Alexander Kandelaki

Alexander Kandelaki studied at the V. Sarajishvili State Conservatory in Tbilisi (Georgia) under the guidance of professors Alexandre Nizharadze (a student of H. Neuhaus), Temur Matureli (a student of Y. Flier), and Rusudan Khodjava (a student of A. Goldenweiser), graduating with the highest honors. Between 1996 and 1998, as a scholarship holder of the Albéniz Foundation, he continued his studies at the Escuela Superior de Música Reina Sofía in Madrid, where he was a student of D. Bashkirov, G. Eguiazarova, and M. Gulyás. He also received mastercasses from Menahem Pressler and Vitaly Margulis.

Since 1998, he has been a piano professor at the Conservatorio Superior de Música Bonifacio Gil in Badajoz, where he holds the position formerly occupied by the great Spanish pianist Esteban Sánchez. Likewise, he teaches in the Master’s Program in Performance at the Centro Superior Katarina Gurska in Madrid and often gives masterclasses at conservatories and universities across Spain, establishing himself as one of the country’s most prestigious educators. Additionally, he is regularly invited to give masterclasses around Europe, including at the Hochschule für Musik in Hannover (Germany), the Conservatorium van Amsterdam (Netherlands), and was part of the teaching staff at the International Summer Academy Collegium Musicum in Pommersfelden (Germany).

He has performed recitals in several halls and festivals across Europe, including the Arriaga Theatre (Bilbao), Rosalía de Castro Theatre (La Coruña), Palace of Festivals (Santander), Villanueva Hall at the Prado Museum, and Manuel de Falla Auditorium (Granada). He has performed on several occasions at the Juan March Foundation (Madrid), with live broadcasts on Spanish National Radio. Also, his performances at the Rafael Orozco International Piano Festival (Córdoba), the Iberian Music Festival (Badajoz), the International Music Festival “Noches del Real Sitio” (Segovia), the “Midis-Minimes” Festival (Brussels), and the “Otoño Pianístico” Festival (Gdansk) were really noteworthy,  where he played as a soloist with the Baltic Philharmonic Orchestra in 2019. In 2003, he recorded a CD with cellist Pablo de Naverán, which was awarded the “Recording of the Year” prize by public vote on the Clásicos Populares program of Spanish National Radio.

He is also a frequent member of national and international competition juries, including his role as a Pre-Selection Jury member for the last two editions of the Concurso Internacional de Piano de Santander “Paloma O’Shea” (2018 and 2022).