Issie Brown
Taktakishvili Sonata
Georgian composer Otar Taktakishvili (1924-1989) was born and raised around music, with his single mother working as an artist at the Georgian Opera House. His uncle, Shalva Taktakishvili, was a composer and founded the Association of Young Georgian String Orchestra, whilst his other uncle, Giorgi Taktakishvili, was a cellist and Director of a music school. Unsurprisingly, Otar demonstrated musical promise from a young age. His talents on the piano
were nurtured at the No42 School until he commenced studies at the Tbilsi Conservatorium in 1942, at 19 years old. Soon after his arrival, Taktakishvili won the national contest to compose the Georgian Soviet Socialist National Anthem; an especially remarkable achievement given he composed the music “in one try”. Taktakishvili had a mix of inspirations: Georgian folk music, Mozart, J.S. Bach, Beethoven, and more modern composers including Scriabin and Prokofiev. Perhaps the most important influence of all was that of Shostakovich, with whom he studied and became a long-term friend. This sonata is Taktakishvili’s most well known work today, but he also wrote two symphonies, four piano concertos, two violin concertos and six operas.
This recording was made during my Fourth Year Recital at the Queensland Conservatorium Griffith University.
