September 5, 2006

Thursday, September 14, 2006
Jewish Community Center, 3200 California Street, Kanbar Hall, San Francisco
8:00p.m.-10:00p.m., $50 general admission/$75 includes premier seating and after party/$125 includes VIP seating, reception and after party /$30 students with ID
Tickets: JCCSF box office, 415.292.1233

Sunday, September 17, 2006
College of San Mateo, CSM Theatre, 1700 Hillsdale Blvd., San Mateo
8:00p.m.-10:00p.m., $50/$75/$30 students with ID
Tickets: YAD BE YAD, 408.530.8243

(San Francisco, CA) –.Israeli rock-music superstar Aviv Geffen will be performing in San Francisco and San Mateo, September 14 and 17 respectively, to raise funds for the Israel Emergency Campaign of the Jewish Community Federation of San Francisco, the Peninsula, Marin and Sonoma Counties. All net proceeds of the benefit concerts will go to rebuilding efforts in northern Israel.

Like the rock stars he idolized as a child, Aviv Geffen uses his music as an instrument of social revolution. His chart-topping songs are described as poignant and beautiful and deal with peace, societal issues, love and loneliness. Though viewed by some to be controversial and politically radical, Geffen is also greatly appreciated for his musical talent. The 34-year-old Tel Aviv native has 11 successful CDs to his repertoire, including an English language CD recorded with Porcupine Tree’s Steven Wilson (Blackfield, 2004). Geffen’s latest album, Im Hazman (With the Time 2006), has been well received by fans. Two of the albums singles quickly rose to the top of MTV’s World Chart Express: Tomorrow at #1 in March 2006 and Bishvilech at #4 inSpring 2006.

Rabin. At a peace rally on November 4, 1995, minutes after Geffen finished his ballad "I Cry for You" in front of a crowd of 300,000 and hugged the Prime Minister, gunshots rang out in the square killing Rabin.  As a result of these events "I Cry for You" became the anthem of a generation. Ever since that time, his songs have become less political and more intimate. In an interview with The Jewish Journal, Geffen explains this change by saying "In Israel, we have so much pressure, it's no use throwing oil into the fire.”

This same attitude has inspired Geffen to perform on behalf of the areas in northern Israel impacted by the Israel-Lebanon conflict. He has performed in bomb shelters during the war and visited with injured Israeli soldiers in hospitals around the region. Geffen is now coming to America to share his experiences and to raise money to help rebuild the war-torn Upper Galil.

For more on Aviv Geffen go to:
www.myspace.com/avivgeffen
www.myspace.com/blackfield

Rock n’ Rebuild is sponsored by the Federation’s Russian and YAD Divisions and its Israel Center, as well as the Consulate General of Israel and Yad BeYad. For more information on the benefit concerts or the Israel Emergency Campaign go to www.sfjcf.org.

The Jewish Community Federation is the central organization for fundraising, planning, outreach and leadership development for Jewish communities in San Francisco, the Peninsula, and Marin and Sonoma counties. In fiscal year 2004-05, the Federation’s annual campaign allocated $16.9 million to some 60 agencies providing social services, educational and cultural programs in the Bay Area, in the U.S., Israel and elsewhere in the world. In fiscal year 2005, the Federation’s Endowment Fund, with assets exceeding $1.05 billion, provided more than $215 million for a variety of grants, seed projects and emergency needs. For more information, call 415.777.0411 or visit www.sfjcf.org.

Israel Update is a monthly discussion of current events and issues relating to modern-day Israel, providing context and analysis that goes behind the headlines. Each session features a different topic and a guest from Israel or elsewhere. The January Israel Update is co-sponsored with the Israel Center of the Jewish Community Federation of San Francisco, the Peninsula, Marin and Sonoma Counties, JCRC, Congregation Emanu-El and the World Union for Progressive Judaism. Check www.israelcentersf.org for additional dates and times.

The Jewish Community Federation is the central organization for fundraising, planning, outreach and leadership development for Jewish communities in San Francisco, the Peninsula, Marin and Sonoma Counties. In FY 2004-05, the Federation’s annual campaign allocated $16.9 million to some 60 agencies providing social services, educational and cultural programs in the Bay Area, U.S., Israel and world-wide. In fiscal year 2005, the Federation’s Endowment Fund, with assets exceeding $1,056,000,000, provided more than $215 million for a variety of grants, seed projects and emergency needs. For information, call 415.777.0411 or visit www.sfjcf.org.