificate of Honor for his
contribution to the BMSOM Symphony Orchestra in 2019. His studies have been supported by the
Fundación Albéniz (2022–25), Ronen Foundation (2023–25), America-Israel Cultural Foundation (2013–
24), Colton Foundation (2022–23), Ben-Bassat Foundation (2020), and the Yehoshua and Margrit Lakner
Foundation (2020-2026).