Serouj Kradjian 

A persuasive balance between elegance and spirit.
 
-NEW YORK TIMES, USA

Kradjian attacked with gusto the driving rhythms of Osvaldo Golijov's "Levante" before joining his wife for a spicy assortment of tango-songs by Carlos Gardel and Astor Piazzolla. 

-THE CHICAGO TRIBUNE, USA
 
Already in its name "Douze Etudes d'execution transcendantes" we can know the extent of their difficulty.Whoever plays one or two in concert is celebrated as a virtuoso. Serouj Kradjian created a firework of Piano acrobatic by playing all of them...In some of the lyrical pieces of the concert "Ricordanza" and "Harmonies du Soir" Kradjian proved to have a deep insight of form and vision...- 

-WESTDEUTSCHE ALLGEMEINE ZEITUNG, Germany 

An experience to remember......A technique to burn... the performers brought the right touch of Gallic irony to Ravel's Sonata. The apparent diffidence erupted into a strong climax in the "Blues" movement, where the unexpected darkness and bite, especially in Kradjian's playing, brought out interesting connections with the composer's Concerto for Left Hand. ... Kradjian pulled all the stops in Arno Babadjanian's massive "Poeme for piano".- 

-GLOBE AND MAIL, Canada

Serouj Kradjian  played capably and stylishly,  exceptionally sensitive in his phrasing.

- NEW YORK SUN, USA

...Kradjian provided glorious color throughout the evening, whether in the complex thunder and quiet shimmer of the Liszt songs or the lyrical flow of Heggie’s tunes.  But he set his own musical fire when he took center-stage in Osvaldo Golijov’s Levante for solo piano. He ripped through the high-speed mashup of jazz, stride piano and tango like the best kind of honky-tonk piano virtuoso. I’d love to see these two performers in a jazz club sometime, but only if plenty of fire extinguishers were on hand.

-CHICAGO CLASSICAL REVIEW, USA
 
Kradjian, a very fine pianist, also played some keyboard music of Gomidas: fascinating stuff that sounded Janacek-like, asymmetrical and extremely sensitive.

-VANCOUVER SUN, Canada

...both prodigious and electrifying.- 

-DIARIO DE CORDOBA, Spain 

 The first two Sonatas for Violin and piano were written in 1851, and the last sonata three years later. Here we are dealing with three mature masterworks. Rightfully they are considered the most valuable chamber music works of Schumann. 

This is brought out very impressively by the violinist Ara Malikian and the pianist Serouj Kradjian in the CD released by Haenssler.The mutual understanding in their interpretation is ideal, and so is the balance of sound between the two instruments.The lyric fusion is blent with the Schumannesque warmth and also the tragic disruption in the last Sonata (with the famous FAE movement) is very well played. A fantastic Schumann Disc!! 

-LUXEMBURGER WORT, Luxemburg

Kradjian was also a musical force to be reckoned with, as he negotiated his way through some effusive piano passages with skill.

-GLOBE AND MAIL, Canada
 
…Optimal communication and good feeling for chamber music are the two qualities which characterize this recording which combines the virtuosity and freshness of the two performers violinist Ara Malikian and Pianist Serouj Kradjian. The duo creates something very special out of these intimate romantic works. Both play very together with much attention to the narrative of the work. 

- LUISTER, Netherlands 

Malikian and Kradjian are both Armenian. They play programmatically and dramatically, while still paying meticulous attention to the structure of the music. Malikian phrases like a singer. I can almost hear the words...and I really appreciate the emotional extremes in their playing...There is an improvisatory feeling about their playing. It sounds like they are experiencing the music for the first time, and I feel that way too, every time I listen to these two..." 

- AMERICAN RECORD GUIDE, U.S.A. 

Kradjian played the work superbly and shone especially in the lively rhythms of the finale.

-GLOBE AND MAIL, Canada

 Genius interpreter of Franz Liszt... Franz Liszt's Sonata, a work full of longing and pain, is at the core of the Romantic piano repertoire.This is also Kradjian's world. As if this music is his own music, he did not play a sultry 19th century work, but a passionate Ballade, of which the depth of the feelings would touch the people of the 21st century.This is possible only when the interpret is in total command of the technical difficulties.Kradjian did not have a problem with that.- 

-WESTDEUTSCHE ALLGEMEINE ZEITUNG, Germany 

Kradjian penetra en el misterio de los estudios de Franz Liszt dotando a cada uno de su propia fragancia, revelando en cada pincelada una extraordinaria mezcla de intuicion y sensibilidad. 

- MELOMANO, Spain 

Dedos le sobran pero además sabe cómo colocarlos: es un trueno pero también una mano de seda para cuando Liszt requiere cada cosa, que las requiere con suma facilidad y asiduidad…En otras palabras, se trata de un artista en el que lo formal,loescolástico y lo intuitivo conforman una excelente mezcla. 

- RITMO, Spain 

El pianista armenio-canadiense Serouj Kradjian ha actuado y ha grabado en España. En este disco reparamos en el estilo hipnótico del instrumentista, dotado de limpieza de digitación, fraseo fantasioso y sonoridad muy atractiva, que no desconoce el ataque seco, el acorde virulento, ni, en otro orden de cosas, el medido dibujo. El ritmo es férreo pero sometido a un elegante rubato. 

- EL MUNDO, Spain

 Mr. Kradjian’s transparent orchestrations provided a flattering backdrop, with colorful flourishes like pattering raindrops in “Antsrevn Yegav” (“It’s Raining”) and rustling winds in “Dzirani Dzar” (“Apricot Tree”). Some songs featured gorgeously breathy sounds from Hampic Djabourian on duduk, a double-reed instrument that sounds something like a soprano saxophone. Yet the loveliest selection was the simplest: “Akh Maral Jan” (“Ah, Dear Maral”), in which Ms. Bayrakdarian’s voice soared over Mr. Kradjian’s spare arpeggios.

- THE NEW YORK TIMES, USA
 
What was especially noticeable was that Kradjian's arrangements were never overdone in a way that would meddle with their folkloric simplicity — they exalted the material. There was veneration and musical sophistication in every bar, plus an important awareness of just how far to go, if they were to stay true to the music's roots. 

- VANCOUVER SUN , Canada

“I Bless You,” the text of which is based on a memoir by Aram Haigaz, depicts a mother sending her son off to safety. In this quieter section, Kradjian’s skills shine, especially as the ominous, agitated music gives way to a hush as the woman sends her son away with a final “Go…!”

- SAN FRANCISCO CLASSICAL VOICE, USA

... Serouj Kradjian wrote the subtly ornamental string-and-wind arrangements, with the duduk's apricot-wood timbre a primary color. 

- THE STAR-LEDGER, USA

With plucked strings ticking off the seconds and the eerie presence of a clarinet’s quiet plaint, the piano strikes off 11 clangorous chimes that wake the “Restive Souls” in Toronto pianist-composer Serouj Kradjian’s atmospherically dramatic new piece at the centre of Amici’s latest album.

- TORONTO STAR, Canada 

Kradjian's arrangements were suave and crisp, classy and strikingly effective.

- THE GLOBE AND MAIL, Canada


Kradjian's arrangements of the songs for string orchestra are superbly resourceful - sometimes answering the music's twists and turns with surprises of his own ...

- SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE, USA


The songs are fabulous, tuneful, bittersweet, and hopeful—you name the emotion. Orchestral accompaniments are excellently done, and this album soars to one of the top song albums of the year, heartily and urgently recommended to all.

- AUDIOPHILE AUDITION, USA