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REMEMBERING THE MAESTRO: ARAM GHARABEKIAN "SET THE BAR AT A NEW LEVEL AND CLEARED IT"
ARTS AND CULTURE | 14.01.14 | 17:12
Photolure
By Gohar Abrahamyan
ArmeniaNow reporter
Great conductor, talented musician, unique personality, wonderful
friend, caring and loving - this is how prominent Armenian conductor
Aram Gharabekian is remembered among friends and colleagues, mourning
his loss and having a hard time speaking about him in past tense.
Enlarge Photo With Tigran Hekekyan (left) Enlarge Photo With Anna
Mailyan (left)
"He stood out for his great desire to perform Armenian music; it was
due to him that I got to create numerous pieces. A great number of
composers' creations were staged with his support. I am very sorry
that he has left us so prematurely," composer, merited artist Ruben
Altunyan told ArmeniaNow.
Gharabekian died Saturday in Los Angeles, age 58. No cause of death has
been reported, though it is believed it might have been heart attack.
Tuesday, the RA ministry of culture told ArmeniaNow that they have
negotiated with Gharabekian's family on transferring his body to
Armenia, received the consent to do so and are now drafting the
required documentation, after which a government commission will
be called under the culture minister's leadership to determine the
funeral and burial details.
In his condolences extended to the great conductor's family and
friends, President Serzh Sargsyan said that Aram Gharabekian, having
studied in the world's best conservatories, demonstrated extreme
talent as a top and unique conductor, earning numerous prestigious
international awards, and developed also his native art of music.
Gharabekian, born in Tehran, graduated from the New England
Conservatory in Boston, then continued his postgraduate studies
at Mainz University in Germany. He studied conducting with Franco
Ferrara in Italy, and in 1979 became one of a few conducting pupils
of the famous Sergiu Celibidache in Germany. Gharabekian also studied
composition and conducting under Jacob Druckman and Leonard Bernstein
at Tanglewood Music Center in Boston, Massachusetts.
The National Chamber Orchestra of Armenia (NCOA) had the luck to
work with the prominent conductor as its Artistic Director between
1997-2009.
"Aram Gharabekian by his nature was a self-contained and a very decent
person. Coming to Armenia and assuming the artistic leadership of
the chamber orchestra, Gharabekian set the bar at a new level and
cleared it due to it his inner discipline, principality, high sense
of responsibility," recalls Tigran Hekekyan, director of the popular
Little Singers of Armenia. "He brought radical change to the numerous
post-soviet decayed traditions in the orchestra's inner agenda,
work-style, human relations, he set order and discipline, which,
unfortunately, is always received with hostility here."
Hekekyan recalls the concert arranged jointly with Gharabekian,
where Hekekyan's choir and the chamber orchestra performed together,
and earned high praise. What stood out in his memory, though, is
the atmosphere of warmth and equality, attention to details and tact
Gharabekian brought into personal and professional relations.
In late 1999, as part of Millennium Festival, an orchestra of musicians
from six countries under Gharebekian's leadership performed Beethoven's
Ninth Symphony in Kanchou City, China.
Years later Gharabekian would say that the Millennium Festival concert
had been one of the most memorable ones in his entire career.
"Imagine what euphoria the hundreds of talented musicians from various
countries experienced, when talent and high professionalism met to
create a musical miracle," he said in a press event.
Gharabekian launched his own international music festival, Open
Music Fest, held between July 30, 2009, and September 21, in Yerevan,
featuring a diversity of genres. This was an unprecedented event in
the independent Armenia, aimed at "creating a tradition which would,
first of all, reaffirm the eternal renewal of Yerevan's cultural
spirit". Open Music fest was hailed as a unique platform for artistic
collaboration and extraordinary performances of newly commissioned
works.
Gharabekian used to say that the festival's goal was to prepare the
next generation of great musicians in Armenia, nurture their talent
and, finally, give an opportunity to have their own input in the
world music treasury.
However, the multiple international award-winning conductor soon
resigned from his position of Artistic Director and Principal Conductor
in 2009, after having led NCOA for 12 years.
NCOA Members were unhappy with Gharabekian's reported intention to
audition new musicians for the orchestra and addressed a letter of
complaint to the culture ministry.
"Aram Gharabekian introduced a new culture of work relations here,
which some people, I guess, did not forgive him. Aram treated with
exceptional respect and valued highly every single musician working
under his leadership. He was demanding, but also demanded special
treatment and respect from the society towards the musicians in his
orchestra," says Hekekyan.
Gharabekian, disappointed, left the orchestra, but his genius was
too powerful to be defeated, and Gharabekian became the conductor
and artistic director of the Open Music Society Foundation,
a multifaceted arts organization dedicated to fostering musical
excellence, established in Los Angeles this month, which performed to
praise at the Space Shuttle Endeavor arrival ceremony at Los Angeles
International Airport.
Mezzo-soprano, winner of numerous local and international awards Anna
Mailyan, knew Gharabekian from his first days in Armenia and says that
the maestro with his artistic image seemed like an enigmatic creature.
Mailyan worked on numerous joint projects with him, performed in the
opening concert of the Open Music Fest, the implementation of which
had seemed like an impossible job, she says, which Gharabekian had
initiated and successfully completed.
Their last meeting was in Israel in 2012 within the frame of a concert
dedicated to Armenian composers and Armenian music.
"The orchestra was astonished by maestro's high musical standards
and loved him at once. Maestro, in turn, skillfully and in a terribly
short time, managed to stage several major pieces with the orchestra.
In Jerusalem the concert hall was packed, it was a huge success. The
following day we continued our tour to Tel Aviv," recalls the famous
singer, adding that the concert had to be held despite the unrest in
Tel Aviv.
"We got to our hotel, where there were notices in our rooms warning
about possible shelling and giving instructions to run and hide in the
hotel shelter as soon as a bomb alarm would be heard, which happened
frequently and every time he would come knock at my door and rush me
out. Once I was really scared and was trying to hide, but he sensed it
and told me not to be afraid with a typical manly firm tone. His words
were full of concern, which I greatly appreciated," tells Mailyan.
She also recalls that they became rather close with Gharabekian those
days and had long talks at breakfast on various subjects, especially
religious ones, but never once, she says, he said a word of complaint
of his issues in Yerevan.
"Aram would always come up with new ideas, maybe not acceptable for
all, which gave reasons for arguments and speculations. I am shocked
and saddened by his loss. Aram Gharabekian was truly a bright spot
in our cultural life. I wish he were the last victim of indifference,
ignorance, opportunistic, narrow and low human relations and intrigues
in the Armenian reality," says maestro Hekekyan.
Unfortunately, the first two weeks of 2014 have brought the sad news
of not only Gharabekian's untimely death; among the eminent figures
of Armenia who have passed away early this year are 87-year-old
architect, academician Jim Torosyan, 65-year-old sculptor Norayr
Karganyan, 53-year-old film-maker Armen Mazmanyan and 58-year-old
writer Levon Khechoyan.
http://www.armenianow.com/arts_and_culture/51313/aram_gharabekian_national_chamber_orchestra_armeni a
ARTS AND CULTURE | 14.01.14 | 17:12
Photolure
By Gohar Abrahamyan
ArmeniaNow reporter
Great conductor, talented musician, unique personality, wonderful
friend, caring and loving - this is how prominent Armenian conductor
Aram Gharabekian is remembered among friends and colleagues, mourning
his loss and having a hard time speaking about him in past tense.
Enlarge Photo With Tigran Hekekyan (left) Enlarge Photo With Anna
Mailyan (left)
"He stood out for his great desire to perform Armenian music; it was
due to him that I got to create numerous pieces. A great number of
composers' creations were staged with his support. I am very sorry
that he has left us so prematurely," composer, merited artist Ruben
Altunyan told ArmeniaNow.
Gharabekian died Saturday in Los Angeles, age 58. No cause of death has
been reported, though it is believed it might have been heart attack.
Tuesday, the RA ministry of culture told ArmeniaNow that they have
negotiated with Gharabekian's family on transferring his body to
Armenia, received the consent to do so and are now drafting the
required documentation, after which a government commission will
be called under the culture minister's leadership to determine the
funeral and burial details.
In his condolences extended to the great conductor's family and
friends, President Serzh Sargsyan said that Aram Gharabekian, having
studied in the world's best conservatories, demonstrated extreme
talent as a top and unique conductor, earning numerous prestigious
international awards, and developed also his native art of music.
Gharabekian, born in Tehran, graduated from the New England
Conservatory in Boston, then continued his postgraduate studies
at Mainz University in Germany. He studied conducting with Franco
Ferrara in Italy, and in 1979 became one of a few conducting pupils
of the famous Sergiu Celibidache in Germany. Gharabekian also studied
composition and conducting under Jacob Druckman and Leonard Bernstein
at Tanglewood Music Center in Boston, Massachusetts.
The National Chamber Orchestra of Armenia (NCOA) had the luck to
work with the prominent conductor as its Artistic Director between
1997-2009.
"Aram Gharabekian by his nature was a self-contained and a very decent
person. Coming to Armenia and assuming the artistic leadership of
the chamber orchestra, Gharabekian set the bar at a new level and
cleared it due to it his inner discipline, principality, high sense
of responsibility," recalls Tigran Hekekyan, director of the popular
Little Singers of Armenia. "He brought radical change to the numerous
post-soviet decayed traditions in the orchestra's inner agenda,
work-style, human relations, he set order and discipline, which,
unfortunately, is always received with hostility here."
Hekekyan recalls the concert arranged jointly with Gharabekian,
where Hekekyan's choir and the chamber orchestra performed together,
and earned high praise. What stood out in his memory, though, is
the atmosphere of warmth and equality, attention to details and tact
Gharabekian brought into personal and professional relations.
In late 1999, as part of Millennium Festival, an orchestra of musicians
from six countries under Gharebekian's leadership performed Beethoven's
Ninth Symphony in Kanchou City, China.
Years later Gharabekian would say that the Millennium Festival concert
had been one of the most memorable ones in his entire career.
"Imagine what euphoria the hundreds of talented musicians from various
countries experienced, when talent and high professionalism met to
create a musical miracle," he said in a press event.
Gharabekian launched his own international music festival, Open
Music Fest, held between July 30, 2009, and September 21, in Yerevan,
featuring a diversity of genres. This was an unprecedented event in
the independent Armenia, aimed at "creating a tradition which would,
first of all, reaffirm the eternal renewal of Yerevan's cultural
spirit". Open Music fest was hailed as a unique platform for artistic
collaboration and extraordinary performances of newly commissioned
works.
Gharabekian used to say that the festival's goal was to prepare the
next generation of great musicians in Armenia, nurture their talent
and, finally, give an opportunity to have their own input in the
world music treasury.
However, the multiple international award-winning conductor soon
resigned from his position of Artistic Director and Principal Conductor
in 2009, after having led NCOA for 12 years.
NCOA Members were unhappy with Gharabekian's reported intention to
audition new musicians for the orchestra and addressed a letter of
complaint to the culture ministry.
"Aram Gharabekian introduced a new culture of work relations here,
which some people, I guess, did not forgive him. Aram treated with
exceptional respect and valued highly every single musician working
under his leadership. He was demanding, but also demanded special
treatment and respect from the society towards the musicians in his
orchestra," says Hekekyan.
Gharabekian, disappointed, left the orchestra, but his genius was
too powerful to be defeated, and Gharabekian became the conductor
and artistic director of the Open Music Society Foundation,
a multifaceted arts organization dedicated to fostering musical
excellence, established in Los Angeles this month, which performed to
praise at the Space Shuttle Endeavor arrival ceremony at Los Angeles
International Airport.
Mezzo-soprano, winner of numerous local and international awards Anna
Mailyan, knew Gharabekian from his first days in Armenia and says that
the maestro with his artistic image seemed like an enigmatic creature.
Mailyan worked on numerous joint projects with him, performed in the
opening concert of the Open Music Fest, the implementation of which
had seemed like an impossible job, she says, which Gharabekian had
initiated and successfully completed.
Their last meeting was in Israel in 2012 within the frame of a concert
dedicated to Armenian composers and Armenian music.
"The orchestra was astonished by maestro's high musical standards
and loved him at once. Maestro, in turn, skillfully and in a terribly
short time, managed to stage several major pieces with the orchestra.
In Jerusalem the concert hall was packed, it was a huge success. The
following day we continued our tour to Tel Aviv," recalls the famous
singer, adding that the concert had to be held despite the unrest in
Tel Aviv.
"We got to our hotel, where there were notices in our rooms warning
about possible shelling and giving instructions to run and hide in the
hotel shelter as soon as a bomb alarm would be heard, which happened
frequently and every time he would come knock at my door and rush me
out. Once I was really scared and was trying to hide, but he sensed it
and told me not to be afraid with a typical manly firm tone. His words
were full of concern, which I greatly appreciated," tells Mailyan.
She also recalls that they became rather close with Gharabekian those
days and had long talks at breakfast on various subjects, especially
religious ones, but never once, she says, he said a word of complaint
of his issues in Yerevan.
"Aram would always come up with new ideas, maybe not acceptable for
all, which gave reasons for arguments and speculations. I am shocked
and saddened by his loss. Aram Gharabekian was truly a bright spot
in our cultural life. I wish he were the last victim of indifference,
ignorance, opportunistic, narrow and low human relations and intrigues
in the Armenian reality," says maestro Hekekyan.
Unfortunately, the first two weeks of 2014 have brought the sad news
of not only Gharabekian's untimely death; among the eminent figures
of Armenia who have passed away early this year are 87-year-old
architect, academician Jim Torosyan, 65-year-old sculptor Norayr
Karganyan, 53-year-old film-maker Armen Mazmanyan and 58-year-old
writer Levon Khechoyan.
http://www.armenianow.com/arts_and_culture/51313/aram_gharabekian_national_chamber_orchestra_armeni a