Svetlana Navassardian

Born in 1946

France/Armenia

«Captivating to her multifaceted talent, Svetlana Navassardian can adorn any stage.»
These prophetic words from the renowned Emil Gilels uttered at the beginning of her illustrious career, have proven to be visionary. 

An artist par excellence, an exceptional Armenian pianist, Svetlana Navassardian, is one of those rare pianists whose prowess is universally acknowledged. She is hailed by music critics as an «indisputable artistic personality» who «hypnotically influences» the audience and «the most fascinating pianist.» They recognize her to «grow up to be a symbol — a symbol of confrontation for anything that embodies the routine and predictability of modern pianism.» 

As a laureate of prestigious International Piano Competitions, Schumann, Bach, Queen Elizabeth, and Sydney, Svetlana Navassardian’s talent and performance style have received international acclaim, described as «superb and incredibly versatile» with «uniqueness of vision and depth of personal reading,» and her music as «beauty…rarely heard!»

Her performances have graced the world’s major concert halls — be it the Great Hall of Moscow Conservatory, the Great Hall of the St. Petersburg Philharmonic, the Opera House of Sydney, the Palais des Beaux-Arts of Brussels, the Salle Gaveau of Paris, the Gewandhaus of Leipzig, the Teatro Colon of Buenos Aires, the Asahi Hall of Tokyo, the Phoenix-Hall of Osaka, or the Nybrokajen of Stockholm. Svetlana Navassardian has extensively toured internationally with recitals in the USA, Canada, Great Britain, France, Spain, Italy, Germany, Greece, Japan, China, Australia, Egypt, Kuwait, the Canary Islands, and elsewhere. Svetlana participated in renowned music festivals in Echternach, Venice, Тours, Granada, Sapporo, «Piano en Valois,» Halle, and others.

She was a jury member for International Piano Competitions in Rome, Moscow, Paris, Tbilisi, Weimar, Yerevan, and Colombo (on the last two – as a jury chairman). For many years, she has been a jury member of Ecole Normale de Musique de Paris competitions.

Svetlana Navassardian’s masterclasses at the Universite de Montreal, Conservatories in Moscow, Paris, and Strasbourg, the Lilla Academy in Stockholm, the Hochschule Für Musik Ruhr Institut in Duisburg, Hochschule für Musik Franz Liszt in Weimar, etc have become events.

Svetlana Navassardian’s vibrant musical career is saturated with numerous collaborations with world-famous soloists and conductors, among them E. Svetlanov, V. Gergiev, V. Sinayski, D. Lis, K. Etti, S. Keller, E. Lee, CH. Warren-Green, E. Wirsaladze, V. Spivakov, R. Aharonyan, Y. Bashmet, V. Tretiakov, G. Zhislin, Y. Brussilovsky, N. Gutman …                                   

Svetlana’s musical journey began at the Yerevan Komitas State Conservatory, where her talent flourished under the guidance of the remarkable teacher Vache Umr-Shat. At that time, his student, Svetlana Navassardian, became the first laureate of an International Piano Competition in the history of the musical art of Armenia. This impressive win contributed to the emergence of the Armenian piano school on the global stage, stimulating the interest of Armenian composers in piano music. Then, as now, many works were explicitly composed for Svetlana Navasardyan, and many were dedicated to her.

Her artistic brilliance continued to evolve at the Moscow State Conservatory, where she studied under the famous pianist Yakov Zak and later became his assistant. Enormously valuing her pedagogical talent, he also entrusted her with preparing one of his brightest students, the incomparable Yuri Egorov, for the Tchaikovsky International Competition. Since then, and to this day, many famous musicians have benefited from Svetlana Navassardian’s advice. Her legacy to the great traditions of Neuhaus continues to inspire her countless admirers all over the world.

«Svetlana Navassardian and her «flickering» world are at the piano… The most tender art of intonation, shining virtuosity, an outstanding splendor of multicolor musical palette, relief of texture filled with air…  This is a wonderful art, the magical secret of which is specific to the soul of a single being – absolute inner freedom and a sense of inspiring ideas…» (PhD in Art, Irina Zolotova).

Many renowned musicians, including Emil Gilels, A. Fischer, Monique de La Bruchollerie, Emanuel Ax, Eliso Virsaladze, and Evgeny Kissin, enthusiastically responded to Svetlana’s piano performing art.

The recording of her performance of Paul Hindemith’s «Ludus Tonalis» was welcomed by Sviatoslav Richter. The Hindemith Institute, for its part, praised the recording as being «absolutely outstanding.» Critics recognized “Davidsbündlertänzeby Robert Schumann in her triumphal concert in the Salle Gaveau (Paris) as «one of the best from anywhere heard.» Svetlana was the first foreign pianist to be honored to perform in Warsaw Lazienki at the famous Chopin monument.                                                              

Svetlana Navassardian is one of the few pianists worldwide performing all 27 of Mozart’s piano concertos. Her repertoire in whole includes more than 60 concertos for the piano, among them the concerts of Bach, Mozart, and Beethoven, in line with a manifold of monographic programs.

Svetlana Navassardian has received numerous awards and honors for her remarkable contributions to the development of national and Soviet culture, including the Soviet Order of the Badge of Honor, State Prize of Armenia (for performing all of Bach’s concerts), the St. Mesrop Mashtots Order and the Order of Honor — both the highest government awards in Armenia and the St. Sahak — St. Mesrop Order — the highest award of the Armenian Apostolic Church. She is a Corresponding Member of the Ararat International Academy of Sciences in Paris and an Honorary Member of the Academy of Music in Strasbourg, “Esperance.”

 

Svetlana Navassardian’s interests are as diverse as they are captivating. She is not only a renowned pianist but also a talented essayist, celebrated for her thought-provoking work, including the acclaimed essay «The Life of an Artist.» At one point in her remarkable journey, she even stepped into the conductor’s shoes, making her debut in the enchanting city of Miyazaki, Japan. Navassardian’s story is one of boundless exploration and artistic evolution.  Her growing passion for the world of visual arts led her to the multi-tiered halls of the University of Paris-Sorbonne. There, under the expert guidance of Academician Jean Pierre Mahe, a distinguished figure in the French Academy, she embarked on a fascinating quest to explore the lives and artistic brilliance of two exceptional Armenian painters, celebrated members of the iconic «Paris School» — Yervand Kochar and Georgy Yakulov.                      

Concerts await her in Kuwait, Qatar, Lyon, Strasbourg, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. She will premiere Mozart’s complete sonata cycle, perform captivating piano concertos by Eduard Hayrapetyan and Gagik Hovunts, and record a mesmerizing CD in Los Angeles titled «Dedications.» This album features enchanting works dedicated to her by renowned composers such as Ruben Sargsyan, Levon Chaushyan, Gagik Hovunts, Vache Sharafyan, and Tigran Mansurian. She dreams of holding the «Svetlana Navassardian Invites» festival, promising a grand celebration of music and culture.

Today, as she stands amidst the echoes of her never-ending journey, Svetlana Navassardian confides, «Even now, I feel like a perpetual student in the boundless realm of Music, as if there is still so much left unsaid…»

So then, at the tender age of five, she took her first steps towards the piano; by thirteen, she fearlessly unveiled her maiden solo concert, embracing every nuance of the series of Bach’s Inventions. At just fourteen, she joined a symphony orchestra from her school, flawlessly performing a part of Aram Khachaturian’s Concerto, a feat mastered in two days under the baton of the esteemed conductor Gohar Harutyunyan.

Sixteen marked her graduation from Romanos Melikian’s State Music College, opening the door to the Yerevan Komitas State Conservatory, where she enraptured audiences with her renditions of Robert Schumann’s cherished «Carnaval» and «Symphonic Etudes,» earning her an exceptional score of “five-plus”. Nineteen was the age at which she claimed her first laurels in the Robert Schumann International Competition… Since then, she has set off on an independent artistic path but always with a heart brimming with love for the old masters, a love that continues to fuel her musical odyssey to this day. 

In the picturesque town of Alaverdi, music and art were deeply cherished by Svetlana Navassardian’s family. Her father, Hovhannes Navassardian, a historian of exceptional intellect, played a pivotal role in shaping Armenia’s public education system. Meanwhile, Svetlana’s mother, Hranush Petrossian, was a mathematics expert and a marvelous classical singer. Her enchanting lyric-dramatic soprano and extraordinary artistic personality had a decisive influence on Svetlana’s accomplishments.

Svetlana warmly reflects, «My memories of my parents, take me back to Alaverdi of my childhood—a place when my fingers first touched the piano, a place that nurtured my dreams and gave them wings to fly to which my parents remained committed all their lives.”.  

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