Constantine Orbelian

Constantine Orbelian is an American conductor, pianist, and producer, born on August 27, 1956 in San Francisco, California. He comes from the noble Armenian princely Orbelyan family of Syunik and is the nephew of the noted Armenian composer Constantine Agaparonovich Orbelian. He began piano lessons at the age of four in the children's department of the San Francisco Conservatory, studying with Claire James, and at eleven made his debut as a pianist with the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra.

He studied piano at the Central Music School in the class of Anaida Sumbatyan and later graduated from the Juilliard School in New York. Between 1980 and 1990 he gave about 750 concerts as a pianist. His recording of Aram Khachaturian's Piano Concerto with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra under Neeme Jarvi was highly praised by music critics around the world and was recognized in the United Kingdom as the best recording of the year.

At the beginning of the 1990s, Orbelian turned to conducting. From 1991 to 2010 he served as artistic director and chief conductor of the State Academic Chamber Orchestra of Russia. In 2003 he became the first foreign artist without Russian citizenship to receive the title Honored Artist of Russia. From 2010 he led the Moscow Chamber Orchestra of the Pavel Slobodkin Theater and Concert Center for several years, and in 2013 he was guest music director of the Volgograd State Theater Tsaritsyn Opera.

From 2014 he has served as chief conductor of the Kaunas City Symphony Orchestra. He has also been artistic director and guest conductor of many festivals, orchestras, and theaters. Orbelian is known for his work with world-class singers and for supporting young vocalists. Opera News described him as the finest vocal conductor of his time, calling him a conductor singers can only dream of.

Since 2016 he has been artistic director and later director of the Alexander Spendiaryan Armenian National Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre. In 2021 he was appointed music director and chief conductor of New York City Opera. Earlier, the article also notes his long leadership of the State Academic Chamber Orchestra of Russia and his continuing international career as a conductor.

Orbelian is a four-time Grammy Award nominee, receiving nominations in 2014, 2017, 2018, and 2019 for recordings made with Lawrence Brownlee, Stephen Costello, Dmitri Hvorostovsky, the Kaunas City Symphony Orchestra, and the St. Petersburg State Academic Symphony Orchestra. He worked constantly with Dmitri Hvorostovsky, and together they released 23 discs. One of their last collaborations, an orchestral recording of Georgy Sviridov's Departed Rus, was nominated for a Grammy Award.

As a recording artist and producer, Orbelian has recorded more than 60 compact discs for the Delos label, as well as DVDs and CDs issued by Decca, Deutsche Grammophon, Chandos, Philips, and Warner. Among his honors are the Ellis Island Medal of Honor and official distinctions recognizing his achievements in musical art and culture.

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