Description

The Amici chamber ensemble has been at the forefront of the Canadian chamber music scene for the past two decades. Their first recording on the ATMA label features Armenian chamber music by such composers as Aram Khachaturian. Arno Babadjanian had a trail-blazing career as a virtuoso pianist and composer of everything from pop tunes, jazz pieces, and movie scores to major classical works. The latter include concertos, symphonies, string quartets, sonatas for piano, violin and cello, and the Piano trio in F sharp minor, which was completed in 1952. Arno Arutiunian won the State Prize of the USSR in 1949. The Suite for Clarinet, Violin and Piano was commissioned by the Verdehr Trio and was premiered in 1992. Throughout the work, Arutiunian’s idiom is rooted in the song tradition of his country. Over the last hundred years, the most popular lullaby sung in Armenian families was Oror (Lullaby) by Parsegh Ganatchian. A student of Gomidas and a composer of many choral and vocal works, Ganatchian was immortalized by this miniature. This recording features a new arrangement by Serouj Kradjian for voice, clarinet and four cellos sung by Isabel Bayrakdarian.