InternationalOpen Music Fest wraps up in Yerevan
The night air is filled with sounds of music and applause
Published: Saturday September 26, 2009
The violin section of the NCOA. Hakber
Related Articles
Open Music Fest 2009 continues through September 21
Open Music Fest in Armenia starts on an upbeat note
Yerevan - The closing gala concert of Open Music Festival 2009 took place on September 21 at the open-air amphitheater behind Moscow Cinema in downtown Yerevan. The first-ever music festival of its kind, Open Music Fest, had kicked off with a gala concert on July 30.
While that concert started with fanfare, which included performances by the Vahagn Dhol Ensemble, directed by Araz Ordinian, the closing gala concert on September 21 began with Rodion Shchedrin's "Carmen Suite."
The festival, the brainchild of Aram Gharabekian, artistic director and principal conductor of the National Chamber Orchestra of Armenia (NCOA), symbolized Yerevan's cultural renewal and offered a wide range of performances and musical genres over the course of seven weeks.
At the closing gala concert the National Chamber Orchestra performed the Dance, Bolero, and Torero from the "Carmen Suite," and then mezzo-soprana Anna Maria Chiuri surprised the audience by appearing to sing the final, Carmen's Entrance and Habanera. Later on in the program, Ms. Chiuri was joined by Armenian sopranos Artsvik Demurchian and Hasmik Baghdasarian of Yerevan. They sang Gioacchino Rossini's (1792–1868) "Comic Aria for Three Cats," which had the audience roaring with laughter at their antics and playfulness.
Another very special guest from Italy, saxophonist Federico Mondelci, also performed at the gala concert, starting off with Astor Piazzolla's (1921–1992) "Violentango" and "Melonga del Angel."
The ARTASAX saxophone quartet from Yerevan performed Robert Clerisse' "Introduction & Scherzo." Federico Mondelci joined the quartet and together they played a stirring rendition of Arno Babajanian's "Impromptu."
Another unexpected piece that the NCOA performed was Leonard Bernstein's "America," from the classic American movie West Side Story.
Culminating the evening's concert and the 7-week music festival, Aram Gharabekian had his chamber orchestra perform Alexander Arutunian's "Dance of Sassoun," and closed the evening off with Ruben Altunian's "Kochari." The surprise came when the Vahagn Dhol Ensemble entered the amphitheater and accompanied the NCOA to finish off the evening with a bang.
Open Music Fest 2009, consisted of 23 distinct concerts of Armenian, classical, and world music. Performances included Tigran Hekekian's Armenian Little Singers, the Vahagn Dhol Ensemble, Mario Stefano Piedrodarchi, accordian/bandoneon from Italy and conductor Constantine Orbelian from Russia.
Shows included Komitas 140, featuring mezzo-soprano Anna Mayiliyan; From Vienna with Love: Scent of a Woman, featuring sopranos Nuneh Badalian, Irina Zakian, and Marine Deinian; Jazz featuring Time Report; Jazz-Folk featuring Impromptu; Almost Bach; Mostly Romantic; Four Seasons: Vivaldi meets Duke Elington; Gershwin & Friends featuring Michel Lethiec, clarinet, from France; and Fusion featuring the Boxhead Ensemble from the United States.
