Tigran Mansurian (Тигран Мансурян): the Requiem, Lachrymae, his ECM albums and where to start

Mansurian is one of the best-known Armenian composers of concert music today: quiet, slow-moving pieces that grow out of Armenian chant and Komitas, recorded mostly by the German label ECM. Here is who he is and where to start.

By The Armenly team. Written November 9, 2026.

Key findings

  • Tigran Mansurian (in Russian, Тигран Мансурян; in Armenian, Տիգրան Մանսուրյան) was born in Beirut on January 27, 1939. His family moved to Soviet Armenia in 1947 and settled in Yerevan in 1956 [1] [2].
  • He taught at the Yerevan Komitas State Conservatory from 1967 to 1986 and was its rector from 1992 to 1995 [1] [2].
  • His Requiem (2011), dedicated to the victims of the Armenian Genocide, was released by ECM in 2017. The English Wikipedia says that recording was nominated for two Grammys, and that Monodia was nominated in 2004 [1] [2].
  • Armenly has 95 recordings that credit him (catalog read November 9, 2026), most of them from his ECM albums with the violist Kim Kashkashian and others.

Who Tigran Mansurian is

He was born in Beirut in 1939 to an Armenian family that moved to Soviet Armenia in 1947 and settled in Yerevan in 1956. He studied at the Romanos Melikian music school and then at the Yerevan Komitas State Conservatory [1]; the Russian Wikipedia says he graduated in 1967 from the composition class of Lazar Saryan [2].

He taught at the Conservatory from 1967 to 1986 and led it as rector from 1992 to 1995 [1]. He was named People's Artist of the Armenian SSR in 1990, and he received a Presidential Award of Armenia for the Requiem [2].

The Requiem

The Requiem for soprano, baritone, chorus and strings dates from 2011 and is dedicated to the victims of the Armenian Genocide [2]. ECM released it in 2017; the recording on Armenly is by the RIAS Kammerchor and the Munich Chamber Orchestra under Alexander Liebreich. The Agnus Dei and the opening Requiem aeternam are the movements to start with.

Kim Kashkashian and the viola

Much of Mansurian's music on record was made with the Armenian-American violist Kim Kashkashian [1]. Lachrymae (1999) is a duet for soprano saxophone and viola, recorded with Jan Garbarek; "...and then I was in time again" is his 1995 viola concerto [1]. On Hayren they play Komitas and Mansurian side by side with the percussionist Robyn Schulkowsky.

Chamber music and concertos

He wrote three string quartets (1983 to 1993) and "Testament" for string quartet (2004), recorded by the Rosamunde Quartett for ECM [1]. The album Quasi parlando gathers concertos played by the violinist Patricia Kopatchinskaja, the cellist Anja Lechner and the Amsterdam Sinfonietta. Nostalgia, with the pianist Alexei Lubimov, is a short first listen.

Film music

Mansurian scored films too, most famously Sergei Parajanov's The Color of Pomegranates (1968), a film about the bard Sayat-Nova [1] [2].

Where to listen

Questions people ask

Who is Tigran Mansurian?

An Armenian composer, born in Beirut in 1939, who taught at the Yerevan Conservatory and was its rector from 1992 to 1995. He is known for the Requiem, Lachrymae and his ECM recordings with Kim Kashkashian.

How do you spell Mansurian in Russian and Armenian?

Тигран Мансурян in Russian and Տիգրան Մանսուրյան in Armenian. In English you will also see Mansuryan.

Did Tigran Mansurian write the music for The Color of Pomegranates?

Yes. He scored Sergei Parajanov's 1968 film about Sayat-Nova.

Where should I start with Mansurian?

The Requiem's first movement, Lachrymae with Kim Kashkashian and Jan Garbarek, and the Hayren album, which pairs his music with Komitas songs.

Sources

Cite this page

The Armenly team, "Tigran Mansurian (Тигран Мансурян): the Requiem, Lachrymae, his ECM albums and where to start." Armenly, November 9, 2026. https://armenly.com/guides/tigran-mansurian

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