About Mariam
Mariam Chitanava
Piano Teacher · Collaborative Pianist
Born into a Georgian family in Moscow, Mariam studied with Farida Nurizade and Olga Filatova, then in Prof. Milana Chernyavska's class at Reina Sofía, with masterclasses from Nikolai Demidenko and Ralf Gothóni.
Her musical life has taken her from Moscow to Madrid and now London. She teaches children and young students, and works with other musicians as a collaborative pianist.
How Mariam teaches
Mariam plays repertoire for her pupils first, so they hear what the music can become. Each pupil then works towards their own goals, in the Russian-school tradition with a modern approach.
She has taught at the Lev Oborin Children's Music School in Moscow and at Calasancio College in Madrid, and teaches privately. She helps young pianists build technique, listen closely and feel at ease sharing music.
Piano Lessons →
Early years and education
Mariam began playing at six, first learning from her mother and aunt. Lessons at the Lev Oborin Children's Music School with Olga Filatova led to the Central Music School, where she studied with Farida Nurizade, and then to the Moscow State Tchaikovsky Conservatory, where she studied with Elena Richter.
In 2022 she moved to Madrid to study at the Escuela Superior de Música Reina Sofía, as an international competition winner and scholarship recipient supported by Grupo Barceló and Fundación Albéniz. She worked closely with Milana Chernyavska, Denis Lossev and Claudio Martínez Mehner, and took masterclasses with Nikolai Demidenko, Ralf Gothóni, Robert Levin, Eldar Nebolsin and Hubert Rutkowski. Other masterclasses were with Pierre-Laurent Aimard, Luis Fernando Pérez, Imre Rohmann and Denis Chefanov.
Competitions and awards
Mariam has won prizes at international piano competitions since she was a child, in Moscow, Paris, Brescia, Zagreb, Saint Petersburg, Brussels and Alicante. She came to Madrid in 2022 as an international competition winner and scholarship recipient, supported by Grupo Barceló and Fundación Albéniz.
In 2025 she was selected for the preliminary round of the 19th International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw.
Scholarships: Fundación Albéniz (2022), Moscow Government (2011, 2012), New Names Foundation (2011).
Competition record
All prizes and scholarships ↓
Teaching background
Mariam teaches piano privately to children and young students. From 2018 to 2022 she taught at the Lev Oborin Children's Music School in Moscow, and in early 2026 at Calasancio College in Madrid.
Playing with other musicians
Since 2026 Mariam has been staff accompanist at Reina Sofía in the Telefónica Violin Chair with Professor Zakhar Bron, and she was rehearsal pianist for the 2025 world premiere of Óscar Colomina i Bosch's Visitaciones at Madrid's Auditorio Nacional de Música. She is one half of the Amy Beach Duo with violinist Eduard Kollert.
She has performed across Europe, from the Rheingau Music Festival to the Moscow Conservatory, at Club Monteverdi and Centro Botín, and at the Museo Nacional del Prado in Pinceladas Sonoras. Her recording Georgian Music of the 21st Century brings contemporary music from her Georgian heritage to new listeners.
Between 2015 and 2019 she played at festivals in France and Germany. In 2024 her performance with the Smetana Piano Trio was broadcast on Stingray Classica. From September 2025 to May 2026 she was choir pianist at USP CEU in Madrid.
Press and appearances
In the press
“Mi mayor influencia son mis profesores, porque además de técnicas musicales me han enseñado a ser humana.”Mariam Chitanava, Mujer y Talento (English: “My greatest influence is my teachers, because besides musical technique they taught me to be human.”)
Appearances
Work in London
Mariam is now based in London. She welcomes enquiries about piano lessons for children, accompaniment, chamber music and recitals, and speaks English, Russian, Georgian and Spanish.
hello@mariamchitanava.com