First round of Khachaturian contest kicks off
The first round of Khachaturian's 14th competition has begun on June 7 and continues today. Young cello players perform at the Tatyana Hayrapetyan Concert Hall in Tchaikovsky Secondary School. Michael Petrosyan from Gyumri is studying at Yerevan State Conservatory for the 3rd year. He is the last performer of today. He notes that participating in Khachaturian's contest is a great experience for him. "I think it's pleasurable for every musician, cellist, to participate in such a big, prestigious competition." He says that he is familiar with each and every participant of the contest, their performances, and notes that a difficult stage is expected for them. To note, Michael Petrosyan is the Grand Prix winner of the Veratsnund (Renaissance) contest-festival in Gyumri in 2015. Chi-Wong Hong, representing the Republic of Korea, notes that Khachaturian's competition is very important for him as it is well-known throughout the world and is a very important experience for each an every contestant. Sargis Balbabyan, who is responsible for the artistic part of the contest, underlines the fact that some works of Aram Khachaturian are compulsory for the competition: Sonat-fantasy for solo cello, the Cello Concerto or Concerto-Rhapsody of the Armenian Composer's. The winners of the first stage of the contest will be announced tonight. To remind, Khachaturian's 14th international contest is held under the high patronage of RA President's wife Mrs. Nune Sarkissian. The competition is being held thanks to joint efforts of the RA Ministry of Culture, Aram Khachaturian-Competition Cultural Foundation and Yerevan State Conservatory after Komitas. The main partner of the competition is the Intergovernmental Foundation for Educational, Scientific and Cultural Cooperation (IFESCCO).
