Lisa Batiashvili on European tour with the Koninklijk Concertgebouworkest

Lisa Batiashvili joined the Koninklijk Concertgebouworkest under the direction of Paavo Järvi for a European tour. The programme included the Violin Concerto by Ludwig van Beethoven with cadenzas by Alfred Schnittke.

In Germany, the programme was performed on 20 February 2023 at the Alte Oper Frankfurt and impressed both the audience and the press:

Frankfurt, 20 February 2023:

"And indeed, the violinist, born in 1979 in Tbilisi and living in Germany, impressed with an intensity of the so pure and deeply felt instrumental vocal scenes, but also with her dialogue-strong fine tuning, which she and the orchestra succeeded in passages. The real coup of Batiashvili's performance, however, turned out to be the choice oft he cadenzas by the composer Alfred Schnittke, which she played in the first and last movements, and in which several quotations from other violin concertos, whether by Bach, Brahms or Bartók, appeared.“ (FAZ, 21.02.2023, Axel Zibulski)

"Batiashvili with her sparkling playing and the orchestra accompanying her, which was by no means restrained, moved instead as if groping through the music. A thoughtful, but thus also dewy approach to the insanely familiar work. The rarely used cadenzas by Alfred Schnittke, composed in 1978 - Batiashvili had sheet music for them with her - matched this, a gripping, serious and sombre experience." (Frankfurter Rundschau, 21.02.2023, Judith von Sternburg)

"Lisa Batiashvili played the melodic arcs with wonderful tonal quality. [...] Up to the barely audible pianissimo, she restrained the very warm tone of her precious instrument. Thus the spellbound listeners experienced an intimacy of performance that was deeply moving." (Online Merker, 21.02.2023) https://onlinemerker.com/frankfurt-alte-oper-konzert-concertgebouw-orkest-amsterdam-paavo-jaervi-lisa-batiashvili-beethoven-prokofjev/

Vienna, 19 February 2023:

"Her playing is dynamically finely shaded up to the long-drawn trills, passagework comes off her hand with technical ease. [...] Batiashvili's tone is also radiantly clear in the "Rondo"; despite all the playful lightness and slender flow of the dance-like gesture, the emotions do not fall by the wayside. In the corner movements, she uses Alfred Schnittke's cadenzas with virtuosic, captivating aplomb." (Klassik.com, 20.02.2023, Oliver Bernhardt)

"Batiashvili took up the thread, especially the numerous pianissimo passages turned into soulful, even to the limit of silence finely nuanced and at the same time technically perfect gusto pieces - an enormous, a rare pleasure, one can hardly play them better within this chosen interpretation." (Wiener Zeitung, 20.02.2023, Michael Brommer)