Doctor in Art Studies, teacher of Georgian church and folk singing

she studied piano art (bachelor’s degree) and church music research (master’s degree) at the Tbilisi State Conservatory named after V. Sarajishvili. Since 2013, she has been a doctoral student at the Faculty of Sciences and Arts of Ilia State University. In 2009, she founded the girls’ Georgian traditional music ensemble “Yaloni”. Since 2011, she has been working as a senior assistant of folk singing and chanting at the Church Chanting University named after Giorgi Mtatsmideli in Tbilisi. Since 2017, she has been working as the leader of the folklore ensemble “Alilo” of Bolnisi municipality. Since 2017, within the framework of Erasmus +, she has been cooperating with London’s Rose Bruford College of Drama and Theater on a semester basis, in the form of conducting Georgian traditional music lectures for undergraduate and graduate students. As a result of the mentioned master classes, in August 2018, a troupe consisting of the college’s graduate students presented the play Medea, decorated with Georgian folk songs and dances, at the Edinburgh Festival, directed by Gabriel Gawin. In 2018, at the invitation of the Georgisches Kultue-Haus, she musically signed the play Tina oder die Waffen der Frau, directed by Edith Koeber-Kirchknopf, staged at Theater tri-Buhne in Stuttgart. Seasonally, she conducts traditional Georgian music master classes and cultural tours in Georgia, Great Britain, the Netherlands, Poland, Austria, Germany, Lithuania and Ukraine.
In 2005-2009, she was a member of the Tbilisi State Conservatory students’ folk ensemble, and in 2008-2013, she was a member of the “Sathanao” choir. In 2009-2019, Nino was the leader and member of the Georgian traditional music ensemble “Yaloni”. In 2017-2019, she was the head of the folk ensemble “Alilo”.
Fields of scientific interest/research interests
Religious music, Georgian church hymns, Easter tradition, liturgical music of Georgian Christian denominations.

Selected publications and scientific papers:
1. On the Types of Christian Liturgical Music in Today’s Georgia, EISH Etudes Interdisciplinaires en Sciences humaines, 2018, Numero 5. Ilia State University Publishing House.
2. Religious-cultural conglomerate in Dedoplistskaro (Kakheti). VII International Symposium on Traditional Polyphony, ed. Rusudan Tsurtsumi, Ioseb Jordan. Ministry of Culture and Monuments Protection, 2015.
3. Religiousness and Religious Music in Georgia (In examples of Orthodox Christians, Jehovah’s Witnesses and Pentecostals), Music and Cultural Studies Conference Musicult’15 Local & Universal. Turkish Music State Conservatory Istanbul Technical University, Macka Campus. www.dakam.org 2015.
4. Georgian Orthodox worship hymns; Georgian music. Reading for boys. Vol. 27. “Firefly”. Tbilisi. 2013.
5. Makers of Georgian chants – Karbelashvili brothers. Georgian music. Reading for boys. Vol. 27. “Firefly”. Tbilisi. 2013.
6. Structural formulas of decorations in the splendours of the glorious Resurrection of Christ, 5th International Symposium on Traditional Polyphony, ed. Rusudan Tsurtsumi, Ioseb Jordan. Ministry of Culture and Monuments Protection, Tbilisi State Conservatory. 2012.
7. The tradition of the service of Christ’s glorious resurrection, a collection of reports of the student musicological conference-competition, ed. Rusudan Tsurtsumia, Tbilisi State Conservatory, 2009.

Newspaper publications:

1. 2006 “Georgian Chant” newspaper – of the Patriarchate of Georgia
2. Monthly publication of the Church Chanting Center. Ed. Tamaz Gabisonia is the author of the columns “Current news in Georgian traditional singing”
3. “Georgian chant figures” (#1-10): Bishop Gabriel Kikodze; Bishop Alexander Okropiridze; Rajden Khundadze; Filimon Khoridze; Artem Erkomaishvili; Karbelashvili brothers; Anton Dumbadze;
4. 2008. Journal. Musical Georgia No. 3 p. 33 ,,He comforted me
5. My work and its fruits” – Filimon Koridze
6. 2006. Bulletin of the International Center for Polyphonic Research No. 5 21-23, “Currently, a real Meskhurian song is being searched for with a candle”
7. 2007. Bulletin of the International Center for Polyphonic Research No. 7, “The Most Famous Representative of the Erkomaishvili Family”.
8. Gaz. Resonance #012. “The essence of the Georgian song is unity and
9. In agreement”.
10. 2005. Bulletin of the International Center for Polyphonic Research No. 2, Folklore and Sas. “Music Festival in Batumi”
11. Cycle of programs: “Georgian traditional music” (Patriarch radio -FM 105.4): 2006-2008
12. …and the door of the temple closes Magazine: “Etc… and so on…” 2011
13. In the footsteps of Alilo’s tradition, a publication dedicated to the ensemble “Mountains”, Gaz. Resonance, 2008, #2
14. On the restoration of the Orthodox Church of the village of Pirakvi, 2006, #8
1. At the 2017-2018 Tbilisi choral music competition, the ensemble “Alilo” was awarded the first place and a gold medal.
2.2017 – at the Tbilisi choral music competition, the “Yalon” choir was awarded the grand prize in Georgian traditional singing, and the first place and gold medal in Georgian folk song.
3.2016 – At the national tour-festival of the Folklore Center of Georgia, the team “Yalon” was awarded the first place in the nomination of the best women’s folk ensemble.
4. Diploma of participation in MUSICULT’15 international conference. Turkey, Istanbul.
5. Certificate of “33rd Hainovki Orthodox Music Festival”. Poland, Hainowka.
6. Lithuanian international festival “Skamba, skamba kankliai”. 2015
7. Diploma of Honorary Participant of Ukraine (Khmelnitsky) International Festival 2016.
8. Diplomas of participation in the international festival named after Gigi Garakanidze of Batumi, 2011; 2016.
9. Diploma of participation in Sachkheri singing festival. 2014.
10. Certificate of participation in festival Shumattoba, Adjara, 2017.
11. Among the important tours, it is worth noting the cycle of concerts and master classes of “Yaloni” in four Dutch cities, within the framework of the “Voices from Georgia” festival, organized by the band “Oktoikhi”, 2017.
12. Organized concerts and events:
13.2019 – New Year’s Eve concert program with Nino Katamadze, Papuna Sharikadze and the Birmingham Gospel Choir.
14.2010-2019 “Yaloni” solo concerts and CD presentations in Georgia and abroad.
15.2019 Christmas performance “Shoba Gatenebula”, with the participation of 1st year girls of Tbilisi University of Church Chanting named after Giorgi Mtatsmideli. Hall of Ilia State University.
16.2007 – Tinatin Zhvania’s CD album presentation, Tbilisi Shota Rustaveli Society assembly hall.
17.2007 – “Agsavali” CD album presentation – Kritel’s canon, chamber hall of Tbilisi State Conservatory.
18.2008-2010- annual concerts dedicated to the Christmas and Easter holidays, small hall of Tbilisi State Conservatory. Teams from the capital and regions of Georgia participated. The main goal was to restore and resound archival, still unknown festive patterns, to introduce to the audience cognitive material about the traditional rituals of this holiday.
1.2014 – business trip to the “33rd Orthodox Music Festival in Hainowki” Poland. It was financed by the Ministry of Culture and Monuments Protection of Georgia.
2.2015 – Scientific visit to the 17th London Conference of Musicology and Ethnomusicology. It was financed within the framework of the travel grant competition of the Rustaveli National Science Foundation.
3.2015 – “Yaloni” tour concerts at the 42nd Vilnius folk music festival “Skamba, skamba kankliai”. It was financed by the Ministry of Culture and Monuments Protection of Georgia.
4.2016 – the author and coordinator of the winning project in the competition of the Ministry of Culture and Monuments Protection of Georgia, the regional project of the “Yaloni” ensemble – “Cultural-Educational Tour in the Regions of Georgia”. Concerts and master classes with local choirs of 5 central regions of Georgia (Telavi, Kutaisi, Mestia, Zugdidi, Ozurgeti). In connection with the mentioned project, a short documentary film “Folklore Sketches” was prepared.
5.2017 – business trip “Georgian traditional music master classes in Great Britain”. It was financed by the Ministry of Culture and Monuments Protection of Georgia.
6.2018 – “The garden is my country” project. “Yaloni” ensemble concerts in 4 regions of Georgia (Racha, Bolnisi, Telavi, Borjomi). It was financed by the Ministry of Culture and Monuments Protection of Georgia and the Department of Tourism.
7.2017-19 “Yaloni” cooperates with the London Rose Bruford College of Drama and Theatre; With the Georgian polyphony ensemble “Maspindzeli” and the Cambridge choir “Chela”, “Buska”, “Scotts”, “Borjghal”, “Oktoikh” – in the form of sharing experience, holding master classes and joint concerts for students from different countries and lovers of Georgian music.
8.2016-2018 cognitive lecture-concerts on Georgian culture and music Georgian Music and Culture in the past and present for the organization of foreigners living in Tbilisi Bridge to Georgia; For groups of German students – within the DAAD summer school.
1. On the Types of Christian Liturgical Music in Today’s Georgia, 21 Challenges of the 21st Century. Ilia state university. 2018.
2. Music of Christian denominations in Georgia, Esem conference. Tbilisi State Conservatory. 2018.
3. Religiousness and Religious Music in Georgia (In examples of Orthodox Christians, Jehovah’s Witnesses and Pentecostals), musical and cultural studies conference Musicult’15. local and universal. May 7-8. Turkish State Conservatory, Istanbul Technical University. 2015.
4. Religious minorities and their music in Georgia (on the example of Yahovites and Pentecostals) Scientific conference dedicated to Manana Andriadze, organized by the Department of History of Music of Tbilisi State Conservatory. 2015.
5. Religious-cultural conglomerate in Dedoplistskaro (Kakheti). Seventh Symposium on Traditional Polyphony. Tbilisi, Georgia. 2014.
6. Types of music of religious minorities in Georgia. 5th Batumi International Festival of Georgian Folk Song and Chant. 2010.
7. Structural formulas of decorations in the splendours of the glorious resurrection of Christ – 5th International Symposium on the Study of Traditional Polyphony. 2011.
8. Easter tradition in Georgia. III Batumi International Festival of Georgian Folk Song and Chant. 2010.
9. Christening chanting in Georgian choral practice – a scientific conference dedicated to traditional polyphony. Organizer: International Center for Traditional Polyphony Research. 2010.
10. Scientific conference dedicated to the 120th anniversary of Artem Erkomaishvili. Organizer: International Center for Traditional Polyphony Research, Tbilisi State Conservatory. 2009
11. Hymns of Christ’s Glorious Resurrection in Georgian Practice – Tbilisi V. Sarajishvili house conservatory; Students scientific conference-competition 2009.
12. Giorgi Mtatsmideli – Khobi III International Festival – Youth Conference. 2009.
13. Giorgi Mtatsmideli and his hymnographic work.
Conference dedicated to the 1000th anniversary of Giorgi Mtatsmindeli. Tbilisi V. Sarajishvili house Conservatory. 2009.
Artem Erkomaishvili’s life and work – Batumi II International Festival of Georgian folk songs and chants. 2008.

Published CD albums:
1. Tinatin Zhvania, Georgian Folk Songs and Hymns, State Folklore Center of Georgia, 2007.
2. Alilo, Georgian Traditional Christmas Songs and Hymns, Georgian Chant Foundation, 2016
3. Ensembles: Agsavali (2007), Sakhioba (2008), Kyrialesa (2010), Yalon (2010; 2012; 2015; 2017;) – author of forewords of CD albums.
4. Other:
5. Assistant of Ilia State University scientific grant project “Religiosity among Georgian youth” (leader Ketevan Gurchiani), 2015-2016.
6. Member of the Georgian Culture Strategy Coordination Group, 2015-2017.
7. Specialist of the Church Chanting Center of the Patriarchate of Georgia, 2009-2015.
8. Member of “Sathanao” singing group, 2007-2015.
9. Head of educational studio “Yaloni”, 2011-2016.
10. School-boarding IB mountain music teacher, 2013-2015. British-Georgian Academy music teacher, 2010-2011.
11.2006-2009 Producer, consultant of “Agsavali” boys choir.

Expeditions:
Meskheti 2004; Samegrelo 2016, 2008, 2012; Guria 2006, 2008, 20012, 2016; Gareji Desert 2016; Kakheti 2015, 2016, 2017; Svaneti 2016; Kvemo Tusheti 2015; Imereti 2016; Pshavi 2017; Racha 2018;