At 5:55 p.m. on ORF 2
Vienna (OTS) – Virtuoso musicality meets expressive dance art: In the latest edition of the ORF young talent series “Stars & Talents by Leona König” on Sunday, March 24th, 2024, at 5:55 p.m. on ORF 2 (Dacapo on March 28th, 11:10 a.m., ORF 2 ) there is a happy reunion between the renowned violinist Lisa Batiashvili and the young dancer Noemi de Carvalho. At the finale of the “Golden Note 2023” classical music award, where the then 16-year-old student won in the “Ballet and Contemporary Dance” category, the celebrated musician was part of the star jury – they performed the impressive winning performance together. In addition, Noemi also had a whole semester of study at the Music and Art University of the City of Vienna. For “Stars & Talents”, presenter and producer Leona König, initiator of the classical music promotion award “Golden Note” as well as the TV format and chairwoman of the International Music Association for the Promotion of Gifted Children (IMF), brings the two together again. This time Lisa Batiashvili will observe the young dancer’s progress and provide her with motivational support during her performance. Beforehand, Leona König meets the protagonists separately for a conversation and also accompanies her protégé on an entertaining shopping trip.
Batiashvili: “Music has always helped me a lot”
The multi-award-winning Georgian-born violinist Lisa Batiashvili is at home on the world’s major concert stages and is valued by audiences, colleagues and critics alike for her virtuosity. She really enjoys performing in the federal capital because: “Here in Vienna there are only fantastic concert halls,” she enthuses in an interview with Leona König. “But now I really enjoy playing at home in Georgia again. Many years after I left Georgia, I came back – in a completely different role,” says the artist, who, together with her parents, turned their backs on their homeland at the age of twelve because of the difficult political situation in the former Soviet republic and moved to Germany. When she performs in Georgia today, it is a special form of communication for her: “To show and give back the love for her own country.” Lisa Batiashvili, the daughter of a pianist and a violinist, began playing the violin and piano when she was two years old play – inspired by the many home rehearsals of her father’s string quartet and their numerous concerts, she followed in his musical footsteps. After moving to Germany, she studied at the Hamburg University of Music at the age of twelve and quickly learned German. “Music always helped me a lot with integration,” she remembers. Promoting young artists is particularly important to the mother of two. That’s why she even founded her own foundation to support highly gifted musical talent in Georgia. “Although this is a very small country, there are a lot of talented young musicians, especially in the new generation. I want to do something for them and not just once, but have the opportunity to look after them, to be in close contact with them and to talk to them in general about music, about being a musician. If you have people who advise you and really support you, that can’t be a bad thing,” says Batiashvili.
Five Secrets: Beethoven meets One Republic
The violinist would also like to support Noemi de Carvalho with her expertise and positive nature. Like herself, the young dancer from South Africa came to Germany at the age of twelve and now makes her home in Bad Reichenhall near the Austrian border. She still thinks fondly of her old home of Cape Town because she misses the sea, surfing, the good weather and her friends. Noemi, who started ballet at a very young age but later discovered her love for modern expressive dance, has long since found her footing in her new home and is taking lessons at the Austria Dance Academy in St. Johann in Tirol. “I still do ballet, but I like contemporary a little more because I’m better at it,” reveals the student, whose mother also danced in South Africa. Musically, she feels comfortable in different genres: from rock and pop to classical. She has always been particularly fascinated by Japanese culture and the Japanese dance style, which was also expressed in her contemporary performance at the “Golden Note” last year for Shigeru Umebayashi’s piece “Sichelmond”. For her “Stars & Talents” performance, Noemi chose the arrangement “Beethoven’s Five Secrets” by The Piano Guys – a mix of Beethoven’s 5th Symphony and “Secrets” by the pop band One Republic. She also has clear ideas for her later life: “I would really like to study to do choreography because it is very interesting,” she says. Before she appears on “Stars & Talents”, Leona König goes on a sustainable shopping tour where she tries out all kinds of vintage fashion. Although shoes are also on the shopping list, Noemi later dances barefoot again – as she did in the “Golden Note” finale.