Tsinandali: Zubin Mehta Leads the IPO in an Enchanted Evening of Music in Georgia’s Kakheti Region
Credit: Forbes
To listen to the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra (IPO) conducted by Zubin Mehta playing Tchaikovsky in a newly constructed 1000-person open-air auditorium at a country estate on a summer’s night is heavenly and it is hard to imagine a classical music experience more intimate and emotional. Even more remarkable, this concert was taking place on the grounds of the Tsinandali Estate in the Republic of Georgia’s Kakheti region, some two and a half hours from Tbilisi, the capital, to launch a new classical music festival that will debut in 2019.
What was it that brought 1000 guests, a full orchestra and Maestro Mehta to Georgia? It was, simply, the power of an idea and people with the vision and resources to make it happen.
First, a little background: Tsinandali was the Georgian village that was home to Alexander Chavchavadze (1786–1846), a Georgian poet and aristocrat, who was a God-son of Catherine The Great. After inheriting the property from his father Prince Garsevan, Chavchavadze built an Italianate villa there in 1818 as well as extensive European decorative gardens on the estate which the elder Alexander Dumas dubbed “The Garden of Eden.”
Chavchavadze also built Georgia’s oldest and largest winery in Tsinandali. He was the first in Georgia to bottle his estate wine, which was highly regarded, particularly the Tsinandali white wine which is made to this day. By the end of the 19th Century the estate became the property of the Russian Tsar. After the Russian revolution, when Georgia became a Soviet Republic, it served as a retreat for Soviet officials. A museum was established there in 1947, before the property fell into disuse and disrepair.
Now for the vision: George Ramishvili ,who was born and grew up in Georgia, has become, since Georgia become independent in 1991, one of Georgia’s most prominent business leaders. Ramishvili is the Chairman of Silk Road Group, which Ramishvilli told me had its initial success in “logistics and transportation.” As I was told by several employees, after the fall of the Soviet Union, Ramishvilli found success in being able to trade in and safely transport oil and gas products throughout the region to Kazakhstan, Iran, Azerbaijan, Russia and Turkmenistan and Afghanistan.