12th International Music Festival
Odessa Classics 2026

🇨🇭 «Botvinov and Friends»

🇨🇦 Canada July

🇪🇪 Estonia September

🇬🇷 Greece March

Artists Artists of the Odessa Classics festival

The famous pianist and festival director Alexey Botvinov presents a concert series “Botvinov and Friends” in Zürich. The aim of the project is to bring classical music to a young and broad audience at a high level in an innovative and traditional way.

Sponsor of the project

Sulzer

Casino, Bern

📅 29 June, 19:30

Ensemble “NICO”
Gediminas Gelgotas (artistic director, conductor)
Alexey Botvinov (piano)

Program
Myroslav Skoryk	Melody
Victoria Poliova	Blessed Sadness
Gediminas Gelgotas	Transitory Lock Me In Your Light, St.Luke Never Ignore the Cosmic Ocean To the Skies
Gediminas Gelgotas / M.K. Čiurlionis	Recomposed: Rising Dawn
Max Richter	November Tartu Piano (arr. A. Botvinov)
Max Richter / A. Vivaldi	Recomposed: Vivaldi, The Four Seasons: Summer
Philip Glass	Tyrol Concerto, Part II (arr. A. Botvinov)
Ludovico Einaudi	Experience

Tonhalle, Zürich

📅 5 October, 19:30

Jing Zhao (cello)
Michael Guttman (violin)
Alexey Botvinov (piano)

Program
Rachmaninov — “Trio elegiaque”
Robert Schumann — “Fantasiestücke,” Op. 73
Piazzolla — “The Four Seasons of Buenos Aires”

Zunfthaus zur Waag, Zürich

📅 15 November

Michail Schischkin (writer)
Alexey Botvinov (piano)

“Menschen. Musik. Schicksale. 4 Teil”
Program
Music by Bach

Passed events

Kunsthaus, Zürich

📅 28 January, 19:30

Tanja Sonc (violin)
Alexey Botvinov (piano)
Video installations – VJ Videomatics

A concert of classical and crossover music with video art
Program
Music by Glass, Richter, Rachmaninoff, Piazzolla and Macmillan

Zunfthaus zur Waag, Zürich

📅 1 February, 16:00

Michail Schischkin (writer)
Alexey Botvinov (piano)

“Rachmaninov” project
Program
Text by Michail Schischkin (in German) with music by Rachmaninov

Tonhalle, Zürich

📅 1 March, 19:30

Elena Bashkirova (piano)
Alexey Botvinov (piano)

Program
Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy	„The Hebrides“ Overture, Op. 26, for piano four hands Selection from „Seven Songs Without Words“ for piano four hands

Ludwig van Beethoven	Piano Sonata No. 8, Op. 13 „Pathétique“ (A. Botvinov)

Antonín Dvořák	Selection from „Poetic Mood Pictures“ Op. 85 (E. Bashkirova)

Franz Schubert	Fantasy in F minor, D 940, for piano four hands

Spiez

📅 21 May, 20:00

Michael Guttman (violin)
Samuel Justitz (cello)
Alexey Botvinov (piano)

Program
Valentin Silvestrov	“Nostalgia” “The Messenger”
Sergei Rachmaninoff	Trio Élégiaque No.1 in G minor

Odessa Classics at Ottawa Chamberfest

Carleton Dominion-Chalmers Centre, Ottawa

📅 25 July, 17:30

Chamber Chat: Odesa Classics – Alexey Botvinov & Anna Pompeeva
Festival showcase in-depth conversations on music, the arts, and creativity. Today, Chamberfest welcomes Odesa Classics founder and pianist Alexey Botvinov and soprano Anna Pompeeva ahead of the 7pm Odesa Classics: Festival in Exile, the festival’s first-ever North American presentation. Founded in 2015, Odesa Classics has become one of Ukraine’s leading international classical music festivals. Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the festival has continued abroad, carrying Ukrainian music, artists, and cultural memory across borders. Join us for a powerful conversation about artistic resilience, music in exile, and the role of culture in sustaining identity, connection, and hope. Chamberfest’s Community Engagement and Educational programming is made possible with the generous support of Jean Teron.

Chamber Chat: Odesa Classics – Alexey Botvinov & Anna Pompeeva

Festival showcase in-depth conversations on music, the arts, and creativity. Today, Chamberfest welcomes Odesa Classics founder and pianist Alexey Botvinov and soprano Anna Pompeeva ahead of the 7pm Odesa Classics: Festival in Exile, the festival’s first-ever North American presentation.

Founded in 2015, Odesa Classics has become one of Ukraine’s leading international classical music festivals. Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the festival has continued abroad, carrying Ukrainian music, artists, and cultural memory across borders. Join us for a powerful conversation about artistic resilience, music in exile, and the role of culture in sustaining identity, connection, and hope.

Chamberfest’s Community Engagement and Educational programming is made possible with the generous support of Jean Teron.

Carleton Dominion-Chalmers Centre, Ottawa

📅 25 July, 19:00

Anna Pompeeva (soprano)
Alexey Botvinov (piano)
Brett Polegato (baritone)
Emily Kruspe (violin)
Carissa Klopoushak (violin and viola)
Gryphon Trio (piano trio)
Annalee Patipatanakoon (violin)
Roman Borys (cello)
Jamie Parker (piano)
Sam Loeck (double bass)

Program
Yakiv Stepovyi (1883–1921) O Mother Earth (poetry by Ivan Franko) O Cherished Word (poetry by Oleksandr Oles)
Valentin Silvestrov (b. 1937) Moments of Memory (V) for Piano Trio (2024) – North American Premiere (Commissioned by 53rd Istanbul Music Festival 2025 / Turkey; Wonderfeel Festival / The Netherlands; Walden Festival / Belgium; Off the Beaten Path Festival / Bulgaria; Beethoven Fest Bonn / Germany; Odessa Classics / Ukraine)
Mykola Lysenko (1842–1912) Mariltsa’s Aria from the opera Taras Bulba
Borys Lyatoshynsky (1894–1968) «A Quiet Wind Blows in the Field»
Ukrainian folk song «Oh, I Know That I Have Sinned» (arr. Vladislav Zaremba)
Viktoria Polyova (b. 1962) «Blessed Sadness» for two violins and piano – North American Premiere
Myroslav Skoryk (1938–2020) «Carpathian Rhapsody»
Alemdar Karamanoff (1934–2007) «Night prayer» from Piano Concerto no. 3 (“Ave Maria”) (arr. Alexey Botvinov)
Dmytro Klebanov (1907–1987) Scherzo from Trio No. 2 for Piano, Violin and Cello
Mykola Lysenko (1842–1912) Élégie. “La Tristesse” from 3 Pieces from ‘Album from the Summer of 1901’, Op.39
Vasyl Barvinsky (1888–1963) Variations for Strings and Piano Theme – Andante (quasi Larghetto) Variation I – Listesso tempo Variation II – Scherzo Variation III – Lyrist Song Variation IV – Allegro moderato ma energico Variation V – Dumka Variation VI – Kolomyika
Myroslav Skoryk (1938–2020) «Melody»

This performance runs approximately two hours and five minutes
(including a 20-minute intermission)

Tallinn State
music Academy

📅 3 September

Program coming soon

Thessaloniki Concert Hall
«Emilios Riadis» Hall (M2)

📅 4 March, 20:30

Matthias Goerne (baritone)
Alexey Botvinov (piano)

Program
Franz Schubert — «Winterreise» («Winter Journey») vocal cycle
Schubert’s Winterreise, undoubtedly the greatest masterpiece of the German song repertoire, is today considered a benchmark when performed by Matthias Goerne.