Mariam Batsashvili – at the JdP Music Building, St Hilda’s College
Mozart Fantasy in D minor, K.397
Chopin Andante spianato et Grande Polonaise brillante, op.22
Felix Mendelssohn Rondo Capriccioso, op.14
Liszt Rhapsodie espagnole, S.254
Interval
Schubert 4 Impromptus, op.90, D.899
Liszt Hungarian Rhapsody no.12, S.244/12
Georgian pianist Mariam Batsashvili is one of the brightest stars of the younger generation. She stepped into the limelight in 2011 with first prize at the Liszt Piano Competition for Young Pianists in Weimar. Three years later, she won the 2014 Liszt International Piano Competition in Utrecht.
Mariam brings a lovely programme: a Mozart Fantasia, Chopin’s serendipitous pairing of a Polonaise in stile brillante with a muted nocturne-like Andante, Mendelssohn’s ever popular Rondo Capriccioso and a Rhapsodie in which Liszt recalls a visit to Spain and Portugal with striking Iberian rhythms.
The second half opens with Schubert’s 4 Impromptus, beautiful lyrical singing pieces, and closes with a return to Liszt. Followers from SJE Arts will remember Mariam’s performances of Hungarian Rhapsodies nos.2, 10, 13 and 14. Now she gives us no.12, possibly the most ingenious of all, a meshing of multiple folk themes and a range from melancholy to rousing dance. The perfect ending.
Our thanks to the Jacqueline du Pré Music Building, St Hilda’s College, for their hospitality and support for the International Piano Series