Sinfonia Toronto will launch its new season with a Gala Concert featuring Cellist Narek Hakhnazaryan on Saturday, October 27 in the Toronto Centre for the Arts. Immediately the next day the orchestra will repeat the same concert in Montreal’s Theatre Maisonneuve, Place des Arts. The orchestra’s Music Director Nurhan Arman will conduct a varied program ranging from Mozart to Khachaturian.

An instant sensation as he won the Gold Medal in the 2011 Tchaikovsky Competition, Narek Hakhnazaryan will perform Haydn’s sparkling Cello Concerto in C Major and also Paganini’s Moses Variations, a virtuoso showpiece which will give his spectacular technique full range. Other works on the program include Arutunian’s brilliant Sinfonietta and Khachaturian’s colourful Masquerade Suite.

Hailed as a “seasoned phenom” by the Washington Post, Narek has already appeared with the Chicago Symphony, the London Symphony, the Mariinsky Orchestra conducted by Valery Gergiev and the Orchestra of St. Luke’s. Mentored by the late Mstislav Rostropovich, Narek was the only cellist invited to tour on behalf of the Rostropovich Foundation, performing under its patronage in Russia, Germany, Austria, France, Great Britain, Greece, Turkey, and Canada. Emerging as one of the most significant cellists on the world stage, Narek has performed throughout the US, Europe and Asia, including concerts at Paris’ Salle Pleyel, Berlin’s Konzerthaus, Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw and Tokyo’s Suntory Hall.

Now entering its 14th season, Sinfonia Toronto has toured in Europe twice, receiving glowing reviews. It has released four CDs including a JUNO winner, and performs in many Ontario cities. Its rich repertoire includes the string orchestra music of the 19th and 20th century, and it has premiered many new works. Under the baton of Nurhan Arman the orchestra’s performances feature outstanding international artists and some of the most sought-after Canadian musicians.

Nurhan Arman is a popular guest conductor in Europe. He has conducted throughout Europe, Asia, South America, Canada and the United States. Among the many orchestras Maestro Arman has conducted are the Moscow Philharmonic, Deutsches Kammerorchester Frankfurt, Filarmonica Italiana, St. Petersburg State Hermitage Orchestra, Orchestre Regional d’Ile de France, Hungarian Symphony, Milano Classica, Belgrade Philharmonic and many others.

Toronto concert tickets are adult; senior and student. They can be purchased by phone from (416) 250-3708 or online at http://www.tocentre.com/georgeweston/sinfoniatorontogala

Montreal concert tickets and details can be seen at http://www.pda.qc.ca/pda-evenement/10883/sinfonia-toronto.en.html