Pianist Giorgi Mikadze and Basiani ensemble host “unprecedented“ New York show
Tweet 
Share
Georgia’s rising musical talent Giorgi Mikadze is teaming up with the country’s acclaimed folk music ensemble Basiani for a special show at a prestigious New York club later this month.
In a performance at the ShapeShifter Lab in Brooklyn, Mikadze and the national singing band will showcase their upcoming collaboration within a "video and recording session” event from October 25-29.
The ShapeShifter Lab is promoted as a scene for the "world’s most innovative artists”. The collaborative show will present to the audience the first glimpse of a project that combines traditional Georgian vocal performance with contemporary musical production.
Pianist Giorgi Mikadze (L) performs with Grammy-winning guitarist Lee Ritenour at New York’s Blue Note Jazz Club in August. Photo from Petre Kaishauri/Facebook.
The project – to be officially unveiled in December – will see Mikadze create pieces that brings together elements of Georgian folk music with a myriad of contemporary genres including jazz, funk and hip-hop. The aim of which is to unveil an "unprecedented musical product”.
To highlight the project’s diverse and innovative nature, Basiani and Mikadze will be joined on the ShapeShifter Lab stage by renowned American DJ and producer Raydar Ellis.
The musical event will be presented by Charity Fund Georgian Chanting, which promotes Georgian traditional singing and chanting in Georgia and beyond its borders.
Basiani, Mikadze and renowned American DJ and producer Raydar Ellis will each contribute on stage to the fusion of musical styles in the New York show:
In @REVIVEmusic Big Band Rehearsal #NationalSelfieDaypic.twitter.com/Tk5EJZDzMr
— RaydarEllis (@RaydarEllis) 21 June 2016
The show will be supported by the Ministry of Culture and Monument Protection of Georgia, the country’s National Folklore Centre and Yamaha Corporation of musical instruments, which recently signed a deal with Mikadze.
The international recognition of the young pianist and composer has increased in recent months since he graduated with a Master's degree in Jazz Arts from New York's prestigious Manhattan School of Music earlier this year.
Mikadze impressed music professionals in the United States (US) with his collaborative projects with the music school. Two of his earlier works were a fusion of Georgian folk music with African and classical music genres, as well as a combination of rap performance with classical symphony instruments.
The State Ensemble of Georgian Folk Singing ‘Basiani’ are currently on tour in the United States. Photo from Basiani ensemble.
In August the Georgian musician joined Grammy award winner and 19-time Grammy nominee guitarist Lee Ritenour, composer and arranger Dave Grusin and other established names for a show at New York’s Blue Note Jazz Club.
Over the past two years Mikadze has also performed with his band, the Giorgi Mikadze Group, at concerts in New York and Los Angeles as well as the Black Sea Jazz Festival in Georgia's seaside city Batumi.
The young artist’s global music career was heavily supported by a financial contribution from the Georgian Government's International Education Centre (IEC), established in 2014 to fund the Master’s or doctoral study costs of Georgian citizens at leading universities abroad.
Mikadze, a 2014-2016 beneficiary of the IEC, also holds three Bachelor degrees in Classical Music, Composition and Performance from Tbilisi State Conservatoire in Georgia and the Berklee College of Music in Boston, US.
If you are in New York, do not miss the chance to attend a series of concerts in the legendary Blue Note Jazz Club on August 16-21 involving a top Georgian musician and international jazz legends.
Grammy award winner and 19-time Grammy nominee guitar player Lee Ritenour has chosen bright jazz star Giorgi Mikadze of Georgia to be part of the main rhythm section as the pianist.
Aspiring Georgian jazz pianist Giorgi Mikadze has become the first Georgian artist to sign with globally renowned musical instrument company Yamaha, joining a list of internationally acclaimed artists Alicia Keys, Chick Corea, Jamie Cullum and more.
A Georgian jazz pianist now based in the United States (US) is celebrating his rise in popularity in the US music scene by teaming up with other top jazz artists for two creative musical projects.
Georgia’s Giorgi Mikadze picked to perform in New York
Rising Georgian jazz pianist Giorgi Mikadze has been chosen to perform alongside some of the biggest jazz prospects in a New York celebration marking International Jazz Day.
Georgian pianist and composer Giorgi Mikadze will continue his musical career at one of the most prominent creative venues in the United States after receiving the 18th Street Art Centre residency in California for 2017.
Georgian composer Giorgi Mikadze will team up with the country’s celebrated vocal ensemble Basiani to present a brand-new musical project in China’s capital Beijing next week.
A handful of Georgian artists will showcase their talents at fusing varying musical genres to audiences of a Berlin concert of the Young Euro Classic festival later this month.
Music enthusiasts spending their summer on the Georgian seaside will be treated to a concert bringing together the country’s folk music with contemporary genres and sounds early next month.