Vakhtang Kakhidze
Composer, Conductor, Pianist,
Artistic Director of Djansung Kakhidze Tbilisi Centre for Music and Culture, Chief conductor of Tbilisi Symphony Orchestra
Official Web Site: vakhtangkakhidze.com
Vakhtang Kakhidze was born into a family of musicians in 1959 in Tbilisi, Georgia. He began to study music in age of 6 as a pianist. In 1975 he finished choir conducting department of Music High School. In 1981 he graduated from Moscow State Conservatory as a composer, and in 1983 he finished the post graduate courses of the same institute. His teachers were such famous musicians as Nikolai Sidelnikov - composition, Edison Denisov - art of instrumentation and others.
As composer Vakhtang Kakhidze works in different musical genres. His pieces were performed in Moscow, Petersburg, Poland, Bulgaria, Slovakia, Romania, Hungary, Finland, UK, Greece, Spain, France, Italy, Germany, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Turkey, Israel, India, the USA and Japan. He is an author of music for more than 60 drama performances, soundtracks for 20 films and animated cartoons, several jazz compositions and pop songs.
Vakhtang Kakhidze studied conducting in 1987-89 with his father, world famous Georgian conductor Djansug Kakhidze. In 1989 he started his activity as a conductor. His debut took place in Tbilisi Opera and Ballet Theatre, where he has conducted several performances of his ballet “Amazons”. From 1993 he worked as conductor of Tbilisi Symphony Orchestra. Beside concert performances he recorded 25 CDs for famous international sound-recording companies as “Sony Classical” and others.
In 2002 Vakhtang Kakhidze was appointed a Chief Conductor (Music Director) of Tbilisi Symphony Orchestra and Artistic Director of Djansug Kakhidze Tbilisi Centre for Music & Culture. During these years he conducted around 400 concerts with Tbilisi Symphony orchestra in Georgia and other countries: Russia and Italy (2004), Armenia (2009), Israel (2016), Germany (2017, 2018), Poland and Turkey (2019).
As guest conductor Vakhtang Kakhidze performed with such well-known orchestras and ensembles as: Kiev Symphony Orchestra (1994), chamber orchestras “Moscow Soloists” (1997/2005), Prague Symphony Orchestra (1997), “Kremerata Baltica” (1999), Symphony Orchestra “New Russia” (2003/2005), Beijing Symphony Orchestra (2005), Paris Trinity Church Choir and Orchestra (2006), German Ensemble “Del Arte” (2006/2008), Israel Chamber Orchestra (2006/2009), L'Orchestre Royal de Chambre de Wallonie (2008), The Israel Camerata-Jerusalem (2010/2014), Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra (2016/2017), Nordwest Deutsche Symphony Orchestra (2017), Ensemble Kobe (Japan-2019) and others.
Since 2002 Vakhtang Kakhidze leads annual International Music Festival “Autumn Tbilisi”, which hosts famous musicians from all over the world. In 2015 he founded” Djansug Kakhidze International Music Festival”, which presents the collaboration of Tbilisi Symphony Orchestra and World Stars of Jazz and Pop music.
Vakhtang Kakhidze performed with such outstanding musicians as:
Violin - Gidon Kremer, Viktor Tretjakov, Vadim Repin, Liana Isakadze, Lisa Batiashvili, Didie Lockwood,
Roman Simovic, Ilya Konovalov, Wouter Vossen, Wolfram Brandl, Alexander Rojdestvenski.
Viola - Yuri Bashmet, Wilfried Sctrehle, Danilo Rossi, Jean Pascal Osvald, Milan Radic.
Cello - Natalia Gutman, Alexander Kniazev, Gary Hoffman, Emilia Baranowska, Zvi Plesser, Kerstin Feltz,
Alexander Huelshoff, Beate Altenburg,
Piano - Eliso Virsaladze, Nelson Freire Lisa Leonskaja, Mikhail Rudi, Dmitri Alexeev, Alexander Korsantia,
Alexander Toradze, Khatia Buniatishvili, Seong-Jin Cho, Eteri Anjaparidze, Nino Gvetadze, Dudana
Mazmanishvili and others.
Opera Singers - Jose Carreras, Makvala Kasrashvili, Nino Machaidze, Iano Tamar, Salome Jicia, Anna
Aglatova, Nino Surguladze, Ketevan Kemoklidze, Zurab Sotkilava, Badri Maisuradze,
George Oniani, George Gagnidze, Lado Ataneli, Ramaz Chikviladze, Etty Ben Zaken.
Jazz /Pop World Stars - “The Manhattan Transfer”, “New York Voices”, “Take 6”, “The Swingles”,
“DePhazz”, Bob James, Ivan Lins, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Patti Austin, Richard Bona, Avishai Cohen, Paula Morelenbaum.
Composers - Michel Legrand, Gyia Kancheli, Josef Bardanashvili, Eitan Steinberg, Yaron Gotfried
and others.
Ensembles - “Cameristi della Scala “,“Moscow Soloists” Israel Camerata- Jerusalem, “Kremerata Baltica”, “Storioni Trio”, “Janoska Ensemble”, “Bamberg Trio”, World Quintet “Kolsimcha”, Ingolstadt Georgian Chamber Orchestra, Swiss Army Brass Band, “Georgian Sinfonietta”.
Vakhtang Kakhidze is holder of several prizes:
1981 – 1st prize at the former USSR competition for young composer
1997 - “Spring” – The special prize instituted by Tbilisi City Hall for achievements in the arts
“Nato” - The prize instituted by Georgian Cinema Academy for the best film music
1998, 2005 and 2013 – The prize for the best music composed for drama performance instituted
by Georgian Theatre Union
2000 – “Order of Honour” - The state award of Republic of Georgia
2010 /2021 - “Shota Rustaveli Prize” - The supreme award in the arts of Republic of Georgia
2013 - “The Presidential Order of Excellence”
2015 – “Zakhary Paliashvili prize” – established by the Musicians Association of Georgia
2018 – Honorary Citizen of Tbilisi
2019 - “Inspiration story” award established by “Maestro Janis Duminsh memorial support fellowship”,
Riga, Latvia.
2022 – The best of Georgia – Award of Swiss Business Raiting
