Tsinandali Festival returns for sixth edition
TSINANDALI FESTIVAL RETURNS FOR SIXTH EDITION, PRESENTING MUSIC AT THE CROSSROADS OF EUROPE AND ASIA
Gianandrea Noseda conducting the Pan-Caucasian Youth Orchestra ©agenda.de
- The Pan-Caucasian Youth Orchestra, comprising musicians from across the Caucasus region, returns to lead the Festival
- Directed by Gianandrea Noseda, the Orchestra opens the Festival with Verdi’s Messa da Requiem, before returning for three further concerts
- Soloists include pianists Boris Giltburg, Alexandre Kantorow, Bruce Liu, Mikhail Pletnev and András Schiff; violinists Kristóf Baráti, Lisa Batiashvili and Joshua Bell; clarinettist Martin Fröst
Today the celebrated Tsinandali Festival announces its sixth edition. Having taken place every year on the Tsinandali Estate in the beautiful Kakheti region of Georgia since 2019, the Festival stages classical music at the crossroads of Europe and Asia with world-class artists and ensembles.
The Pan-Caucasian Youth Orchestra (PCYO) lies at the heart of the Festival, bringing together young musicians from across the Caucasus countries Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Turkey, Ukraine and Turkmenistan. These budding professionals have the chance to collaborate with internationally renowned conductors, coaches and soloists, breaking down perceived barriers through music.
Conducted by its Music Director, Gianandrea Noseda, the PCYO opens the Festival with Verdi’s mighty Requiem on 31 August. The Orchestra appears again on 3 September to perform Mahler’s Symphony No. 4 and Wieniawski’s Violin Concerto No. 2 with violinist Joshua Belland soprano Barbara Frittoli. Under Vasily Petrenko, the PCYO takes on Rachmaninoff’s Symphonic Dances and Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 2 with soloist Alexandre Kantorow on 6 September. And on 8 September, the Orchestra closes the Festival with a programme of Schubert, Mendelssohn and Mozart’s Violin Concerto No. 5 with soloist Lisa Batiashvili, conducted by András Schiff.
As well as orchestral programmes, this year’s Tsinandali Festival presents extraordinary recitals and chamber music concerts with world-leading musicians. These include recitals by major pianists Boris Giltburg, Alexandre Kantorow, Bruce Liu, Mihail Pletnev and András Schiff. Distinguished musicians such as Steven Isserlis and Irène Duval perform as part of chamber ensembles, and the Lisa Batiashvili Foundation presents quintets by Korngold and the beloved 23-year-old Georgian composer Sandro Nebieridze.
Aside from presenting spectacular performances, the Tsinandali Festival seeks to foster a culture of education, encouraging understanding and peace in an historically fraught region. This is epitomised in seminars and masterclasses given by visiting artists and attended by young musicians performing at the Festival.
The sixth edition of the Tsinandali Festival will see a range of international classical stars performing together in a variety of lunchtime and evening concerts. All programmes have been curated by the Festival’s joint Founders & Artistic Directors, Martin Engstroem and Avi Shoshani.
Martin Engstroem and Avi Shoshani comment:
“As we present the sixth edition of the Tsinandali Festival, we are mindful that the work of the Pan-Caucasian Youth Orchestra is more vital than ever. By bringing together these gifted young musicians from around the region we hope to create a community that listens to each other and plays together to not only make great music but one that also transcends division and inspires hope. Their opening concert of Verdi’s Requiem will have an emotional power that resonates far beyond the grounds of the Tsinandali estate. As always, we are indebted to the vision and support of George Ramishvili and his team.”
George Ramishvili, Chairman of the Silk Road Group & Chairman and Founder of the Tsinandali Festival:
“The Festival’s sixth season is coming and I am happy that with every season it gains more and more success and public interest. Tsinandali, our cultural gem, has become well known to the international audience of classical music lovers. More so, that it hosted the 2024 Europakonzert by the Berliner Philharmoniker. Tsinandali is a place of magic and I hope it will continue to bring more and more talented young musicians together to perform under the batons of the world’s leading conductors and demonstrate the power of music, the power of artistic unity and the power of humanity.”
Yerkin Tatishev, Founder and Board Member comments:
“The Tsinandali estate has attracted artists for centuries and the Tsinandali Festival brings today’s greatest classical musicians and the rising stars of tomorrow together in the spectacular surroundings of the estate. Everyone associated with the Festival is proud to bring people together for music making at the highest level.”
David Sakvarelidze, General Director of the Tsinandali Festival, comments:
“Georgia has a great history of producing some of the world’s finest artists who have influenced artists way beyond our borders. The Tsinandali Festival builds on this foundation of artistic excellence by acting as a hub for established and rising stars of the classical world to perform together, explore new repertoire and enjoy the charm and hospitality that Georgia is renowned for.”
The Tsinandali estate on May 1st hosted the Georgian debut of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra. The Orchestra’s Artist in Residence, Lisa Batiashvili, described the Europakonzert in her Georgian homeland as the “highlight of my life”. The visit by the European orchestra was widely celebrated as a statement in support of Georgia’s candidacy for EU membership. Batiashvili performed Brahms’s Violin Concerto under the baton of Daniel Harding, who then conducted Georgian Miniatures and Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony. The concert can be viewed here: https://www.digitalconcerthall.com/en/concert/55188