Glinka can justifiably be described as the fertile acorn from which grew the mighty oak of 19th century Russian national music. The graceful Variations on a Theme by Mozart, based on material from The Magic Flute, is remodelled so skilfully that it has effectively become an original theme. Fashionable salon pieces include the Variations on Benedetta sia la madre, an Italian romance, and Variations on a Theme from Cherubini’s Faniska, an opera greatly admired by Glinka. In Milan he became famous for his ability to reproduce on the piano the nuances of the voices of the great singers of the day, giving rise to two entertaining sets of operatic variations on themes by Donizetti and Bellini. The Variations on The Nightingale represent his return to the Russian style.

A multiple prizewinner of international competitions and described in the international press as a “poet on the piano with remarkable maturity”, Georgian-born pianist Inga Fiolia graduated from the Central Music School of the Tchaikovsky Conservatory in Moscow and the Cologne Musikhochschule with Alexey Nasedkin, Rudolf Kehrer and Vassily Lobanov. As a soloist, she has collaborated with world-renowned orchestras including the Brandenburg State Opera Philharmonic, the Brussels Philharmonic, the Georgian State Chamber Orchestra and National Philharmonic, the Bergische Symphoniker, and the South Westphalia Philharmonic. She has performed for major TV and radio stations including ZDF, ARTE, Classica TV, SWR, Deutschlandradio, WDR and Georgian TV.