Alexander Dolukhanyan

(1910-1968)

Honored Artist of Armenia

Alexander Dolukhanyan was born in Tbilisi, on May 19, 1910. He was born into a family where everybody loved music and art. His father, Pavel Doloukhanyan, received a law degree at Moscow State University and later studied at the Sorbonne University in Paris. He spoke five languages, loved music, and played the violin. His mother, Evgenia

Ter-Stepanova, played the piano, and his aunt, Tamara Ter-Stepanova, received a professional musical education at the Moscow State Conservatory (in the class of the famous pianist and teacher Pavel Pabst), and then, for some time, took master classes in Berlin. She became her nephew’s first teacher.

Despite his love for music and obvious success as a pianist, Alexander Dolukhanyan became a student at a chemical technical school in 1924, combining studies at a technical school and a conservatory. In 1928, he finished technical school, receiving the profession of a chemical technician, and, at the same time, he graduated from the Tbilisi State Conservatoire.

Alexander Dolukhanyan finally decided on the dilemma regarding his future profession in favor of music. Having learned about this decision, the technical school director complained for a long time that, in the person of Alexander Dolukhanyan, science had lost a future chemist.

According to the recollections of his peers at the conservatory, by the end of the 1920s, Alexander Dolukhanyan was already a mature, technically well-equipped pianist with a large-scale sound and excellent memory (he had absolute pitch). And, most importantly, he had his hearing of the music that was performed. We should also note that he fluently spoke French and German.

In 1928, the Dolukhanyan family moved to Leningrad (St. Petersburg), where Alexander continued his studies at the conservatory in the piano class of Professor Samary Savshinsky. At the same time, Dolukhanyan worked as an accompanist for Ivan Yershov, who was a famous singer and teacher of the first class. In 1935, he graduated from the Leningrad Conservatory (Saint Petersburg Conservatory).

In 1936, Alexander Dolukhanyan was invited to Yerevan. He began teaching special piano and chamber ensemble at the Yerevan State Conservatory, while simultaneously working as a soloist and accompanist at the Armenian Philharmonic. It should be noted that in Armenia, Dolukhanyan participated in folklore expeditions and collected about two hundred Armenian folk songs — a musical wealth that he would turn to throughout his life. He arranged the songs “Tsitsernak” (“Swallow”), “Garun” (“Spring”), “By the Stream”, “Ah, Maral Jan”, melodies (a cycle of five songs) of the famous ashugh (traditionally a singer-poet and bard who accompanies his song) Sayat-Nova, and melodies of his favorite gusans (poet-musician or

minstrel) Sheram (Grigor Talian) and Avasi (Armenak Markosyan).

In Yerevan, his talent as an accompanist was brought to light. He accompanied many young and already famous singers: Haykanoush Danielyan, Pavel Lisitsian, Tatevik Sazandarian, Shara Talyan, and others. Dolukhanyan also accompanied violinists and cellists; among them were Avet Ter-Gabrielyan, Dmitry Lekger, Hakob Khanjyan, Hrachya Bogdanyan, Ruben Stepanyan, Hakob Vardanyan, Artemi Ayvazyan, Zaven Shahidzhanyan, and others.

He also accompanied many touring soloists in Yerevan.

In 1938, in Moscow, Alexander Dolukhanyan met the singer and his future wife Zara Dolukhanova. They formed a wonderful creative union of the singer and the accompanist, which lasted ten years and gave listeners an amazing, unforgettable experience.

In 1939, for the first time were published the selected excerpts from Aram Khachaturian’s ballet “Happiness”, were arranged for piano by Alexander Dolukhanyan (Later the ballet received its famous name “Gayaneh”.).

Alexander Dolukhanyan performed his Piano Concerto for the first time in Yerevan. The young composer and pianist Alexander Arutiunian was entrusted with the part of the second instrument and sat at the second piano.

Departing from the main outline of the presentation, we should note that during the years of constant stay in Yerevan, Dolukhanyan participated in the Armenian Chess Championship in 1938 and shared the first and second places with Master Genrikh Kasparyan, and in 1939, won the title of champion of the republic. In the history of chess games, there are only two or three musicians who were engaged in composing activities in two areas. The leading place among them belongs to Alexander Dolukhanyan. His chess compositions and sketches can still be found in some significant collections.

In 1940, Alexander Dolukhanyan resumed his studies at the Moscow State Conservatory, now in the class of the outstanding composer Nikolai Myaskovsky. Beginning from childhood, his talent for composition that manifested itself had to find its professional embodiment. Alexander Dolukhanyan became a famous composer and wrote in various genres of classical music. He was especially popular as a songwriter. There are arrangements of folk songs (Armenian, Russian, Ukrainian, and Belarusian, small peoples of Russia, Norwegian, Finnish, Vietnamese, and Czech…); original songs form the core of Dolukhanyan’s creative heritage.

After leaving Yerevan, his ties with Armenia continued. Let’s take a look at some of the many concerts.

February 15, 1941 — concert in Moscow. The Komitas Quartet (A. Gabrielyan, N. Balabanyan, M. Tarian, S. Aslamazyan). Dolukhanyan participated in this concert. The program included works by Krsto Odak and Alexander Dolukhanyan. Dolukhanyan participated in concerts for the Red Army Relief Fund in Moscow and Yerevan (1941-1942). In 1942, Alexander Dolukhanyan’s first foreign trip with singer Pavel Lisitsian and reader Suren Kocharyan to Iran.

In February 1944, a concert of Armenian chamber music in the Tchaikovsky Concert Hall in Moscow. Singers A. Danielyan, T. Sazandaryan, P. Lisitsian, L. Avetisyan, G. Gabrielyan, violinist A. Gabrielyan, pianist M. Gambaryan, and others. The accompanists of the important evening were Alexander Dolukhanyan and Natalya Khanzadyan.

Another remarkable event in the musical life of Armenia and the life of Alexander Dolukhanyan was the presentation of Aram Khachaturian’s Symphony No. 2 in E minor, (it was nicknamed The Bell or Symphony with Bells by Georgi Khubov for its bell motif that begins and ends the piece) in a four-hand piano arrangement in the hall of the Union of Composers of Armenia in Yerevan (07/8/1944). The symphony for four hands was performed by Elsa Apresova and Alexander Dolukhanyan.

During the Great Patriotic War, Alexander Dolukhanyan participated in numerous front-line concert brigades, giving patronage concerts in hospitals and on the front line.

In 1946, Alexander Dolukhanyan together with Pavel Lisitsian performed in the cities of Finland. With a group of artists, Alexander Dolukhanyan participated in concerts in the German Democratic Republic.

On March 5, 1944, Alexander Dolukhanyan was awarded the Certificate of Honor of the Presidium Supreme Council of the Armenian SSR. In 1958, he was awarded the title of Honored Artist of Armenia.

Gradually, over the years, Dolukhanyan left his accompanist activity, completely devoting himself to composing, accompanying singers only with his songs. Among the first performers of his songs and numerous song arrangements were famous singers: A. Danielyan, P. Lisitsian, Z. Dolukhanova, L. Zykina, I. Kobzon, Y. Kratov, V. Kokhno, S. Yakovenko, and many others.

On January 15, 1968, a car accident occurred, tragically ending the life of Alexander Dolukhanyan at his creativity peak. He was fifty-eight years old.

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