Pegasus: The Orchestra Debuts At Lincoln Center With Rare Rachmaninoff Marathon

On Friday, October 21, 2022, at 7:00 pm, Pegasus: The Orchestra soars into their fifth season with a Lincoln Center debut concert for the ages. All five of Rachmaninoff's famous piano orchestral masterpieces will be brought to life by a constellation of five internationally acclaimed pianists on the stage of Alice Tully Hall.

Renowned pianists Dominic Cheli, Nadejda Vlaeva, Fei-Fei Dong, Konstantin Soukhovetski, and Inna Faliks set the concert hall ablaze with Rachmaninoff's four signature concerti, as well as the composer's iconic Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini. Karén Hakobyan, artistic director and principal conductor, leads Pegasus: The Orchestra for this remarkably binge-worthy evening of Rachmaninoff reveling that Manhattan audiences won't soon forget. This rare and audacious marathon of all five piano masterworks in a single concert hasn't received a prominent New York presentation in several decades.

The enterprising conductor, pianist, composer, and arranger Karén Hakobyan was inspired by Louis K. Meisel, vice-chair of the Pegasus board of directors, to launch his ensemble's fifth anniversary with a daring move, showcasing five of the most exciting concert pianists on the same night. "As we anticipate Rachmaninoff's 150th Birthday, we wanted to bring our audience a unique opportunity to experience the astounding evolution of Rachmaninoff's style through the decades. The shared narrative among all five piano and orchestra works is epic nostalgia with a singular brand of defiance against all odds, always hopeful, always full of love."

Konstantin Soukhovetski, praised by The New York Times for his "distinctive lyricism," shared his excitement to take the stage with Rachmaninoff's fourth piano concerto, calling it "my dream project for some time now... From its sweeping opening, the mirage-like second movement to the outsize Hollywood sound of the finale - this darker, modernist concerto weaves a dreamscape that stays with one like a familiar perfume."

This musical milestone is made possible by the support of Louis and Susan Meisel. Noteworthy upcoming events for Pegasus include programs featuring 2007 Tchaikovsky International Competition gold medalist, cellist Sergey Antonov, first prize winner of the 2018 Honens International Competition, pianist Nicolas Namoradze, award-winning pianist, Asiya Korepanova, and 1986 Tchaikovsky International Competition silver medalist, cellist Suren Bagratuni among others.

Founded in 2017 by composer-arranger and conductor Karén Hakobyan, Pegasus: the Orchestra is a nonprofit professional orchestra with a mission to empower rising musicians with artistic freedom and promote innovative repertoire in an environment of creative thought and expression. The intrepid ensemble's recent highlights include performances in Merkin Concert Hall, on Al Jazeera, Voice of America TV Network, Ardzagang Armenian TV, the Russian Television Network of America, The Voice of Armenians TV program on the NYC Life Channel, WGCH, WQXR, and WSKG Radio. To learn more about Pegasus, visit pegasustheorchestra.org.