Tjeknavorian

Alfred Roubenovich "Avet" Terterian (also Terteryan) (Armenian: Ալֆրեդ "Ավետ" Տերտերյան, July 29, 1929 in Baku, Transcaucasian SSR, Soviet Union – December 11, 1994 in Yekaterinburg, Russia) was an Armenian composer, awarded the Konrad Adenauer Prize…

This really could have been a collectors item! Music from the Caucasus, performed by an Armenian Orchestra, led by a renowned ethnic-Armenian conductor from Iran. Who better to present these folk-inspired works from this ancient crossroads? Loris Tjeknavorian may not be a household name, but he has built a very successful worldwide career over several decades in both the USSR/Russia and the West…. ByMatteoD

Rather than play any single complete suite (of the three) that Prokofiev extracted from the complete ballet, Myung-Whun Chung makes his own selection of numbers, roughly following the plot line and including music representative of all the major characters. Although some other collections offer more music, this hour of Romeo and Juliet makes a satisfying presentation on its own. What makes the performance special is the spectacular playing of the Dutch orchestra. Frankly, it's never been done better. From the whiplash virtuosity of the violins to the bite of the trombones and the firm thud of the bass drum, this is the sound the composer must have dreamed of.

Tjeknavorian is terrific in this admirable tour de force along the most representative works of this unforgettable colorist composer Aram Katchaturian (1905-1978). I thought that the last word in The Suite Gayaneh came from an old vynil recording of Efrem Kurtz the New York Philarmonic in those fifties, but I still remember how wondered I was when I listened this version thanks to a friend who love the Russian music. […]
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