Hall of Composers

Aram Khatchaturian (1903-1978)

Aram Khatchaturian, a Russian composer of Armenian descent, studied at the Gnessin Music School in Moscow from 1922-1925 (later studying with Eliav Gnessin himself) and became a student at the Moscow Conservatory in 1929. At age 21, Khatchaturian began composing and quickly became one of the premièr Soviet composers of his generation. His musical style has been characterized as “Russian orientalism;” he was criticized by the Central Committee of the Communist Party alongside Sergei Prokofiev, Dmitri Shostokovitch, and others for composing with modernistic tendencies. In 1954, Khatchaturian was named a Peoples Artist of the United Soviet Socialist Republic (USSR).

Selected works include Sabre Dance (1943) and Spartacus (1950-54).

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