12th Batumi-Tbilisi Int’l Fest 'Night Serenades’ to be Held in Virtual Format

On August 7, Georgia’s Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sport held a press conference on this year’s Batumi-Tbilisi International Festival ‘Night Serenades.’ It was led by Nana Dolidze, Head of the Culture Department of the Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sports of Georgia; Maka Nasrashvili, Head of the Culture, Education, Sports and Youth Service of Tbilisi City Hall; and Nina Tsagareli, Director of the Festival and Vakhtang Machavariani and the Principal Conductor of the Festival. The soloists Tamar Licheli, Sandro Nebieridze and Liza Chkhaidze also attended.

Taking into account the pandemic regulations and the global experience in holding festivals, the 12th Batumi-Tbilisi festival ‘Night Serenades’ will be held in a different format this year.

The concert in Batumi will be broadcast live on the Adjara Public Broadcaster, and the Tbilisi concerts via livestream.

Masterpieces of classical music will be performed within the framework of the festival, and premieres of works by contemporary Georgian composers will also take place.

The opening of the festival will traditionally take place on August 27 in Batumi, in the Ilia Chavchavadze Drama Theater. The concert will be dedicated to the 95th anniversary of the famous Georgian composer and teacher, Sulkhan Tsintsadze.

Laureate of many national and international competitions, Tamar Licheli (piano), along with the Gia Kancheli String Quartet, will participate in the festival.

Concert evenings will be held in Tbilisi on September 2nd and 4th. World-class concerts will be performed by the orchestra ‘Virtuoses from Georgia,’ created by the Artistic Director of the Festival Liana Isakadze, chief conductor of the festival Vakhtang Machavariani, and soloists Sandro Nebieridze, Liza Chkhaidze and Elene Shaveridze.

Within the framework of this year's festival, the premiere performance of classic works created by three Georgian composers will take place:

• Concert by Sandro Nebieridze created for the Twelfth Batumi-Tbilisi Festival ‘Night Serenades’

• Giorgi Shaverzashvili ‘Concerto for Piano and Chamber Orchestra N4’

• Jimsher Chkhaidze's work ‘Sentiments’ for chamber orchestra and harp, had its international premiere in Germany in 2011, and the Georgian premiere of the work will be held at this year's festival.

Night Serenades was founded in 1982 in Abkhazia on the initiative of famous Georgian violinist and conductor Liana Isakadze. Unfortunately, the festival was closed in 1991 and only after 18 years, in 2009, was it renewed in Batumi.

Isakadze is still the Artistic Director of the festival, since 2018, alongside her nephew, artist Giorgi Isakadze.

Supporters of the Batumi-Tbilisi XII International Festival ‘Night Serenades’ include the Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sports of Georgia; Batumi City Hall; Tbilisi City Hall; and the Ministry of Education, Culture and Sports of the Autonomous Republic of Adjara.

The event is organized by the company ‘Art Alliance.’ The official insurer of the festival is the company ‘Ardi.’

Partners: German Embassy, Ilia Chavchavadze Drama Theater, Batumi; Company ‘PSP’, Wine company ‘Georgian Unique Wine’; Company ‘Sarajishvili;’ Perfume store chain ‘Lutecia’; and ‘Aromateque.’

“Culture is being particularly affected by the current pandemic situation, worldwide. Nevertheless, it remains a priority for the Ministry to carry out all planned events which were scheduled at the beginning of the year,” said Nana Dolidze. “Among them is the festival Night Serenades, which is one of the oldest festivals. Night Serenades 2020 is interesting in the sense that the organizers have to conduct it in an unusual format. The festival will open in Batumi on August 27, with, unfortunately, no spectators, with an event dedicated to Sulkhan Tsintsadze, live on the Batumi Public Broadcaster. On September 2-4, the events will move to Tbilisi.”

“Tbilisi City Hall has been a loyal supporter of this festival, which is an integral part of Tbilisi cultural life,” Maka Nasrashvili noted. “This year, due to the pandemic, many festivals have moved into the virtual world, and City Hall is trying to help each event as much as possible. The pandemic has affected many sectors of the country's economy, which is why cultural programs and projects have been expanded. This year marks the 95th anniversary of the great Georgian composer and teacher Sulkhan Tsintsadze, and City Hall is actively working to promote art education. I wish this festival success. City Hall will continue to actively support it in future.”

“It was highly questionable whether this important event in the field of music would be held at all, however, we managed to do so, through the joint efforts of state structures and traditional supporters,” said Nina Tsagareli, Director of the Festival. “This year, we will present a very interesting program to our loyal listeners. Masterpieces of world classical music, young talented performers and the premiere of works by three Georgian composers are waiting for festival fans.”

“I’m very grateful to my colleagues, Liana Isakadze, Nina Tsagareli and the whole team, that we are actively working despite this pandemic,” said Vakhtang Machavariani, Principal Conductor of the Festival. “The content of the festival has always been innovative, just like this year. Fortunately, today’s technological conditions allow us to go online. We have to deal with the reality in which we live, we have to work in that reality and do our jobs.”