OSTERVILLE, Mass. (A.W.)—On Aug. 8, the Andreassian Music Fund (AMF) presented its second “Concert by the Sea” afternoon event in Osterville, Cape Cod. The venue was once again the elegant home of Ingeborg Saraceno. Approximately 60 guests gathered for a reception and to hear the beautiful musical program by the husband and wife duo, Sargis Karapetyan, violin, and Nune Hakobyan, piano.
Armand Andreassian addressed the audience, giving them an overview of the past productions of the AMF and its mission to promote emerging artists by providing them the opportunity to perform in front of a new audience in different venues and, more particularly, at the Emmanuel Church in Boston, the home of the world-famous Emmanuel Music.
Andreassian thanked Saraceno for opening her home for the musical event and for her continuous support of not only the AMF but also other performing and visual art organizations. Over 20 years ago, Saraceno opened her Newton home to an event organized by Armand Andreassian featuring famed cellist, Suren Bagratuni, for a fundraiser for the SinfoNova
Chamber Orchestra of Boston (with Aram Gharabekian as director). Andreassian also expressed his gratitude to the Emmanuel Church for its support of the AMF and for managing its funds. Also thanked were newcomers to the AMF audience, who made generous donations to the fund, Dr. Armen Roupenian and Linda Sandhu of Plymouth, Lois Taylor of Lincoln, Sandra Vose Taylor of Falmouth, and Steven Weinstein of Newton.
Nune Hakobyan, a native of Armenia, received her musical education at the Sayat-Nova Music School and the Tchaikovsky Music School. She holds a master’s degree in piano performance and an artist diploma in collaborative piano from the Komitas State Conservatory. In the United States, she has worked as an accompanist at the Boston Conservatory and Boston University SFA. She is currently a pianist for the Nashua Symphony Orchestra and the Palace Theater Orchestra in Manchester, N.H. She performs regularly as a soloist and accompanist, and teaches at her private studio and at the Concord-Carlisle Music School.
Sargis Karapetyan holds a master’s degree and an artist diploma in violin performance from the Komitas State Conservatory, where he joined the faculty. He was the artistic director of the Ancient Music Ensemble in Yerevan, as well as an assistant concertmaster of the Gelikon Opera Company and the competition Winners Chamber Orchestra in Moscow. Karapetyan has lived in the U.S. since 1996. He’s performed with the Rhode Island Philharmonic, Westerly Chorus of
RI, Cape Cod Symphony, NH Symphony, Boston Modern Opera Project (BMOP) Granite State Opera, and several other musical organizations. He has been a lecturer at Clark University and the Boston Conservatory. As a recitalist, he has performed with his wife throughout New England , Virginia, and Pennsylvania.
Along with saxophonist, Andrei Sobchenko, Karapetyan and Hakobyan established the Boston Salon Trio, performing throughout New England and most recently for the Rachmaninov Russian Festival at Boston University’s Marsh Chapel The first part of the program included works of Tchaikovsky, Mendelsohn, Saraste, Manuel de Falla, and Kreisler, while the second focused on Armenian composers Babajanian, Khatchaturian, and Bagdassarian. The last piece was preceded by a comment from Karapetyan stating that Bagdassarian’s “Rhapsody” truly reflected Armenian history, culture, and the aspirations of the nation. The concert concluded with a standing ovation.
Armand Andreassian addressed the audience once again announcing that he had prearranged a request for an encore, that being Komitas’ “Groong,” and explained the symbolism of the crane (groong) to the Armenian people. This piece brought the audience to its feet once again, with a few attendees, emotionally moved, wiping tears from their eyes. Andreassian then brought attention to the couple’s nine-year-old son Rouben, who had been sitting by his side during the concert. Andreassian mentioned having heard Rouben play the violin a couple of years ago, and how a year later, upon a chance meeting, Rouben had told him he had switched to piano, which he preferred. When he observed a disappointment in Andreassian’s facial expression, Rouben said, “Well, that’s life, people change.” The anecdote was received with a round of laughter, and the former violinist-turned-pianist took the stage, announced his musical selection, and played beautifully to the audience’s delight. The enthusiastic standing ovation that followed was interrupted by the nine-year-old saying, “Sorry, but I’m not finished yet. My father and I are ending the program with a prayer, ‘Ave Maria.’”
During the post-concert reception, several guests requested Rouben Karapetyan to autograph their programs, which he willingly agreed to do. Domenico Saraceno (the cousin of the late Domenic Saraceni) and his wife Maria said they enjoyed the concert even more than the previous year. Present for their first AMF event were retired oral surgeon, Dr. Richard Deslauriers (a member of Canadian French Cultural Exchange Commission of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts) of Longmeadow, Mass., and his friend and former classmate Dr. Irene Dobrovsky of East Harwich. Also attending for the first time was percussionist Fabio Pirozzolo, who will be performing with the MUSANER musical group for their debut performance at the renowned Regatta Bar at the Charles Hotel in Cambridge on Sept. 9.
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