Performance at St.-Mark’s-in-the-Valley Espicopal Church set for Sunday, March 1
The fourth concert of the 2025-2026 season for the Santa Ynez Valley Concert Series entitled “An Afternoon of Soaring Songs,” will take place on Sunday, March 1, at 4 p.m., at St. Mark’s-in-the-Valley Espicopal Church.
The concert will feature the rising tenor, Giorgi Guliashvili, and celebrated collaborative pianist, Carrie-Ann Matheson. The program features songs and arias by Liszt, Donizetti, Tosti, Leoncavallo, Verdi, Puccini, and others.
“It is part of the mission of the Santa Ynez Valley Concert Series to showcase up-and-coming musicians such as the wonderful tenor, Giorgi Guliashvili,” said Artistic Director Robert Cassidy. “He is on the cusp of a major international career, and we are so fortunate to welcome him today with the elegant pianist, Carrie-Ann Matheson, who is currently the artistic director of the Merola Program at the San Francisco Opera Center. As a bonus, they are both alumni of the Music Academy of the West in Santa Barbara.”
Guliashvili is currently a member of the Royal Opera House’s Jette Parker Artists Programme. He began his vocal studies at the Tbilisi State Conservatory, where he performed the roles of Tamino Die Zauberflöte and Alfredo La Traviata. He continued his training at the Accademia del Teatro di San Carlo in Naples under the guidance of the renowned soprano Mariella Devia.
During his time there, he appeared as Cavaradossi in a reduced version of “Tosca” and took on supporting tenor roles in “Anna Bolena” and “Norma.” Giorgi went on to complete postgraduate studies in opera at Yale University and is an alumnus of the San Francisco Opera’s Merola Program. He has received recognition in several international competitions, including winning First Prize at the Gerda Lissner Vocal Competition. Recent roles include Vaudémont (“Iolanta”), Araquil (“La Navarraise”), and Lensky (“Eugene Onegin”).
Matheson has a multi-faceted international career as pianist, conductor, and educator, and since January 2021, the artistic director of the San Francisco Opera Center and the Merola Opera Program. A native of Canada, Matheson began her career at the Metropolitan Opera, where she was a tenured member of the music staff, serving as assistant conductor, prompter, pianist, and vocal coach. The expansion of her European performing career began in 2014 when Maestro Fabio Luisi invited her to join the coaching and conducting staff at Opernhaus Zürich.
Tickets for the performance are free for students, $25 for General Admission, and $45 for Patron Seats, and can be purchased at www.smitv.org/syv-concert-series.html
The March 1 performance is the fourth out of five in the Santa Ynez Valley Concert Series, with the final one scheduled for Sunday, April 26, featuring the Duo Giacopuzzi (Jacopo and Maddalena Giacopuzzi on dual pianos).
