Well, you could say there was an Armenian Chopin. When the French/Polish composer-pianist passed away in 1849, his distinctive and uniquely personal style came to an end as well. There were composers who were influenced by Chopin and/or drew inspiration from him, but none did it quite like the Armenian composer and piano virtuoso Stéphan Elmas (Smyrna, December 24, 1864 – Geneva, August 11, 1937).
Who actually knows him, this Stéphan Elmas whose works are rarely—if ever—performed today? This Armenian first studied, worked, and lived in Austria, later in Switzerland. A composer, celebrated successful pianist, teacher, but unfortunately also became nearly deaf. A life full of art, but also suffering—not only from deafness, but later in life especially from the Armenian tragedy (1922, the fire that destroyed his birthplace Smyrna when it fell into Turkish hands, burning to the ground four days later).
Heghine Rapyan, an Armenian concert pianist, brings Elmas back to life with a recording of beautifully executed works by this forgotten composer. The album's title is the only fitting description and summary of everything the composer stood for: 'Chopin of Armenia'. From the very first piece, you think you hear something of Chopin that for some reason you've never heard anywhere before—not on a recording, not at a concert, not on the radio or TV, nor on any music-filled platform. It's unusual; years after Chopin's death, someone—possibly thanks to his good relationship with Franz Liszt and several French pianists—picked up the thread and considerably advanced Chopin's work. In a way, Elmas becomes a full-fledged Romantic composer who, perhaps because of his hearing affliction, remained somewhat rooted in a musical past era. In some ways you could say: good thing, because in this way the world received a sort of continuation of the far-too-early-departed Frédéric Chopin.
Who better than Heghine Rapyan could have made this recording? As a talented pianist and as Elmas's compatriot, she can genuinely empathize with the works. Chopin is also familiar to her, and so you get a very engaging performance that you'll want to listen to uninterrupted from the first to the last note. It's delightful, dreamy, so romantic, sometimes a bit lush but not too much, sometimes full of grave seriousness, melancholy and intensity. Rapyan lets all this richness flow in the most beautiful sounds a piano can produce. Enjoy this recording!
