The Israeli violinist explains why he loves our open-minded culture, and what he finds in Tchaikovsky, Beethoven and Shostakovich.

We’ve seen quite a lot of you in Australia in the last three years. What is it about Australia that appeals?

[laughs] Many things: an extraordinary culture, but mainly the people: open minded, willing to take on problems, to create new things in the arts, schools, education. I just find it a wonderful place that really tries to bring forth music, particularly, as a way for society to function better.

Your first concert in Sydney is of Tchaikovsky and Mozart. Was there a particular reason why you chose to pair Mozart’s Third Violin Concerto with Tchaikovsky’s Fourth Symphony?

The only thing I can tell you is that Tchaikovsky admired Mozart and the G Major concerto has not been played for a while, so I thought “OK, let’s put that on”.

Instead of the better known violin concerto, you’ve chosen to play two rare Tchaikovsky pieces for orchestra and violin: Souvenir d’un Lieu Cher and Sérénade Mélancolique. Is it just our concert programming habits that mean we don’t hear these works more often?

Yeah, I would say so. Most of the time when you hear...