Honored Artist of Armenia
Nelly Daniel-Bek was born on November 24, 1924, in Ukraine, in the city of Zolotonosha. In 1934, her family moved to Yerevan. Nelly and her elder sister Olga went to Yerevan Basic School after Alexander Pushkin and continued their piano studies with Olga Babasyan. From the first year of study, it became clear to the teacher that Nelly was diligent, had bright musical abilities, and loved to perform on stage. For eight years, Babasyan skillfully guided Nelly’s professional development. In 1942, the first graduate of the newly founded Tchaikovsky Secondary Music School took place (there were three graduates: pianists Nelly Daniel-Bek, Maria Gambaryan, and violinist Asya Jamjyan).
After successfully finishing school, Nelly entered the Yerevan State Conservatory in the class of the famous pianist Robert Andreasian, a graduate of the Leningrad Conservatory (Saint Petersburg Conservatory).
After three years of study in Yerevan, Nelly decided to continue her studies in Moscow. In 1945, the outstanding musician, Professor Heinrich Neuhaus listened to her performance, and the question of the transferring was resolved positively. She became a student at the Moscow State Conservatory.
Nelly learned the art of accompaniment in the class of the famous pianist-accompanist Yuri Yankelevich.
Five post-war years were spent in the capital. The actively reviving theatre life, numerous premieres, tours of soloists, and creative groups, of course, could not help but affect the young student’s worldview. Five intense years within the walls of the best music university in the country (her classmates were future famous pianists Bella Davidovich, Vera Gornostayeva, and violinist Eduard Grach), in the class of the Master of Piano Art, affected the quality of her studies. She became more self-demanding, intending to solve the assigned tasks. All these led to a new revelation of her musical talent.
In 1951, after graduating from the Moscow State Conservatory (at the final exam, among other works, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1 in B♭ minor, Op. 23 was performed), having gained musical experience and deep knowledge, Nelly Daniel-Bek returned to Yerevan and was hired at the Yerevan State Conservatory in the classes of violin (Professor K. Dombaev), vocal (Professor T. Shakhnazaryan, later R. Gulabyan), as well as chamber singing (Professor N. Saghyan). Subsequently, Daniel-Bek, already an experienced accompanist, often turned to Nina Saghyan, who was always ready to listen to her young colleague.
In 1967, Nelly Daniel-Bek, in parallel with the conservatory, began working as an accompanist for the State Television and Radio of Armenia. For almost 30 years (1967-1996), the usual phrase was heard in concert programs on radio and television: “The piano part is performed by Nelly Daniel-Bek”. The music collections contain television recordings of Anahit Tsitsikyan, Gegham Grigoryan, Anna Nshanyan, and other soloists.
In Moscow, at the World Festival of Youth and Students (1957), Nelly Daniel-Bek participated as an accompanist with the talented qanunist/kanunist (arm: քանոն, an Armenian string instrument played either solo or more often as part of an ensemble) future People’s Artist of Armenia — Angela Atabekyan and Shvi (arm: շվի, «whistle», is an Armenian fipple flute) performer Ilya Minasyan (future Honored Artist of Armenia). Both became laureates of the festival’s First Prize.
In 1965, Nelly Daniel-Bek took part in the ll Transcaucasian Competition of Young Performers with a student of the Tchaikovsky school Ruben Aharonyan (class of Karp Dombaev), who was awarded the First Prize, as well as in the All-Union competition, where Aharonyan was awarded the Second prize (V. Tretyakov was awarded the First). In 1966, the Third International Tchaikovsky Competition took place, in which Ruben Aharonyan performed with Nelly Daniel-Bek and became the winner of the Sixth Prize (in 1974 he took part in the same competition for the second time, already as a graduate student at Moscow Conservatory, and became the winner of the Second Prize; the First was not awarded).
The All-Union company “Melodia” released a record of works performed by the winner of the International Tchaikovsky Competition, violinist Ruben Aharonyan, and accompanist Nelly Daniel-Bek.
The Melodia Company released a record in which Nelly Daniel-Bek accompanies singer Izabella Aydinyan, performing works by Mikhail Ippolitov-Ivanov, Sergei Rachmaninoff, Hugo Wolf, and Avet Terterian.
In 1969, in the Hall of Columns of the House of Unions in Moscow, the 100th anniversary of the birth of Komitas was celebrated. Nelly Daniel-Bek participated in this memorable concert as an accompanist for singers Nar Hovhannisyan and Gohar Gasparyan.
In 1971, after returning from studying in Moscow, Ruben Aharonyan began teaching a violin class at the Yerevan State Conservatory. Daniel-Bek worked in his class until the end of her days (she died in February 1996).
In 1966, at the request of Tatevik Sazandaryan, Nelly Daniel-Bek accompanied her student Angela Harutyunyan at the All-Union Modest Mussorgsky Vocal Competition, in which Harutyunyan was awarded the Second Prize, and accompanist Daniel-Bek was awarded a Diploma for the best accompaniment (signed by the jury members T. Khrennikova, Z. Dolukhanova, T. Sazandaryan, N. Nezhdanova). The creative tandem of the singer, People’s Artist of Armenia, Angela Harutyunyan, and Nelly Daniel-Bek existed for many years.
Among the soloists who accompanied Daniel-Beck over the years were famous singers Nar Hovhannisyan, Henrikh Alaverdyan, Gohar Galachyan, Artashes Hayryan, Angela Harutyunyan, Elvira Uzunyan, Gegham Grigoryan, Marietta Antonyan, Anna Nshanyan, Izabella Aydinyan, Mihran Erkat, Alice Ekimbashyan, Elena Vartanyan, Ruzanna Baghdasaryan, Eleonora Melkumyan, Susanna Martirosyan, Marietta Shakhverdyan, Konstantin Simonyan, Karine Karapetyan, Ruben Telunts, Varduhi Khachatryan, Ruben Matevosyan, cellists Gurgen Adamyan, Geronti Talalyan, Vardges Stepanyan, violinists Anahit Tsitsikyan, Jean Ter-Mergeryan, Ruben Aharonyan, Zoya Petrosyan, Victor Khachatryan, Karen Khachatryan, qanunist/kanunist Angela Atabekyan and many others.
Here are the names of the soloists who became laureates of competitions, performing with accompanist Daniel-Bek: People’s Artists of Armenia violinists R. Aharonyan, J.Ter-Mergeryan, cellist M. Abrahamyan, qanunist/kanunist A. Atabekyan, singers A. Karapetyan, A. Harutyunyan, G. Grigoryan, Honored Artist, shvi performer I. Minasyan and singer R. Baghdasaryan.
In 1967, by Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Council of Armenia, Nelly Daniel-Bek was awarded the title of Honored Artist of Armenia.
In 1973, she participated as an accompanist in the Transcaucasian competition with student vocalist Ruzanna Bagdasaryan (class of associate professor R. Gulabyan), who became the First Prize laureate. Their creative collaboration continued for many years.
The collaboration with the People’s Artist of Armenia, singer Gegham Grigoryan was fruitful, starting with the Transcaucasian competition in Tbilisi (in 1977), in which he, a student in the class of Professor Sergei Danielyan, was awarded the First Prize. After that, G. Grigoryan and N. Daniel-Bek participated in the All-Union M.I. Glinka Competition, where the singer also became a laureate.
Nelly Daniel-Bek went on tour in Romania, the GDR and West Berlin (1972, Days of Armenian Culture), Czechoslovakia, Algeria, Greece; Cyprus, Malaysia, and Greece (1978), India, Singapore, USA (twice), Canada, Yugoslavia, Hungary, Finland (1985), Poland (with Ruben Aharonyan), and Bulgaria.
On her first trip in 1970 to the USA (Chicago, Boston, Philadelphia, Detroit, Providence, San Francisco, Los Angeles) and Canada (Montreal and Toronto), Daniel-Bek performed with singers Elvira Uzunyan and Ruben Matevosyan. In the USA they performed in New York, in the famous Carnegie Hall; at the UN, in the Hammarskjöld Hall, and also at NBC Radio. The American press wrote with delight about Armenian Soviet musicians.
In 1991, she became a member of the Union of Theater Workers.