Nov. 04/2021 -

HONORARY ARTIST OF ARMENIA
HAYK MELIKYAN . Piano
________

MICHEL KHEIRALLAH . Conductor
The Lebanese Philharmonic Orchestra

Ashrafieh Monot Street – St. Joseph Church
Thursday November 4, 2021
8:00 pm

Physically distanced seating . Mandatory face mask
First come first seated
No Reservations/No Tickets
Doors Open at 7:15 pm

PROGRAM

T. MANSURIAN (b. 1939)
Fantasia nr.1 for Piano and String Orchestra (2003)

H. M. GÓRECKI (1933 – 2010)
Sonata op.6, nr.1 (1956/84/90)
Allegro molto, con fuoco
Grave pesante e corale
Allegro vivace ma non troppo

A. PÄRT (b. 1935)
Für Alina (1976)

KOMITAS (1869 – 1935)
Shushiki (Dances, 1906)

A. BABADJANIAN (1921 – 1983)
Six Pictures (1965)
Improvisation
Folk Song
Toccatina
Intermezzo
Chorale
Sassoun Dance

Intermission

D. SHOSTAKOVICH (1906 – 1975)
Chamber Symphony in C minor, Op. 110a
Largo
Allegro molto
Allegretto
Largo
Largo

Hayk Melikyan (Piano)

Hayk Melikyan is recognized internationally as one of the most versatile and imaginative performers of the 20th Century and Contemporary Music and among today’s most engaging virtuoso pianists by classical music audiences and critics. He started playing piano when he was six with Irina Grishinskaya, later his professional studies were continued with Professor Alexander Gourgenov at the Yerevan Komitas Conservatory. During his studies, he took master classes from Oxana Yablonskaya, Paul Badura-Skoda, Earl Wild and Fou Ts’Ong. Hayk Melikyan’s international concert début took place at the Concerto di Concerti International Festival of the 20th Century Music in Rome in 2000. He leads an active concert life, playing throughout Europe, Asia and the Americas on prestigious stages such as Geneva’s Victoria Hall, Lisbon Gulbenkian Grand Auditorium, Amsterdam Concertgebouw, etc.

Hayk Melikyan is a laureate of International Piano Competitions, such as Concours d’Orléans (France), Ibla Grand Prize (Italy), Yvar Mikhashoff Trust for New Music (USA), Premio Valentino Bucchi (Italy), etc. The Pianist was awarded with a Gold Medal by Moscow Composers Union for his contribution and promotion of the World Contemporary Music in 2012. In 2013, Hayk Melikyan received the Title of an Honorary Artist of Armenia. BBC Music Magazine named Hayk Melikyan as a Musical Hero for his promotion of contemporary music.

He is the first performer of numerous works by many composers of our time and dozens of pieces have been specially written for Hayk Melikyan. In 2009, this activity led the Pianist to create a series of concerts called 1900+, dedicated to the 20th century and contemporary world piano music. In July 2020 Hayk Melikyan launched a new initiative named 2000+ which aims to propagate the music of exclusively our time.

Hayk Melikyan’s solo albums are released by various music labels, including Naxos, the leading classical music label in the world. His solo album Arutiuanian: Complete Piano Works by Naxos Grand Piano was selected as The Best Classical Music Album of the Year at the annual National Music Award 2018. In 2020 Hayk Melikyan’s Album of “An Armenian Palette” was released by the same label.

Hayk Melikyan regularly holds piano master classes around the world and performs at the Festival de Valmagne (France), Festival de Musique en Côte de Nacre (France), Festival O/MODƏRNT (Sweden), Warsaw Royal Arcades of Art Festival (Poland), San Leo Music Festival (Italy), Les Musicales de Baabdath International Music Festival (Lebanon), Yerevan International Music Festival and Aram Khachaturian International Music Festival (Armenia), etc. Many of them are targeting the Contemporary music: Pharos Contemporary Music Festival (Cyprus), Lviv Contrasts Contemporary Music Festival (Ukraine), Kyiv GogolFest International Festival of Contemporary Art (Ukraine), Sofia ppIANISSIMO Contemporary Piano Music Festival (Bulgaria), Nuovi Spazi Musicali Festival (Italy), etc.

Hayk Melikyan has worked with renowned composers such as György Kurtág, Peteris Vasks, Tigran Mansurian, Jonathan Harvey and Krzysztof Penderecki. In 2018, Hayk Melikyan was invited to play the Armenian premiere of Arvo Pärt’s Lamentate for piano and orchestra with the National Philharmonic Orchestra of Armenia. In 2019, the Aurora Prize has invited Hayk Melikyan to perform with the Mariinsky Orchestra under the baton of Valery Gergiev.

As a composer, Hayk Melikyan is an author of piano solo, chamber, instrumental, vocal and symphonic works. The piano transcriptions, concert paraphrases and arrangements by Hayk Melikyan are among the favorite ones in the repertoires of many pianists worldwide.

Michel Kheirallah (Conductor)

Born in October 1954, Michel Kheirallah started his violin lessons in 1968 at the Lebanese National Conservatory of Music with Professor Emile Noune. Kheirallah continued his studies at the “Ecole Normale de Musique” in Paris, France with Professor Jacques Prat from 1975 till 1979. From 1979 till 1984, Michel attended the “Tchaikovsky Conservatory” in Moscow with Professor Galina Barinova. Professor Emile Noune.

Kheirallah continued his studies at the “Ecole Normale de Musique” in Paris, France with Professor Jacques Prat from 1975 till 1979. From 1979 till 1984, Michel attended the “Tchaikovsky Conservatory” in Moscow with Professor Galina Barinova. Michel Kheirallah has been a member of several orchestras in France and is the dean of the string section in the Lebanese National Higher Conservatory of Music.

Since the establishment of the Lebanese Philharmonic Orchestra, Michel Kheirallah has been the concert Master of the orchestra. Since 2005, he is also a conductor of the LPO.

The Lebanese Philharmonic Orchestra

The Lebanese National Symphony Orchestra was founded in November 1998 by the former President of the Lebanese National Higher Conservatory of Music Dr. Walid Gholmieh. The status of the Orchestra was completed by summer 1999 and the first rehearsals started in January 2000. In October 2009, upon the suggestion of the former President of the LNHCM and with the agreement of its Board of Directors the LNSO became The Lebanese Philharmonic Orchestra.

Appointed, Director of the Lebanese National Higher Conservatory, Dr. Walid Moussallem, has committed himself to continue and progress the work of his predecessor Mr. Hanna El Amil by fastering the LPO’s aim of spreading Classical Music in Lebanon by not only giving orchestral performances in the capital Beirut, but also in all the main cities across Lebanon. Great importance has been given to include in LPO’s concerts, repertoire of Lebanese Classical Composers.

Harout Fazlian is the Principal Conductor of the Lebanese Philharmonic Orchestra. Lubnan Baalbaki is a permanent conductor, Jordi Mora is a regular guest conductor. The LPO is also conducted by Walid Moussallem, Fouad Fakhouri, Michel Kheirallah, Garo Avessian and Toufic Maatouk. and numerous international guest conductors. The LPO performs more than 30 concerts per season.

Since its establishment, the LPO has performed in all the major festivals in Lebanon including the Baalbeck International Festival, Byblos International Festival, Beiteddine Art Festival, Zouk Mikael International Festival, Al Bustan Festival among others.

A selection of paintings by Raouf Rifai (Harmony 2020/21 – Acrylic on canvas) is exhibited in the space allocated for the concert.