Aram Il’ich Khachaturian

Aram Il'yich Khachaturian (1903–1978) was an Armenian composer born in Tiflis, then part of the Russian Empire and now Tbilisi, Georgia, who worked mainly in the Soviet Union. One of the leading Soviet composers of the 20th century, he combined melodies associated with Armenian and Caucasian folk music with forceful dance rhythms and vivid orchestration. He is widely known for the ballets *Gayane* and *Spartacus*, as well as the suite *Masquerade*. Among his piano works, the *Piano Concerto*, with its driving energy and percussive sonorities, the virtuosic and rhythmically incisive *Toccata*, and the approachable *Children’s Album* are especially important. His music brings folk-derived language into a modern compositional style and remains familiar in both the concert repertoire and music education.