Karen Shahgaldyan Violin   

Karen Shahgaldyan was born in 1976 in Moscow into a musical family - going back several generations, and including performers, conductors, and composers. Karen showed musical talent quite early, and already at age 5 entered a special music school. He then enrolled into the Central Specialized Musical High School, under the auspices of the Moscow Conservatory. He later entered the Conservatory itself, and worked with the famed violinist Viktor Tretiakov, and received several distinguished grants from the school. Beyond his work at the Conservatory, Karen attended Master Classes with such prominent violinists as Yehudi Menuhin, Vladimir Spivakov, Grygoriy Zhitnik, and Yevgenya Chugaeva.

While still a student, Karen began performing with Spivakov's famed Moscow Virtuosi; he likewise won 1st Prize at the Pablo Sarasate Competition (Spain, 1999). Upon graduation, he commenced post-graduate work at the Conservatory with Professor Maya Glezarova, finishing his studies in 2003.

Since completing his studies, Karen Shahgaldyan has embarked on an active concert career, performing regularly in Moscow and elsewhere in Russia, as well as in the US - including at Carnegie Hall. His repertoire is quite extensive, ranging from Baroque to Contemporary, and includes both serious concert and crowd-pleasing encore numbers. We are pleased to feature this talented violinist here at the Classical Archives.

Reviews

"Karen Shahgaldyan has embarked on his mature music career. His start was bright and confident. Let's wish him good luck in the hard career of a musician, because the way to acknowledgment is paved not only with flowers. Though, in this case flowers will abound, we are sure."

Literaturnaya Gazeta (Russia)

"[Mr. Shahgaldyan] is an exceptionally gifted violinist. Brilliant, spirited, with perfect technique and developed taste."

Viktor Tretiakov