Ars lunga is a

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keybo ...

and

cello The cello ( ; plural ''celli'' or ''cellos'') or violoncello ( ; ) is a bowed (sometimes plucked and occasionally hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually tuned in perfect fifths: from low to high, C2, G ...

duo established in 2009 in

Yerevan Yerevan ( , , hy, Երևան , sometimes spelled Erevan) is the capital and largest city of Armenia and one of the world's oldest continuously inhabited cities. Situated along the Hrazdan River, Yerevan is the administrative, cultural, and i ...

Armenia Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ' ...

by two leading Armenian artists: cellist Aram Talalyan and pianist Julietta Vardanyan. Since its establishment, the group has performed numerous recitals across Armenia,

CIS countries The Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) is a regional intergovernmental organization in Eurasia. It was formed following the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. It covers an area of and has an estimated population of 239,796,010. ...

, Far and Near East,

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...

, and

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

. They have participated in several well-known festivals such as "The Return festival," "National Cello Festival" in Yerevan, "Fajr Festival" in

Tehran Tehran (; fa, تهران ) is the largest city in Tehran Province and the capital of Iran. With a population of around 9 million in the city and around 16 million in the larger metropolitan area of Greater Tehran, Tehran is the most popul ...

, "Moscow Autumn" modern music festival, Contemporary Music Festival in

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

, Martisor Festival in

Moldova Moldova ( , ; ), officially the Republic of Moldova ( ro, Republica Moldova), is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Romania to the west and Ukraine to the north, east, and south. The unrecognised state of Transnistr ...

, Deia music festival in

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

, and many others. The group has performed at prestigious locations such as Oji Hall in

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, ...

, Moscow Composers Hall,

Utrecht Conservatory The Utrechts Conservatorium is a Conservatory of Music in Utrecht, Netherlands and part of the '' Utrecht School of the Arts'' (HKU). The conservatory opened in 1875 and is one of the eldest professional musical education institutes of the Netherl ...

, Vahdad Hall in Tehran, Organ Hall in Cisnau, Moldova, and others. In 2011, Ars lunga became an NGO registered in Yerevan, Armenia. Several well-known composers have written pieces dedicated to the duo, including Hooshyar Khayam and Rebecca Ashooghian from Iran, Suren Zakaryan and Mikhail Kokzhaev from Armenia, Artyom Kokzhaev from

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

, and Haig Boyadjian and Jakov Jakoulov from the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

. During the 2012-2013 season, the duo recorded live on Armenian television three sets of complete music for cello and piano by Robert Schumann,

Aram Khachaturian Aram Ilyich Khachaturian (; rus, Арам Ильич Хачатурян, , ɐˈram ɨˈlʲjitɕ xətɕɪtʊˈrʲan, Ru-Aram Ilyich Khachaturian.ogg; hy, Արամ Խաչատրյան, ''Aram Xačʿatryan''; 1 May 1978) was a Soviet and Armenia ...

, and Tigran Mansurian. The repertoire of the group ranges from original Baroque compositions of the 17th-18th centuries (with harpsichord or organ instead of piano) to complete sets of standard Classical and Romantic works such as

Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classic ...

's complete sonatas and variations, Schumann's complete pieces,

Mendelssohn Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (3 February 18094 November 1847), born and widely known as Felix Mendelssohn, was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic period. Mendelssohn's compositions include sym ...

's complete works,

Brahms Johannes Brahms (; 7 May 1833 – 3 April 1897) was a German composer, pianist, and conductor of the mid-Romantic period. Born in Hamburg into a Lutheran family, he spent much of his professional life in Vienna. He is sometimes grouped with ...

's complete sonatas, and more. In 2013, Ars lunga NGO completed and produced a large-scale recording project called the "Anthology of Armenian music for cello and piano." It contains practically the entire music from 1900 till now written for piano and cello by composers of Armenian origin living in and outside the motherland. The album contains 12 CDs and 60 compositions. This album has been spread worldwide and can be found in listening libraries of major universities and conservatories in the USA, Russia,

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

, Near and Far East countries,

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The library ...

in the USA, as well as several European Public Radio stations and CIS countries Composer Unions. In January 2015, the duo recorded the complete works of Father Komitas ( Soghomon Soghomonyan) arranged for cello and piano. The recording was dedicated to the victims of the 1915

Armenian Genocide The Armenian genocide was the systematic destruction of the Armenian people and identity in the Ottoman Empire during World War I. Spearheaded by the ruling Committee of Union and Progress (CUP), it was implemented primarily through t ...

, and the general sponsor was the Grand Lodge of Armenia. Presently, the duo is working on an "Anthology of Armenian trio" recording project with several Armenian violinists who live across the world. The main perspective and goals of the duo are to perform and record contemporary music of Armenian composers along with music of the world.Cafesjian Classical Music Series: Duo ARS LUNGA and Friends
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Awards

In 2012 Duo “Ars lunga” received a Gold Medal from the Union of Moscow composers for "outstanding performance."

References

{{Musical ensembles Male–female musical duos