Alexander Arutiunian
was born in Yerevan, in the family of Grigor and Eleonora Arutiunian,
on September 23, 1920. His father was a military serviceman. He entered
the Yerevan State Conservatory’s children’s group in 1927 and was
admitted in 1934 to the Conservatory, from which he graduated on the eve
of World War II. He wrote his first work, “Impromptu,” for cello and
piano, in 1941. After the war he moved to
Moscow
,
where he participated in the workshops of the House of Armenian Culture
from 1946-1948 and studied at the Moscow Conservatory, graduating in
1948.
In
1949 Arutiunian was awarded the Stalin Prize for his cantata
“Motherland,” a graduation piece he wrote as a student at the Moscow
Conservatory. In the same year, he composed the “Festive Overture.” In
1950 he coauthored “Armenian Rhapsody” with Arno Babajanian. He married
Irina (Tamara) Odenova and had two children.
He
returned to Yerevan and from 1954 to 1991 was the artistic director of
the Armenian State Philarmonia. He continued to win acclaim for his
works, many of which were inspired by the folk traditions of Armenian
music, including the vocal symphonic poem “The Legend about the Armenian
People” (1961). In the 1960s he tended towards classical forms and
clearer tonality.
Arutiunian
wrote a total of thirteen concerts for different instruments, of which
the 1950 concert for trumpet made him known in the United States. He
composed his concerto for violin and string orchestra “Armenia-88,”
inspired by the Spitak earthquake, in 1988.
He
also wrote the opera “Sayat-Nova,” using some of the songs of the great
troubadour (1968), the song-cantata “With My Fatherland,” based on the
poems of Hovhannes Tumanian (1969), and the vocal series “Monument to My
Mother,” based on the poems of Hovhannes Shiraz (1969).
His
prolific production included music for theater and cinema, with the
films “The Heart Sings” (coauthored with Konstantin Orbelian, 1956) and
“Nahapet” (1977), among others.
In
1962 he was awarded the title of People’s Artist of Armenia and in 1970
he became People’s Artist of the USSR. Also in 1970 he started teaching
at the Komitas Conservatory (Yerevan State Conservatory). He received
the title of professor in 1977 and would continue working until 2008.
After independence, he was decorated with several medals and orders. In
1987 he was awarded the title of honorary citizen of Yerevan.
He continued producing until his last years. His last work was the “Children’s Album” for piano (2004).
He passed away on March 28, 2012, in Yerevan, and was buried at the Komitas Pantheon.
