Robert Bardzimashvili

Robert Bardzimashvili ( _ka. რობერტ ბარძიმაშვილი) (1934-2003) was a Georgian musician. He was the founder, lead vocalist, creative director, and guitarist of "Orera".

Formed in 1958, Orera became a Soviet sensation on the scale of Beatlemania. It also launched the careers of mega stars actor/singer Vakhtang Kikabidze and Nani Bregvadze.

In 1975, Bardzimashvili left Orera to form one of the first Soviet rock bands. Jimi Hendrix and other classic rock contemporaries heavily influenced the music of Via-75, and the group enjoyed tremendous popularity throughout the Soviet Union as one of the first and officially sanctioned [soft] rock bands in the country.

In the post-soviet years, Bardzimashvili headed the Tbilisi Opera. More recently, he established a music school for children, the Lakhti Studio. Bardzimashvili was awarded the highest official honor of the National Artist of the Georgian SSR, and in 2000 Orera received a star on the Plozhad Zvezd in Moscow, Russian's equivalent of the Hollywood Walk of Fame.