Edvard Mirzoyan | Sad Waltz

Edvard Mirzoyan (1921-2012) was an Armenian composer.

He is considered one member of the group called “Armenia’s Mighty Handful”, a reference to the 19th century collective known as the “Mighty Handful.” He is also considered an integral part to the “Armenian School” of music composition alongside the composers Arno Babajanian and Alexander Arutiunian.

Mirzoyan first enrolled in music at the Yerevan Music School named after A. Spendiarov. He would later graduate from the Komitas State Conservatory in 1941 having studied under the Armenian composers Sargis Barkhudaryan and Vardges Talyan (the symphonic poem “Loretsi Sako” forming his graduate thesis work). He would soon be conscripted into the Red Army in 1942, and it is here where he would compose many patriotic and war-related songs.

In 1948, Mirzoyan would begin professorship at Yerevan Conservatory (a.k.a. Komitas State Conservatory of Yerevan), and would become the department head of composition in 1965. In 1952, he would also begin teaching at the R. O. Melikyan Musical College (now the Yerevan State Musical College after Romanos Melikyan).

In the late 1950s, he was elected president of the Armenian Composers’ Union, a position he held until 1991. He also served as the president of the Peace Foundation of Armenia. While president of the Composers’ Union, Mirzoyan drove the development and construction of the Composers’ Union Resort in Dilijan, which now bears his name. The resort went on to be one of the most well-known cultural hubs of the Soviet Union.

Mirzoyan’s compositional output is relatively small but quite distinguished, combining graceful lyricism with intense drama. With its formal structure and tonal design, his style has been described as Neoclassical, with elements of Armenian folksong always present. Mirzoyan’s String Quartet, Cello Sonata, Symphony for Strings and Timpani, and Epitaph for String Orchestra have become notable additions to the repertoire.

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