Aram Khachaturyan was a Soviet-Armenian composer whose music burns with dramatic intensity and exotic harmonic color. This comprehensive 1998 survey captures the breadth of his orchestral vision across two discs. The Symphony No. 1 in E Minor is a large-scale work of considerable ambition, while the Violin Concerto showcases the instrument's soloistic possibilities against richly orchestrated accompaniment. The Concert Rhapsodies for piano and cello display Khachaturyan's gift for writing virtuosic vehicle pieces. His language draws on Armenian folk traditions and Russian orchestral writing, creating music that feels both deeply rooted and completely original. The album includes excerpts from Gayeneh, Khachaturyan's most famous ballet, featuring the iconic Saber Dance. The orchestration is always colorful and confident, the melodies immediate and memorable. An excellent introduction to this important twentieth-century voice.