UNESCO-Supported Batumi Music Fest to be Held in September

International and local classical musicians will descend upon Batumi once again this September for the UNESCO-supported Batumi Music Fest, which is in its seventh year.

The ten-day festival is organized by the Lyra Foundation, a charity launched in 2012 by world-renowned Georgian pianist Elisso Bolkvadze that aims to discover and support young, gifted Georgian pianists. Bolkvadze was named a UNESCO Artist for Peace in January 2015, the first Georgian to be awarded this distinction.

This year’s event will be held September 1-10 and is supported by Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili and the Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sport.

“I knew that the Batumi Music Fest would be an excellent platform to promote the ideas of cultural diplomacy and the role of culture, and music in the peace building process. For Batumi Art Fest, being under UNESCO patronage is both prestigious and significant,” Bolkvadze told Georgia Today in a 2017 interview. “I decided to bring more of an educational focus to the festival, paying particular attention to discovery, assistance and the promotion of emerging new musical talent,” she said.

The only UNESCO-supported cultural project in Georgia, the festival aims to support and promote young up-and-coming Georgian musicians. In addition to musical performances, the Batumi Music Fest will also host a youth art camp that will conduct trainings for up to 300 young Georgians.

By Lucy Papachristou

Photo Source: Wikipedia