OGAN DURJAN'NARC

Ogan Durjan’narc was born in Jerusalem, where he studied composition and conducting in the conservatory. Since the late forties he has toured extensively in Europe. As conductor he received warm receptions everywhere. Durjan’narc studied with such distinguished conductors as Roger Desormiere and Jean Martinon.

He invented a musical system called “Universalism” written down in Rhythms only, from which billions of different original musical compositions can be written for all kinds of formations and in all musical styles the humanity has known.

Durjan's conductorial art runs to deep and powerful emotions, passionate temperament and rich fantasy. He enthralls audiences with his interpretations and touches the very souls of his listeners.

This remarkable conductor communicates easily with any orchestra or audience. His rich repertory, comprising well known as well as almost unknown works, excites enthusiasm everywhere.

Ogan Durjan’narc has been compared to Nikisch, to Karajan, to Bernstein and to Stokovsky, and in Warsaw has been called "the Toscanini of Eastern Europe". He has won recognition in many countries, where his brilliant performances were always an outstanding success. As multi-lingual as he is musically versatile, Ogan Durjan’narc has conducted more than 110 different orchestras. A review in Amsterdam started from “As conductor Durjan’narc is a genious”.

He won the appreciation of Herbert von Karajan while conducting for the first time in Vienna in 1947 upon whose recommendation he conducted also the Berlin and the Vienna Philharmonics.

When Ogan Durjan conducted the First Symphony of Dmitry Shostakovitch in Moscow, the composer presented Maestro with his personal score with inscription: “To the remarkable master conductor Ogan Khachadour Durjan with the very best wishes from D. Shostakovitch. 27 July 1963.”

Valeri Gergiev stated that “Ogan Durjan is one of the best conductors in the world, an artist of the level of Herbert von Karajan.”

Through his artistic career Ogan Durjan’narc conducted different performances with Leonid Kogan, David Oistrach, Mstislav Rostropovitch, Henryk Sceryng, Andre Navarra, Byron Janis, Samson Francois, Alexis Weissenberg, Pierre Barbizet, Luigi Alva, Edda Moser, Regine Crespin, Ernest Blanc, Edita Gruberova, Anna Tomova, Viorica Cortez, and many other great artists.

French Government honored Maestro with the title “Honorable Knight of Arts & Literature”.

In 2001 Maestro was invited to become a principal conductor of the Moscow Symphony Orchestra, and he rushed to work immediately. Soon the series of 4 concerts (Berlioz, Brahms, Ravel, Debussi) was ready and successfully performed at the Grand Hall of Moscow Conservatory and Tchaikovsky Concert Hall in February and March’2002.

A series of charity concerts to commemorate the victims of international terrorism were held by Maestro Durjan’narc with MSO. The most remarkable were the ones at the Grand Hall of Moscow Conservatory on September 8, 2002 and at the International Performing Arts Center on September 12, 2005.