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Six years of the Folklore State Centre

The Folklore Centre`s occupation during the last 6 years - To inform the society, the centre has published on its Facebook the projects it had carried out during 2014-2020:
Completely rehabilitated concert hall and recording studio equipped with the brand new techniques in Tbilisi;
Opening Ozurgeti Folklore Centre together with its multi-functional hall, recording studio, exhibition hall where more than 100 children are taught traditional folk songs and chants for free;
Three International Folk Festivals held in different regions of Georgia with nearly 1000 participants involved by 14 countries.
28 Choirmasters` Schools are being functioned throughout Georgia (Batumi, Kobuleti, Shuakhevi, Ozurgeti, Baghdati, Samtredia, Telavi, Khvareli, Ambrolauri, Oni, Mestia, Lentekhi, Tsageri, Gori, Kaspi, Tsalenjikha, Senaki, Khoni, Tianeti, Abasha, Borjomi, Kharagauli. Sachkhere, Dusheti, Zestaponi, Poti, Akhaltsikhe and schools that will be added to this list in Zugdidi, Vani and Akhmeta by 2021) where about 900 children are taught traditional songs and chants for free. More than 60 people are involved into the project .
National Folk Festival consisting 28 concerts, 3000 participants, 15000 audience members, 42 winners, 282 laureates and money awards worth of GEL 78375.
Festival of Choirmasters` Schools called “Future Voices”, participated by 11 choirmaster`s schools (Ozurgeti, Tsalenjikha, Lentekhi, Sachkhere, Oni, Mestia, Poti, Batumi, Zestaponi, Kobuleti, Samtredia) with about 400 children.
Hundreds of concerts and projects joined by numerous ensembles in almost every region of Georgia.
Vakhushti Kotetishvili`s “Oral folklore evening” called “Poem, you won`t be forgotten” held annually.
Annual scientific competition called "Your Folklore Idea” recently consisting 5 winner projects. Two expeditions have been carried out in Samegrelo and Zemo Adjara within the framework of the project, few ones are temporarily cancelled due to the COVID pandemic.
Nearly 100 publications including different fields of folklore. Digitized 23 658 unique Georgian chant scripts supported by the “Georgian Chanting Foundation”, as well as publications like “Shen Khar Venakhi “ (You are a vineyard ) and “Medieval Georgian chant” specially prepared for Frankfurt Fair. Monographs about various glorified artists, series “Georgian National Dance” - authored by Davit Javrishvili, Avtandil Tataraidze and Lili Gvaramadze (in working process).
Books: “Note volume of labour songs“ (Together with Tbilisi State Conservatoire ), Oral folklore of Georgian Jews, Eter Tataraidze: “Pirma Daglotsot Gvtisama” (Let the God bless you), Note volume of Adjarian folk songs etc…
Releasement of about 100 CD albums for almost every ensemble existing in Georgia for free.
Expeditions: Complex expedition - Tetritskharo, Racha-Lechkhumi and Shuakhevi: Complex expedition in Racha-collect information about the singers recorded by Shalva Aslanishvili. Expedition in Kakheti-Collect Kakhetian folk dance samples, find out and work on them-more than 25 expeditions in whole.
Masterclasses of Georgian folk dances and songs - Three-day long masterclass in Adjarian dances. Polo Vallejo`s 5-day long masterclass for 40 teachers from Choirmasters` schools.
Exhibitions - More than 130 exhibitions organized for master artists (completely for free). Glorified choirmasters (Polikarpe Khubulava, Andro Simiashvili, Guri Sikharulidze, Islam Pilpani, Jemal Chkuaseli, Irodi Tikaradze, Tristan Sikharulidze) were awarded with the award - “Votary of Art”. President of Georgia, Salome Zourabichvili awarded folk centre cooperators (General editor - Baia Aseishvili and Archives Chief Coordinator - Nana Kalandadze) with orders of honor;
Activities carried out during distance working process in 2020: The Folklore State Centre has published on its official web site about 50 E-books, more than 4000 audio recordings and unique manuscripts of Georgian chants protected in archive.
“Folk evenings”- concerts of 5 ensembles at Folk Garden; two-month long distance project - “Folk for you” - family ensembles from around Georgian. Studying process has restored at Batumi Choirmasters` School, Jemal Chkuaseli`s hand print was added to the ones presented at Art Palace (co-organizer).
International Symposium “Folklore of Silk Road Countries” (co-participant) ; Android application of E-books is worked on , which will enable the consumers get introduced with publications of the folklore centre and other organizations: samples of songs, chants, dances, oral folklore and handcraft will be available.
Anzor Erkomaishvili`s 80th anniversary (co-organizer);
Preparation for Zemo-Svaneti expedition;
Director of the centre, Giorgi Donadze`s weekly online meetings with the teachers and students of the Choirmasters` Schools.
Filming archive materials of the centre (expeditions, festivals, concerts);
According to the spread information GEL 4 614 001 was spent on projects and infrastructural processes carried out by the centre during 2014-2020.
Despite the severe pandemic background, the Folklore Centre continues working distantly on different projects (Online concerts and publications).