Recital Series: Lisa Batiashvili and Giorgi Gigashvili

ARAB WORLD PREMIERE

OVERVIEW

Two astonishing players, the award-winning violinist Lisa Batiashvili and the rising piano star Giorgi Gigashvili, join for a thrilling programme encompassing works by Beethoven, Bartók, Franck and a new composition by Josef Bardanashvili in an Arab world premiere. The bold grandeur of Beethoven contrasts with the wild brilliance of Bartók, while Franck’s Violin Sonata unfolds with shimmering colour and graceful lyricism.

PROGRAMME

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)

Sonata for Violin and Piano, No. 3 in E-flat major, Op. 12 No. 3

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Sergei Prokofiev (1891–1953)

Sonata for Violin and Piano No. 1 in F minor, Op. 80

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Interval

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Josef Bardanashvili (b. 1948)

To Gia Kancheli (P.S.)

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César Franck (1822–1890)

Sonata for Violin and Piano in A major, FWV 8

Artists

Lisa Batiashvili, Violin

Lisa Batiashvili is an internationally acclaimed violinist, born in Georgia and based in Germany, with long-standing relationships with many of the world’s leading orchestras, conductors and musicians. In 2021, she founded and now leads the Lisa Batiashvili Foundation, reflecting her commitment to supporting highly talented young Georgian musicians in developing their careers. From 2019 to 2022, she served as Artistic Director of the Audi Sommerkonzerte Ingolstadt.

Recording exclusively for Deutsche Grammophon, Batiashvili has released a distinguished catalogue of recordings. Her album Secret Love Letters (2022) features the Philadelphia Orchestra conducted by Yannick Nézet-Séguin, alongside César Franck’s Violin Sonata in A major with Giorgi Gigashvili. Her earlier album City Lights traces a personal musical journey across cities central to her artistic life, with repertoire ranging from Bach and Dvořák to Morricone and Charlie Chaplin. Her recording Visions of Prokofiev with the Chamber Orchestra of Europe and Nézet-Séguin received an Opus Klassik Award.

Her honours include the MIDEM Classical Award, Choc de l’année, the Accademia Musicale Chigiana International Prize, the Leonard Bernstein Award of the Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival and the Beethoven-Ring. She was named Musical America’s Instrumentalist of the Year in 2015, nominated as Gramophone Artist of the Year in 2017, and awarded an Honorary Doctorate by the Sibelius Academy (University of the Arts Helsinki) in 2018.

She plays a 1739 Joseph Guarneri ‘del Gesù’, generously loaned by a private collector.

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Giorgi Gigashvili, Piano

Born in Tbilisi, Georgia, in 2000, Gigashvili studied the piano without ever thinking about a professional career as a pianist. He is passionate about the folksongs of his country, which he likes to arrange and sing, participating in the Georgian version of The Voice and winning the competition at the age of thirteen. Continuing his musical training at the Zakaria Paliashvili Central Music School, he then studied at the Tbilisi State Conservatory with Revaz Tavadze.

Gigashvili has since emerged as a major international talent, winning prizes at several leading competitions, including the Vigo International Piano Competition, the Géza Anda Piano Competition in Zurich and the Arthur Rubinstein International Piano Master Competition. His debut album, Meeting My Shadow (2023), released on Alpha Classics, was met with critical acclaim.

He has appeared with prominent orchestras and in recital at major concert halls across Europe and continues to pursue a career that brings together classical performance with a strong interest in contemporary and experimental music. Gigashvili currently studies with Kirill Gerstein in Berlin and is supported by several international foundations, including the Lisa Batiashvili Foundation. He was a BBC New Generation Artist (2023–2025) and was selected as a European Concert Hall Organisation (ECHO) Rising Star for the 2025–2026 season.

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