Khatia Buniatishvili is a classical music superstar. His new album honors Mozart in his own way

NEW YORK – Khatia Buniatishvili is one of the most well-known classical musicians It’s been more than a decade, but he prefers to bury the chatter about his celebrity beneath the peak of his music and charismatic performances.

“I think if I start talking about my charisma, that might be the end. It’s like the height of narcissism, right?” Buniatishvili said this shyly in a recent interview.

But it is her command of the stage combined with her impressive performance energy and glamorous appearance that has made her a household name in classical music. Pianist born in Georgia, together with new generation artists Icelandic pop-jazz singer and cellist Laufey, French violinist Esther Abrami, Nigerian opera singer Babatunde Akinboboye and even pop superstar Lizzo, A classically trained flautist, she is helping to dispel the elitist stigma often attached to the genre and attracting millennial and Gen Z audiences.

“I am the happiest person when I hear this… young people, this is the movement of life,” said Buniatishvili, who has twice won the Opus Klassik, Germany’s highest prize for classical artists. “Thanks to these young people who listen, you can bring new life to them, to the composers. “I think this is the greatest achievement you can achieve in life.”

The 37-year-old French-Georgian, who has collaborated with leading mainstream artists such as Coldplay and A$AP Rocky, On Friday, he released his sixth solo album, “Mozart: Piano Concertos No. Released 20 and 23”. St Martin’s Academy in the Fields chamber orchestra.

Buniatishvili, who made his debut with the Tbilisi Chamber Orchestra when he was just 6 years old, spoke to The Associated Press about notoriety, Mozart and creating a more level playing field in classical music. Answers have been edited for clarity and brevity.

AP: Why are you hesitant to talk about fame when there’s so much fanfare around you? You specifically mentioned narcissism.

BUNIATISHVILI: I think it’s very easy to become a (narcissist) if you don’t pay attention to it when you’re an artist, because it can seem like everything is around one person, but it’s actually much more than that. This is not about one person. It’s about what you let go of.

I think it’s very important to give an example to younger generations that having a mirror and taking selfies is a nice thing – it’s very nice – but you shouldn’t miss life in those moments.

AP: How did you develop your lifelong connection with the piano?

BUNIATISHVILI: It was there from the very beginning. They were there when I was born, as were my parents and my sister, but the piano was also there. … Even though I could have done different things in life, he was there like my family, and that comforted me.

AP: “Mozart: Piano Concertos No. What was the recording process like when creating 20 and 23”?

BUNIATISHVILI: The peculiarity of this recording was that it was with the orchestra, the chamber orchestra, but without conductors; I was conducting the orchestra. So it was a very special feeling because you are communicating with the orchestra and since you are not the conductor you have to convince them. … You have to make them feel what they really are: quite special, very unique and irreplaceable. And you must also achieve your own interpretation.

AP: Why did you choose to make this album without a conductor?

BUNIATISHVILI: I wanted to do something the way I felt. And sometimes conductors can help with this. Sometimes they suggest something different and you may or may not like it. … I really wanted to do it my way.

AP: What are you most proud of professionally?

BUNIATISHVILI: I am proud that I achieved this regardless of the chiefs, male powers or even women. Sometimes I wasn’t invited to the best orchestras in the world. But I would think, “It’s okay, I’ll play alone.” … I actually made my career doing recitals on stage alone, because most of the time I wasn’t part of this big power or big systems.

We must work on equality because not everyone has that chance. And I think that’s something we need to work on in classical music as well, because classical music can be very beautiful, but its system can also be quite divisive.

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Follow Associated Press entertainment reporter Gary Gerard Hamilton on all social media platforms at @GaryGHamilton.