(b. August 10, 1935, Tbilisi). Renowned Georgian composer of works in all forms that have received acclaimed performances throughout the world; he has also written much film music. Mr. Kancheli had piano lessons as a child at a music school in Tbilisi and studied at the Georgian State Conservatory in Tbilisi from 1959-63, where his composition teacher was I.I.Tuskiya.
His many honors include the USSR State Prize (1976, for Symphony No. 4, ‘In Memoria di Michelangelo’). Since 1971, he has served as Director of Music at the Rustaveli Theatre in Tbilisi, for which he has written incidental music for many productions, mostly in cooperation with director Robert Sturua.
Mr. Kancheli left Georgia in 1991 (before the collapse of the Soviet Union), after receiving a grant from the Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst and stayed in Berlin until 1995. In 1995-96, he served as composer-in-residence to the Royal Flanders Philharmonic in Antwerp and has lived in Belgium since.
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