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An Armenian-Canadian operatic soprano Isabel Bayrakdarian will perform during the concert, launching the 13th Khachaturian International Competition. As the official website of the contest reports, the opening ceremony of the competition will take place on the birthday of the famous composer Khachaturian, on June 6 at A. Spendiarian Opera and Ballet National Academic Theatre.

Isabel Bayrakdarian, who is also jury member of the competition, is the receiver of the first prize at the 2000 Operalia Competition and four consecutive Juno Awards. She has been awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal, the 2005 Virginia Parker Prize from the Canada Council for the Arts, the Leonie Rysanek Award from the George London Foundation, the Mesrob Mashdots Medal on behalf of the Holy See of Cilicia on August 15, 2004, and a Metropolitan Opera National Council Award in 1997.

During the evening under the guidance of the conductors Sergey Smbatyan, Constantine Orbelian and Vasiliy Valitov the State Youth Orchestra of Armenia (Artistic Director and Principal Conductor: Sergey Smbatyan), the CIS Youth Orchestra (Artistic Director and Principal Conductor: Vasiliy Valitov) and the choir of A. Spendiarian Opera and Ballet Academic Theatre will present to the audience favorite and famous works by Khachaturian, Massenet, Rossini, Mozart, Tchouhadjian.

Apart from Isabel Bayrakdarian (soprano), other jury members  - famous opera singers Mane Galoyan (soprano), Vasilisa Berzhanskaya (mezzo-soprano), Utarida Mirzamova (soprano), Ilya Kutyukhin (baritone) will perform as soloists.

To note, the 13th Aram Khachaturian International Competition is to be held in “Vocal” specialty for the first time. The Jury is chaired by Konstantin Orbelian.

The jury of 2017 Khachaturian International Competition comprises also John Fisher, opera director, conductor, vocal coach and record producer, Assistant General Manager of Music Administration at the Metropolitan Opera. Mark Hildrew, the Senior Board Member of the Askonas Holt and personal manager of among others Angela Gheorghiu, Elina Garanca, Dmitri Hvorostovsky, Tugan Sokhiev, Yundi Li and Sergey Khachatryan is also one of the jury members of this year’s Competition.

The Aram Khachaturian International Competition is organized due to the joint efforts of Armenia’s Ministry of Culture, “Aram Khachaturian Competition” International Foundation and Komitas State Conservatory of Yerevan, under the patronage of RA First Lady Rita Sargsyan.