First Georgian Artist Signs Contract with Yamaha
Giorgi Mikadze Jazz pianist has become the first Georgian artist to sign a contract with globally renowned musical instrument company Yamaha and is now one of 40 Yamaha artists, a list which includes Alicia Keys, Chick Corea, Jamie Cullum, Keiko Matsui, and Danilo Perez.
Music critics and professional musicians named Giorgi Mikadze a universal artist who is unafraid to experiment in every genre and style, deeply explore and create something new. The pianist is constantly seeking new and innovative projects, in which jazz, classical music, hip-hop and other genres meet Georgian folklore.
After earning Bachelor degrees in Classical Music, Composition and Performance from the Tbilisi State Conservatoire in Georgia, Mikadze is continuing his education at the Berkley College of Music in Boston. Moreover, earlier this year he became first Georgian artist to get a Master's Degree in Jazz Arts from New York's prestigious Manhattan School of Music.
Mikadze impressed music professionals in the United States with his collaborative projects with the School- two works featuring a fusion of Georgian folk music with African and classical music genres, as well as a combination of rap performance with classical symphony instruments.
“I realize that now is not the best time commercially speaking for jazz or classical music. The most popular genre worldwide today is Hip-Hop. Pure jazz is outdated now, and if you’re a contemporary musician, you have to accept the reality that jazz is developing and is often expressed in different genres,” Mikadze told GEORGIA TODAY in an exclusive interview earlier this year. “Musical information is what counts most for a musician to grow. I listen and listen endlessly. You have to know all the latest achievements in all genres. If you ask me how many hours I practice a day, I would say not many. In the past, I would practice the piano 10 hours a day, but nowadays I listen more than I play.”
His work- whether listening and learning or creating, is endless. Over the past two years, the pianist has performed with his band, the Giorgi Mikadze Group, at concerts in New York and Los Angeles and at the Black Sea Jazz Festival in Batumi, Georgia. The young artist has also performed with symphony orchestras in Berkley and in his hometown Tbilisi, while he also served as Musical Director for Berkley’s tribute to famous American composer and producer, Quincy Jones.
Mikadze told reporters he was already working with Yamaha on a number of projects within the cooperation agreement, however now he was also honored to be one of its artists. The contract with the company was signed last week and negotiations about future joint projects have already begun.
Yamaha Corporation is a Japanese multinational corporation with a wide range of products and services, established in 1887 as a piano and reed organ manufacturer which is, to date, still one of the company’s main areas. Yamaha is also famous for its cooperation with dozens of well-known international musicians all around the world.
Eka Karsaulidze