Jean Ter-Merguerian
| Jean Ter-Merguerian | |
|---|---|
.png) in concert, 1970s | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Jean Ter-Merguerian |
| Also known as | (Merkerian or Merjerian) |
| Born |
5 October 1935 Marseille, France |
| Genres | Classical |
| Occupation(s) | Violinist, pedagogue |
| Instruments | Violin |
| Years active | 1946 to present |
Jean Ter-Merguerian (Armenian: Ժան Տեր-Մերկերյանը; born October 5, 1935) is a French-Armenian virtuoso violinist and violin pedagogue.[1][2][3]
Life
Jean Ter-Merguerian has got the first prize for violin at the Marseille Conservatoire at the age of 11. In the same year, his first recital took place, where he performed Vivaldi’s Concerto A minor and Mendelssohn’s Concerto E minor. He continued his musical studies in Yerevan with Prof. Karp Dombayev and then in the Moscow Conservatory in the class of David Oistrakh. Jean Ter-Merguerian is a prizewinner of international violin competitions, such as Prague Spring (1956), Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow, Queen Elisabeth in Bruxelles (1963). He also got the first Grand Prix at the Long-Thibaud Competition in Paris (1961).[4] He taught in the Yerevan Komitas State Conservatory having simultaneously multiple concerts in ex-USSR, Western Europe, Lebanon,[5] South America, the United States, and Canada.
In 1975, during his USA tour, he played in Boston the Violin Concerto by Brahms; The story goes that, at the conclusion of the concert, the conductor Arthur Fiedler, who was very hard to please and given to lavishing praise, embraced the young violinist on stage with paternal love and wished him success. This was the ringing endorsement of the talent of Jean Ter Merguerian, who had just given his first performance in the United States.
His solo performances were accompanied by orchestras of different countries conducted by famous conductors, also Aram Khachaturian having conducted his own violin concerto. Jean Ter-Merguerian is a member of juries of international competitions: "Paganini" in Italy, "Sarasate" in Spain, "Tchaikovsky" in Moscow and "Khachaturian"[6] in Yerevan. Living in France, he gives master classes there and abroad. He plays on a Nicolò Amati violin.
«The most important thing for a performer is to penetrate into the soul of the composer, to be able to “read” his emotions...» (Jean Ter-Merguerian)
Quotes from colleagues (in original language)
- "J'ai une grande admiration pour Jean-Ter Merguerian qui est un magnifique violoniste. Sa sonorité, sa technique et sa musicalité sont parfaites. C'est un grand artiste." (Zino Francescatti)
- "Le violoniste le plus doué de sa génération." (Henryk Szeryng)
- "Jean Ter-Merguerian n'est pas seulement un grand violoniste, il est un grand artiste." (Christian Ferras)
- "La pus belle technique d'archet du monde tout instrument à corde confondu." (Mstislav Rostropovitch)
- "Jean Ter-Merguerian is a gentleman among violinists. He has extraordinary technical skills and a deep musicality." (Jonathan Dove, "The Strad")
Recordings
No official recital and concerts recordings by Jean Ter-Merguerian exists. Only two CD-Rs of live pirate and archive broadcast material have been released (CD-R 1 : "Selection from Performances" / CD-R 2 : "Khachaturian 100th").[7] The 1966 Armenian Radio broadcast recording of Bach Double Concerto is part of a 2CDs compilation dedicated to his colleague, the violinist Anahit Tsitsikian. In 1999 Jean Ter-Merguerian recorded his only commercial release: Gérard Gasparian's Violin Sonata (1990), with the composer himself at the piano (CD Timpani 1C1055).[8]
Live, private, radio TV archives, uncommercial
| composer | work | orchestra / conductor / accompanist | rec. info | source | note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bach, Johann Sebastian | Chaconne, in D minor, BWV 1004 | violin solo | live(1) | CD-R 1 | Audio, public domain |
| Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeus | Rondò (Serenade No.7 "Haffner" KV 250) | Zara Barseghian, piano | live(2) | CD-R 1 | Audio, public domain |
| Beethoven, Ludwig van | Violin Concerto Op.61, II. Larghetto | Armenian State Symphony O. / Loris Tjeknavorian, cond. | live(3) | CD-R 1 | Audio, public domain / recording of 1st and 3rd mvmt. is probably lost |
| Beethoven, Ludwig van | Violin Concerto Op.61, III. Rondò (Allegro) | ORTF / Louis Fourestier, cond. (prize winner concert of the Marguerite Long–Jacques Thibaud Competition) | live Paris, 27 June 1961 | Video | Video, public domain |
| interview | ORTF interview at the "1st Grand Prize", Jean Ter-Merguerian, with Henryk Szeryng (Jury member) | after the prize winner concert of the Marguerite Long–Jacques Thibaud Competition | live Paris, 27 June 1961 | Video | Video, public domain |
| Sarasate, Pablo de | Habanera, Op.21/2 (Spanish Dance No.2) | Nelli Daniel-Bek, piano | studio(4) | CD-R 1 | Audio, public domain |
| Sarasate, Pablo de | Romanza andaluza, Op.22/1 (Spanish Dance No.3) | Nelli Daniel-Bek, piano | studio(4) | CD-R 1 | Audio, public domain |
| Sarasate, Pablo de | Capricho vasco (Caprice Basque), Op.24 | Zara Barseghian, piano | live(2) | CD-R 1 | Audio, public domain |
| Scott, Cyril | Lotus Land, Op.47 No.1 | Zara Barseghian, piano | studio(5) | CD-R 1 | Audio, public domain |
| Szymanowski, Karol | La Fontaine d'Arethousa, Op.30 No.1 ("Mythes") | Zara Barseghian, piano | studio(5) | CD-R 1 | Audio, public domain |
| Prokofiev, Sergei | Masks ("Romeo and Juliet", Suite Op.75) arr. Jascha Heifetz | Nelli Daniel-Bek, piano | studio(6) | CD-R 1 | Audio, public domain |
| Khachaturian, Aram | Ayshe's Dance ("Gayane", Ballet Suite No.2) | Nelli Daniel-Bek, piano | studio(6) | CD-R 1 | Audio, public domain |
| Komitas | Keler tsoler (Striding, Beaming), arr. Aram Shamshyan | Nelli Daniel-Bek, piano | live(7) | CD-R 1 | Audio, public domain |
| Komitas | Akh Maral jan (Ah, Dear Maral), arr. Aram Shamshyan | Nelli Daniel-Bek, piano | live(7) | CD-R 1 | Audio, public domain |
| Komitas | Groong (The Crane) | violin solo | live(8) | CD-R 1 | Audio, public domain |
| Sibelius, Jean | Violin Concerto, in D minor Op.47, II. Adagio di molto | Armenian State Symphony O. / Michael Malountian, cond. | live 1970s | Audio, public domainI & III recording probably lost | |
| Khachaturian, Aram | Violin Concerto, in D minor (1940) | Armenian State Symphony O. / Michael Malountian, cond. | radio(9) | CD-R 2 | Audio, public domain |
| Khachaturian, Aram | Dance in B-flat Major, Op.1 | Nelli Daniel-Bek, piano | studio(6) | CD-R 2 | Audio, public domain |
| Khachaturian, Aram | Violin Concerto, in D minor (1940) | URSS State Symphony O. / Aram Khachaturian, cond. | live, 1970s | recording probably lost | |
| Bach, Johann Sebastian | Double Concerto for 2 violins, in D minor, BWV 1043 | Anahit Tsitsikian (I), Jean Ter-Merguerian (II) / Armenian Radio TV Symphony O. / Raphael Mangassarian, cond | live, 1966 | CD [9][10] | Audio, public domain |
| Brahms, Johannes | Violin Concerto, in D major Op.77 | Boston Symphony O. / Arthur Fiedler | live, 13 June 1975 | Audio, public domain | |
| Gasparian, Gérard | Violin Sonata (1990) | Gérard Gasparian, piano | studio, 1999 | CD Timpani 1C1055 | Audio, excerpt from CD |
References
- ↑ interview with Jean Ter-Merguerian, Asparez, 17 April 2013.
- ↑ AVproduction, Jean Ter-Merguerian, violinist - photo gallery
- ↑ Armenian Celebrities: Jean Ter-Merguerian, violinist
- ↑ Prize Long-Thibaud - First great prize (1961), Jean Ter-Merguerian - Russia
- ↑ Chance to witness brilliance of a violinist from the old school, The Daily Star, Lebanon News, February 25, 2000
- ↑ Jury members, "Aram Khachaturian Competition", 2005
- ↑ On YouTube, search: Jean TER-MERGUERIAN - remastered legacy [HQ]
- ↑ CD review, Gwyn Parry Jones (MusicWeb International)
- ↑ The Art of Anahit Tsitsikian, CD 1 & 2
- ↑ by "Anahit Tsitsikian Cultural Foundation"
External links
Media related to Jean Ter-Merguerian at Wikimedia Commons