Glendale Philharmonic Orchestra to Play Its Inaugural Concert, 1/9
By: BWW News Desk Dec. 19, 2009
Alto Polis Music Management & Positive Motions Foundation, "Positive Motions" Concert Series will present the Inaugural Concert of the Glendale Philharmonic Orchestra, under the baton of Mikael Avetisyan, Artistic Director & Principal Conductor, with Soloists, Ruslan Biryukov, Cello; Maksim Velichkin, Cello and Marine Abrahamyan-Abdasho, Soprano on Saturday, January 9, 2010 at 7:30 p.m. at First Baptist Church of Glendale.
Ruslan Biryukov, Founder of the Glendale Philharmonic Orchestra, said: "We are very happy to be a new addition to the community in the City of Glendale. Our orchestra's mission is to present professional quality orchestral and chamber music concerts. Our concerts will be held on the first Saturday of each month at the First Baptist Church of Glendale for the musical enjoyment of Southern California residents and tourists visiting the Greater Los Angeles region." Mikael Avetisyan, Artistic Director & Principal Conductor for the Glendale Philharmonic Orchestra said: "Our new orchestra will present classical music of the highest standards featuring distinguished soloists, along with the presentation of new works. Initially our orchestra will consist of 14 professional musicians, but we plan to expand in the near future."Mikael Avetisyan (Artistic Director & Principal Conductor, Glendale Philharmonic Orchestra) (of Glendale) received his Master's Degrees in Opera-Symphony Conducting and Ethnomusicology and proceeded to complete his Doctoral Degree at Yerevan State Conservatory under the instruction of two leading professors, Maestro Yasha Voskanian and Maestro Ohan Durian. From 1987 to 1989, parallel to his studies at Yerevan State Conservatory, Avetisyan completed a course in conducing in the class of Professor Iliya Musin at St. Petersburg State Conservatory. He is a diplomat of the 35th Kirill Kondrashin Conductors Master Classes held in the Netherlands by Sir Edward Downes and Peter Eotvos. Starting in 1992 Avetisyan regularly performed with the Opera and Ballet National Academic Theater Orchestra and National Radio Symphony Orchestra in Yerevan. In 1994 he was chosen the Principal Conductor of Yerevan State Symphony Orchestra; and subsequently in 1997 he was appointed the Music Director and the Principal Conductor of the Armenian State Philharmonic Orchestra. Avetisyan has conducted the USSR State Symphony Orchestra and a number of European and Russian Orchestras in France, Netherlands, Greece, Spain, Russia and Georgia. His recordings with the Moscow Symphony Orchestra were released on RCD. From 2002 t0 2007 Avetisyan was conductor with the New Valley Symphony Orchestra. Presently he is the Music Director of the Armenian Society of Los Angeles Choir, and an instructor of composition and conducting at the International School of Music in Glendale. For his artistic achievements and 2004/05 concert series, Avetisyan was honored with the City of Glendale and County of Los Angeles's Artistic Achievement Diamond Award. In 2007 he showcased The Bruno Walter National Conductors Preview with the Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra in Jacksonsville, FL. Ruslan Biryakov (Founder, Glendale Symphony Orchestra and Cello Soloist) (of Silverlake) has been praised for his superb artistry, passion and individuality. Biryukov has performed throughout the world, including countries in the former USSR, in Europe, and in the United States. As a chamber musician he as appeared with world-renowned Violinist, Midori at Disney Hall in Los Angeles, with Cellist Kirill Rodin, and with members of the Ysave Quartet. Biryukov has been a master teacher at music festivals in Europe and Russia. He has held teaching positions at the Ippolitov-Ivanov State Institute of Music in Moscow, Russia and the Music Academy in Lovran, Croatia. His creative artistic ideas are based upon the tradition he learned from esteemed artists such as Kirill Rodin, Mstislav Rostropovich, Daniil Shafran, Natalia Gutman, Janos Starker, Steven Isserlis, and Eleonore Schoenfeld. The cellist received his formal music education at Baku Music Academy in Azerbaijan, the Tchaikovsky Moscow Conservatory in Russia, and at USC's Thornton School of Music. He first earned international recognition by winning major awards in Azerbaijan and by his name included in the Gold Book of Russia's international program "New Names." Biryukov has gone on to win numerous other awards worldwide, including the 17th Mu Phi Epsilon International Competition.
Heralded as a charismatic performer who captivates the attention of his audiences, Biryukov is a much sought-after young musician who is committed to a lifetime of music making by sharing the art of music with worldwide audiences from all walks of life in recitAl Halls, schools and other unconventional settings through regularly scheduled performances, outreach recitals and community service concerts.
Maksim Velichkin (Cello Soloist) (of Silverlake) enjoys a broad musical life of a cellist, collaborative pianist, and harpsichordist both locally and throughout the world. He has appeared as a soloist with Uzbekistan National Symphony, Duquesne Contemporary Ensemble, Verbier Festival Symphony Orchestra AYS, Torrance, Westchester, Southeast and Bellflower Symphony Orchestras.
Velichkin has extensively toured Europe, Asia, both Americas and Australia with the prestigious Verbier Chamber and Symphony Orchestras as a Principal Cellist. Velichkin has collaborated with a number of prominent conductors and instrumentalists, including: James Levine, Kurt Masur, Charles Dutoit, Yuri Temirkanov, Wolfgang Sawallish, Herbert Blomstedt, Christoph von Dohnanyi, Neemi and Paavo Yarvi, Sarah Chang, Maxim Vengerov (EMI recording project), Yuri Bashmet, Joshua Bell and others. Recent highlights of Velichkin's concert life include performances with singer Bobby Mc Ferrin in Switzerland, pianist Gabriela Montero in Mexico, performances in Carnegie Hall in Pittsburgh and appearances on the prestigious Miyazaki Music Festival in Japan. In addition, he has been active in the popular music scene performing and recording with Bitter:Sweet, Stevie Wonder, Josh Groban, John Legend, Red Elvises, Bernadette Peters and many others. Maksim's improvised harpsichord and cello music was included into the soundtrack of the film "Through The Air To Calais Or The Wonderful Cruise Of Blanchard's Balloon" (2009). Velichkin began his music education at the Special Music School for Gifted Children in his native Tashkent, Uzbekistan. In 1996 he was awarded a full scholarship to pursue Bachelor of Music degree in cello performance at the Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, US. In 2000 he graduated with honors, Magna Cum Laude. He continued his education at the University of Southern California at the studio of the renowned professor Eleanor Schoenfeld. In 2006 Maksim earned his Master's Degree. He is the Music Director of the Classical Underground Concert Series where he regularly performs. Marine Abrahamyan-Abdasho (Vocal Soloist) (of Glendale) was born and raised in Armenia. She graduated from Yerevan Komitas State Conservatory with a diploma of a concert singer and teacher and continued her studies, completing her post-graduate degree in Solo Singing. She has worked as a lecturer and as an illustrator at the Yerevan Komitas State Conservatory. She was a Solosit in "Gandzer" and "Sharakan" ensembles of radio and television as well as the Soloist in the Surb Zoravor Church of Araratian Patriarchal Diocese. Currently she is teaching voice both privately and in music schools, and she performs as a Soloist in St. Peter Armenian Church. She also serves as Vocal Instructor for the Chorus of the Armenian Society of Los Angeles. She has performed in many countries, among which are Germany, Armenia, Norway, Syria and Lebanon. Andrey Rubtsov (Composer of The World Premiere of "Andante Dolente & Scherzo" for Two Cellos and String Orchestra) (of London and Moscow) was born in Moscow in 1982. In 2005, he graduated from the Moscow Conservatoire as an Oboist and in 2008 as a Conductor, both times with honors. In the same year, he started studying on the Postgraduate Course in Conducting at the Royal Academy of Music in London under the tuition of Professor Colin Metters. In 2001, he joined the Russian National Orchestra (RNO) under Mikhail Plentev as an Associate Principal and became the youngest artist ever in the history of RNO. The same year, he became a founding member of the RNO Wind Quintet, one of the leading Russian wind ensembles, regularly touring countries worldwide such as Spain, USA, Great Britain, Singapore and Malaysia. The RNO Wind Quintet was the First Prize winner of the 5th Osaka International Chamber Music Competition (May 2005). In February 2009, Decca Classics released a recording of Bach Concertos with the Violinist, Julia Fischer and the Academy of St Martin-in-the-Fields, featuring Rubstov in the Double Concerto for Violin and Oboe. Rubtsov also devotes much of his time to composition. His pieces have been performed in Russia, Ukraine, China, USA, Switzerland, Spain, Lithuania, France, Poland, Hungary, England, Bulgaria, Singapore, Venezuela, Morocco, Brazil, Malaysia and Bermuda. He composed a chamber ballet for the Bolshoi Theatre and his woodwind quintet has become a standard repertoire piece for already more than 19 quintets all over the world including the Berlin Philharmonic Wind Quintet. He made his conducting debut in 2004. He conducted two piano concertos by J.S. Bach with Mikhail Pletnev as a Soloist. This was followed by concerts in Malaysia (2005), USA (2006), Russia and Netherlands (2008).
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