KHACHATURIAN’S LEGACY CELEBRATED AT ST. VARTAN CATHEDRAL IN NEW YORK
18:10 19.06.2013
Aram Khachaturian, New York
A concert dedicated to the 110th anniversary of the birth of the great
Armenian composer Aram Khachaturian was held at New York’s St. Vartan
Armenian Cathedral on Wed., June 5. The event was organized under
the auspices of Archbishop Khajag Barsamian, Primate of the Diocese
of the Armenian Church of America (Eastern), and Ambassador Garen
Nazarian, the permanent representative of the Republic of Armenia to
the United Nations.
Karine Poghosyan, an award-winning pianist, performed a program she
created to present the richness and diversity of Khachaturian’s style.
First, there was Khachaturian the lyricist, whose heartwarming
melodies-“Adagio” from “Spartacus” and “Lullaby” from
“Gayaneh”-Poghosyan performed with passion and grace. The program
also highlighted the energetic and rhythmic Khachaturian of his early
piano work “Poem” (1927) and the familiar “Toccata” (1932).
Finally, the audience encountered Khachaturian the innovator-less
well known but all the more powerful and demanding-through his
large-scale piano composition, the “Sonata” (1961). Poghosyan closed
her exhilarating concert with an encore: Khachaturian’s “Waltz”
from the “Masquerade Suite.”
More than 300 people attended the evening concert, including more than
40 United Nations ambassadors and dignitaries. The concert marked
the inaugural 2013-14 Season of “Classical Music, Concerts @ Saint
Vartan.” Vicki Shoghag Hovanessian welcomed the audience and outlined
the objective of the concert series, mentioning that there would be
four more concerts in the coming season. She spoke of Khachaturian’s
lasting legacy and said he enriched human culture with the timeless
beauty of his heritage.
“Music is a universal language of mankind,” said Ambassador Nazarian.
“It touches many hearts, and reminds us of our common humanity and
common responsibility to work together in partnership to spread the
message of solidarity and peace around the world.”
Archbishop Yeghishe Gizirian closed the evening with a benediction. A
reception followed. The Very Rev. Fr. Mamigon Kiledjian, dean of St.
Vartan Cathedral, was instrumental in organizing the concert.