International Piano Festival starts in Baku

By Azernews

By Laman Ismayilova

The first Baku International Piano Festival has started in Azerbaijan.

World-famous pianists from Azerbaijan and other countries are taking part in the festival held with the support of the Culture Ministry.

The opening ceremony took place at the State Philharmonic Hall.

Culture Minister Anar Karimov, French Ambassador to Azerbaijan Zacharie Gross, and festival director, Honored Artist Shahin Novrasli addressed the event.

In their remarks, they stressed the importance of the piano festival held for the first time in Azerbaijan, Azernews reports.

Culture Minister Anar Karimov expressed his hope that the International Piano Festival will be held not only in Baku but also in other parts of the country.

Honored Artist Shahin Novrasli praised Azerbaijani piano school, which is well-known worldwide. He noted that the festival program includes 15 concerts that feature different music genres from classical to jazz.

French pianist Remi Geniet performed at the festival's opening ceremony.

Remi Geniet is one of the most prominent pianists of his generation. In 2015, he became a prize-winner of the Young Concert Artists in New York. In 2020, the young pianist was awarded a career grant by the prestigious New York Salon de Virtuosi.

He is the second prize winner at the 2013 Queen Elisabeth International Piano Competition and the youngest prize-winner of the Bonn International Beethoven Competition.

The French pianist visited Azerbaijan for the first time in his life. At the festival, Remi Geniet performed Ludwig van Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 5 in E major, Op. 73, also known as the Emperor Concerto.

The pianist noted the great role of Shahin Novrasli in the festival's organization.

The evening continued with a concert by the Zinnetango Quartet at the Orange Groove restaurant.

Zinnetango is an Argentine tango quartet that formed in the spring of 2021.

The international quartet consists of Argentinian, Belgian, and Estonian top musicians that are united by a common passion for the old tradition of tango. Talented dancers will brighten up the band's live performance.

The beautiful tango dance did not leave the audience indifferent. The highlight of the evening was the fiery performance of Azerbaijani dance duets Ilham Osmanov and Alfiya Sultanova, Kamran Babayev and Nargiz Osmanova, Alexey Anpilov and Lenay Seyidali-zada.

For more information, please visit the festival's website. Tickets are available here.

Media partners of the event are Azernews.az, Trend.az, Day.az, Milli.az.