Chill out this Summer at a Sophisticated Salon-Restaurant
Interview
Talented artist Zaza Marjanishvili studied at the Faculty of Metallurgy as, in Soviet times, being an artist was not considered a worthy career choice. He has pleasant memories of his student years, especially a grand-piano standing in the neighboring room on which he played a lot. Once, he was even arrested for playing jazz. He went on to enjoy 17 years of success living in the USA, but the pull of his homeland brought him back to Georgia. Times are different now and the marvelous personality and talented musician was able to open a café-restaurant. GEORGIA TODAY met the now-famous composer and pianist to find out more about that venture.
What niche does your café-restaurant fill? How did you come up with the name?
It is a salon-restaurant with daily live music from 9pm. While I was living in the US, I had to work on a lot of musical albums. In 2010, I recorded the album ‘Zazanova’. The title came from the style and my choice of a somewhat humorous combination of words: my name and ‘nova,’ which is Latin for ‘new’.
What musical program are you offering audiences this summer?
As throughout the rest of the year, there’ll be ample daily live music. Zura Kiknadze, a remarkable guitarist and singer who mixes his program with authorized music and famous compositions, plays on Tuesdays. On Wednesdays, we have a classical music soiree of guitars with the participation of the stunning classical player Giorgi Pkhaladze. On Thursdays, we host Achiko Beridze, whilst on Fridays we offer a romantic guitar evening. This upcoming Saturday, our guest is Dato Karchava.
We have different music every night. We shift musicians, and correspondingly, musical styles. On Sundays, we usually have ‘Guest Musicians,’ who hold concerts, make presentations of new albums and programs, etc. We often hold charity concerts, as well as exhibition-fairs of Georgian artists. We also host the creative soirees of writers and poets.
Are foreigners to be found among your audience?
Zazanova is registered as an American restaurant and so foreigners can often be seen enjoying our food and drink, listening to the music, purchasing paintings and books. All of these activities serve the two reasons why ‘Zazanova’ was opened: first, for the cultural rehabilitation of the city and secondly, the popularization of the names and creativity of Georgian artists overseas.
Where: Revaz Laghidze 2
When: Daily from 9pm
Maka Lomadze