Babajanian: Violin Sonata, Piano Trio Igor Ruhadze, Jeroen den Herder, Vital Stahievitch

• Arno Babajanian (1921-1983): Sonata for Violin and Piano in B-Flat Minor:
• 1 Babajanian: Sonata for Violin and Piano in B-Flat Minor: I. Grave - Allegro Energico - Andante 11:38
• 2 Babajanian: Sonata for Violin and Piano in B-Flat Minor: II. Andante Sostenuto - Presto 07:11
• 3 Babajanian: Sonata for Violin and Piano in B-Flat Minor: III. Allegro Risoluto - Largo - Andante Sostenuto 08:19
• Elegy for Piano Solo:
• 4 Babajanian: Elegy for Piano Solo 03:45
• Piano Trio in F-Sharp Minor:
• 5 Babajanian: Piano Trio in F-Sharp Minor: I. Largo - Allegro Moderato 10:50
• 6 Babajanian: Piano Trio in F-Sharp Minor: II. Andante 07:39
• 7 Babajanian: Piano Trio in F-Sharp Minor: III. Allegro Vivace 06:43
• Total Runtime 56:05

Info for Babajanian: Violin Sonata, Piano Trio

A portrait of the Soviet-era Armenian composer Arno Babajanian through a trio of his most significant chamber works.

The Russian piano-trio repertoire is dominated by Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninoff and Shostakovich. Yet anyone encountering Babajanian’s Trio in F sharp minor will be struck by its central place within that tradition. The melodies are opulent, the expression direct and intense, the style essentially post-Romantic yet recognisably of its postwar era. Babajanian was 31 when he composed it in 1951, having by then won recognition as the most accomplished of Armenian composers in the generation following his compatriot Aram Khachaturian. Indeed, it was Khachaturian who had recognised Babajanian’s creative promise at a very early age and smoothed the path for his admission to the conservatoire in Yerevan at the tender age of seven.

Thereafter, Babajanian studied in Moscow with star teachers such as the pianist Konstantin Igumnov and the composer Vissarion Shebalin. Well-received premieres during the 1940s led to the first performance of the Violin Concerto in 1949, given by Leonid Kogan, the Leningrad Philharmonic and Yeygeny Mravinsky.

At the same time, Babajanian did not fit a pre-conceived mould of a ‘Soviet composer’. Shostakovich recognised and admired this independence of mind, and proved instrumental in the wider acceptance of the Violin Sonata which Babajanian wrote in 1958. By then, Babajanian had embraced modernist principles including 12-tone writing within an idiom always accented by the folk music of his Armenian heritage. Though the Sonata was initially vilified for its ‘formalist’ style, Shostakovich advised the composer not to alter it, and accepted the dedication of the score to him.

The Sonata still stands as a remarkably original work of its time, as tough and uncompromising as it is engaging and underpinned by strong, rhythmic expression.

All three musicians are based in The Netherlands, where this recording was made in 2021. The violinist Igor Ruhadze has recorded several albums of Baroque repertoire for Brilliant Classics, including a much admired survey of Locatelli (94358) with his own Ensemble Violini Capricciosi.

‘The playing is elegantly supple, the string tone warm and the architecture of individual movements thoughtfully worked out… brilliantly and at times breathtakingly performed.’ (Gramophone)

Igor Ruhadze, violin
Jeroen den Herder, cello
Vital Stahievitch, piano

Igor Ruhadze
began his impressive musical career as a solo violinist at the age of 12 when performing Vieuxtemps Concerto No.5 with the Odessa Symphony Orchestra. He graduated with honors from the Moscow State Tchaikovsky Conservatory and continued his studies at the Amsterdam Conservatory, where he specialized in early music. Since 1999, Igor has lived in the Netherlands, where he has continued his international career. He has won several prestigious international violin competitions, including the Locatelli Violin Competition in Amsterdam, the Taneyev International Chamber Music Competition in Moscow, and Musica Antiqua in Bruges.

From 1996 to 1999 and from 2002 to 2005, Igor taught at the Moscow Conservatory and the Moscow Central Music School for Young Talents. From 2006 to 2007, he was a guest teacher at the Amsterdam Conservatory. Since the age of 18, Igor has also been giving private lessons, which he does with great passion. He currently teaches at the Muziektalent Almere & Titiano Rossetti International Music Academy (CH), where he shares his knowledge and experience with young talents.

Igor has an impressive number of appearances on various international stages and festivals, including the Tartini program at the Flanders Festival and the "Russian Tartini - Handochkine" in New York. From 2005 to 2020, he collaborated with the Bach Orchestra as a soloist - and first concertmaster. He made a lot of recordings and tours and took part in the Dutch film "Erbarme Dich", in which he performed Bach's "St. Matthew Passion".

Igor's CDs have won many international awards, which underlines his exceptional talent and mastery. With his ensemble Violini Capricciosi, Igor has made several successful recordings, including; Complete Locatelli Recordings (21 CD), J.M. Leclair Complete Violin Concertos (2020), Biber The Complete Violin Sonatas and the Nardini Complete Music for 2 Violins (2023) album. In 2022 and 2023, together with harpsichordist Alexandra Nepomnyashchaya, he recorded the music of Francesco Geminiani (CDbox with the complete violin sonatas op.1 and op.4) and Luigi Boccherini (5 CD box Complete Violin Sonatas), which received many great reviews and positive feedback. Igor’s career testifies to an unparalleled dedication to his instrument and a passion for sharing his musical knowledge with the world.

"The music world needs more performers like Igor Ruhadze…His sound in Geminiani’s op. 1 sonatas is sweet and majestic, with a wonderfully sustained and developed melodic line…" (Fanfare Magazin)

Igor plays a 1693 H.Jacobs violin, provided by the Nationaal Muziekinstrumenten Fonds.

Jeroen den Herder
completed his studies with distinction at the Conservatory of Amsterdam with Dmitri Ferschtman, and in London with Christopher Bunting. He then became a leader of the Cello Octet Conjunto Ibérico, a group with a worldwide reputation as a full time cello ensemble, performing around 40 concerts a year.

Den Herder has won several music awards through the years, he won the “Postbank Sweelinck” competition in 1992 and the first prize of the Foundation of the Royal Concertgebouw Amsterdam. He recently won the “Anton Kersjes Prize” as a member of the Ruysdael Quartet.

He’s been an active chamber music player, performing with musicians like Janine Jansen, Igor Roma, Anner Bijlsma and Yo-Yo Ma. He has performed as a soloist in more than 25 countries in great music halls like Wigmore Hall (London), Lincoln Centre (New York), Concertgebouw (Amsterdam) and Palais des Beaux Arts (Bruxelles), performing all major concertos of the cello repertoire by the baton of Friedemann Layer, Ed Spanjaard and Alexander Rudin.

Since 1999 Jeroen has been a member of the “Nieuw Ensemble”, one of the leading Dutch chamber music groups for contemporary music. As a member of the Ruysdael Quartet Jeroen has performed in all major concert halls in Holland, receiving much acclaim for concerts at the Amsterdam Quartet Biënnale.

This season the quartet will do a reprice of a tour to Japan and will also perform in several festivals in Georgia, France and England. The Ruysdael Quartet is a founder of its own chamber music festival which is held every year in June.

He is the artistic director of both the Cello Festival Zutphen and the Cello Academie Zutphen where students can have masterclasses and an after-conservatory year to prepare for auditions, teaching or playing.

Den Herder has been a dedicated teacher ever since he took a professorship at the age of 22 at the Utrecht conservatory. His lessons are based on a healthy development between mind and body, and a cello technique inspired by his teacher Christopher Bunting, a former student of Pablo Casals.

For Jeroen den Herder, cello playing is based on natural principles like gravity, character and playfulness. Everything is music, play not to avoid mistakes, delegation of body functions and breathing are some key topics which will lead to a healthy way to achieve perfection. His main focus is on how and what people practise. He believes that being aware of one’s imagination, sensitive listening and following intuition, are elements that have proved to be the best teachers for life.

Today Jeroen den Herder is professor at the Conservatories in Utrecht and Rotterdam, where he guides a class with 15 students. He’s been a regular guest teacher at the Conservatory in Minsk and visiting guest professor at the University in Tainan, Taiwan. He has given masterclasses in Holland, Germany, France, Israel, Turkey and in Prague.

“I’ve heard Jeroen den Herder performing the Elgar cello concerto with the Saint Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra. He played with great distinction and sensitivity, and I believe he will grow into a wonderful cellist” Yehudi Menuhin, 1995

Vital Stahievitch
was born in Minsk. He graduated from Republican Music College and from Belarusian Academy of Music under the guidance of Professor Zoya Kacharskaya.

He has taken part in numerous national and international festivals. He frequently appears in many cities in Belarus as a soloist, with orchestras and various chamber groups. He performed as a soloist and chamber musician in the most of European countries, in America and Japan.

Vital has recorded numerous CD’s with music of Schubert, Chopin, Prokofiev, Rachmaninov, Scarlatti. Vital Stahievitch is a prize winner at international competitions in Vilnius, Minsk, Antwerp, Amsterdam, Utrecht, Taranto, Marianske Lazne.

In 2007 Vital completed the Master Degree at the Conservatorium van Amsterdam, his piano teacher was Håkon Austbø.

Since 2012 Vital Stahievitch is teaching at the Conservatory of Amsterdam as a correpetitor.

Booklet for Babajanian: Violin Sonata, Piano Trio