Aram Khachaturian
20th Century · 1903–1978
Aram Khachaturian grew up in Tbilisi in an Armenian family and did not study music seriously until he moved to Moscow at eighteen. He caught up fast, and the melodies and dance rhythms of the Caucasus stayed at the heart of everything he wrote, giving his big Soviet-era scores their bright, folk-flavored color.
He made his living within the official Soviet music world, composing, teaching, and conducting, and his ballets Gayane and Spartacus became staples. Gayane contains the Sabre Dance, a two-minute whirlwind that escaped the concert hall entirely and turned up in films and cartoons. In 1948 he was denounced by the authorities alongside Shostakovich and Prokofiev, then gradually restored to favor.
Start with the Gayane Suite no. 1, which includes the Sabre Dance, then hear the Violin Concerto in D minor for his lyrical side.
54 works in the catalog, across 5 genres. Log what you listen to with Opus, the classical music journal for iPhone.
Chamber
- Lezginka, for chamber ensemble
- Oriental Dance, for harp
- Oriental Dance, for solo harp
- Prelude, for guitar
- Sonata-Fantasy in C major, for cello solo
- Sonata-Monologue, for solo violin
- Sonata-pesnya, for viola
- Song-Poem, ‘In Honour of an Ashugh’, for violin and piano
- Toccata, for harp
- Trio for Clarinet, Violin, and Piano in G minor
- Violin Sonata in G minor, op. 1
Keyboard
- 2 Stucke, for piano
- 10 Pieces for the Young Pianist
- Children's Album
- Nocturne
- Piano Sonata in E flat major
- Suite for 2 pianos
- Toccata in E flat minor, op. 11
Orchestral
- Gayane Suite no. 1
- Masquerada
- Piano Concerto in D flat major
- Spartacus Suite 1, op. 82a
- Violin Concerto in D minor
- 2 Pieces on Themes from Uzbek Folk Songs, for wind orchestra
- Cello Concerto in E minor
- Concerto-Rhapsody for Cello and Orchestra in D minor
- Concerto-Rhapsody for Piano and Orchestra in D flat major
- Concerto-Rhapsody for Violin and Orchestra in B flat minor
- Dance Suite
- Festive Poem
- Flute Concerto
- Gayane Suite no. 2
- Gayane Suite no. 3
- Greetings Overture, for orchestra
- Lermontov
- March of the Soviet Militia
- Ode in Memory of Vladimir Ilich Lenin
- Othello Film score
- Russian Fantasy
- Spartacus Suite 2, op. 82b
- Spartacus Suite 3, op. 82c
- Spartacus Suite 4, op. 82d
- Symphony no. 2, in A minor, "Symphony with Bells"
- Symphony no. 3, in C, "Symphony-Poem"
- The Battle of Stalingrad
- The Valencian Widow
- Triumphal Fanfares, for trumpets and drums, in F
Stage
- Gayane Ballet
- Spartacus Ballet
- Zangezur
Vocal
- 3 Concert Arias, for high voice and orchestra
- Ballad of the Motherland, for baritone and orchestra
- Ode of Joy, for mezzo-soprano, chorus, violin ensemble, harp ensemble, and orchestra
- Song of the Ashnug, for chorus and orchestra, "Poem about Stalin"
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