2009 Armenian Night at the Pops to Feature Cellist Narek Hakhnazaryan

The Friends of Armenian Culture Society will present the 58th annual Armenian Night at the Pops on Sat., June 20 at 8 p.m. at Boston’s Symphony Hall. The evening will feature the young, award-winning cellist Narek Hakhnazaryan, who will perform the “Variations on a Rococo Theme” by Tchaikovsky with maestro Erich Kunzel conducting the Boston Pops Orchestra. Also on the program will be ballet music by Aram Khachaturian, and pianist-singer Michael Feinstein will pay tribute to the legendary Frank Sinatra.

Hakhnazaryan won First Prize at the 2008 Young Concert Artists Auditions. In October 2008, he made his debuts in Carnegie’s Zankel Hall in New York and in the Kennedy Center’s Terrace Theater in Washington, D.C., to critical acclaim. “He produces powerful and colorful sound in all registers, and flashes all the virtuoso’s tricks with insolent ease…” wrote the Washington Post, while the New York Times praised his “intense focus and expressive artistry.”

Hakhnazaryan is also the laureate of several international competitions, including first prize in the 2006 Aram Khachaturian International Competition, first prize in the 2006 Johansen International Competition for Young String Players, and fifth prize at the 2007 Tchaikovsky International Competition in Moscow. He has received scholarships from the Rostropovich Russian Performing Arts Fund and has performed in Russia, Germany, Italy, Austria, France, Great Britain, Greece, and Canada.

Born into a family of musicians (his father is a violinist and his mother a pianist), Hakhnazaryan attended the Sayat-Nova School of Music, studying with Zareh Sarkisyan. At the age of 12, he began his studies at the Moscow Conservatory of Music with Alexey Seleznyov.

The Friends of Armenian Culture Society is proud to have Hakhnazaryan as its soloist for this year’s Armenian Night at the Pops; his Symphony Hall debut appearance with the Boston Pops Orchestra is a widely anticipated musical event.

Tickets for this special event can be purchased online by visiting www.FACSBoston.org. A limited number of tickets are also available for K-12 students at a discount.