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YEREVAN, JANUARY 27, ARMENPRESS. Modest, noble, decent and genius: His works are unique samples of Armenian music art. He brought new colors and new quality into the world music with his works. Armenian illustrious composer Tigran Mansurian is 77 years old.
“My generation speaks its speech in constructed and modern temple of culture. Without Tigran my generation would have been a mute pilgrim…” a prominent representative of Armenian literature Hrant Matevosyan once said on genius composer.
Tigran Mansurian was born in Beirut and educated in Yerevan, Armenia, where his family had moved in 1947 and settled in Yerevan in 1956. He studied first at the Romanos Melikian Music School under the Armenian composer Edvard Baghdasaryan and later at the Yerevan Komitas State Conservatory. Mansurian was the director of the Komitas Conservatory in the 1990s. He has recently retired as an administrator and teacher, and concentrates exclusively on composition. Mansurian's musical style is characterized mainly by the organic synthesis of ancient Armenian musical traditions and contemporary European composition methods. His oeuvre comprises orchestral works, seven concerti for strings and orchestra, sonatas for cello and piano, three string quartets, madrigals, chamber music and works for solo instruments.His "Monodia" album was nominated for the 2005 Grammy Award for "Best Instrumental Soloist(s) Performance (with Orchestra)" and "Best Classical Contemporary Composition”. He was the first Armenian composer to have ever been nominated for Grammy award.