Young performers shine at Blossom

Posted on Tue, Aug. 09, 2005
The Beacon Journal
By Elaine Guregian
Beacon Journal music critic

Young talent was the centerpiece Sunday night at Blossom. There was the promise of the performers of the Kent/Blossom Chamber Orchestra. And then there was the preternatural maturity of an amazing guest violinist, Sergey Khachatryan, surely one of the most natural and eloquent players of the young generation.

Khachatryan was born in Armenia in 1985. For this occasion he brought with him a work by that country's most revered classical composer, Aram Khachaturian. Khachatryan has recorded Khachaturian's Violin Concerto as well as Sibelius' Violin Concerto, which he played so movingly at Severance Hall in March 2003. As with the Sibelius, he immersed himself in the music, re-creating it from a position of deep understanding.

Khachatryan brought out the mystery of the Eastern-tinged melodies in the concerto, and he knocked off the fast lines with a faultless technique. He played as if nothing mattered but the music, yet he never overdid it. In short, he played like a master, not a kid, and the effect was remarkable. Led by Jahja Ling, the Cleveland Orchestra sounded tightly connected to the soloist.

{To listen to some of Sergey Khachatryan's music go to http://kew.canvas.be/html/deelnemers_16.html}
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