Hye Sharzhoom Armenian Action
Hakop Tataryan
Editor
Whether it is appreciating a painting by da Vinci, a sonnet by Shakespeare or a sonata by Franz Liszt, there are certain things in life that simply titillate our senses. On Friday night, September 24, worldrenowned pianist Sergei Babayan thrilled 450 Fresno State students, professors, and community members alike in the Concert Hall of the Music Building at Fresno State, when he played three vibrant piano pieces. For an hour and a half, audience members had their senses tingling with delight as Babayan played pieces by Kenneth Leighton, Franz Liszt, and Johann Sebastian
Bach.
The evening began with the Study Variations, which were made up of Allegros and Adagios, by the late Kenneth Leighton (1929-1988). Babayan’s charismatic piano playing had the audience entranced as the bipolar dynamics of Leighton’s piece filled the room. After a well-deserved applause and a bow, Babayan continued with a Sonata in B minor composed by none other than Franz Liszt (1811-1886). Audience members were at the edge of their seats as each movement went by. It was like watching a mystery movie unfold scene by scene until its climactic finish.
After a short intermission, Babayan performed his final piece. Like a good movie, a good book, or even a short article, the big finish differentiates the piece from typicality.The final performance of the evening did just that. The Goldberg Variations, BWV 988, originally composed by Bach (1685-1755), had such complexity and depth that it had
Babayan jumping from one end of the piano to the other in a matter of milliseconds. The entire audience admired this intricate masterpiece and it was evident in the four standing ovations he received, making it worthy of an encore. Babayan began playing the piano at the age of three and began studying music critically at the age of six with Luisa Markaryan and
later with George Saradjev. At the age of nineteen he continued his piano playing at the Moscow Conservatory with professor Mikhail Plentev. His endeavors have earned him several international prizes at piano competitions, including the 1989 Robert Cascades Competition in Cleveland.
The concert was co-sponsored by the Philip Lorenz Memorial Keyboard Concert Series and the Armenian Studies Program. Events such as this, as well as the Bocelli concert last year, raise the level of Fresno’s culture. Thus, college students should be encouraged to attend such events.