Hayrapet Arakelyan Germany/China ← Back to list

Hayrapet Arakelyan is a celebrated saxophonist recognized as one of the leading of his generation, particularly after his acclaimed performance at the Eurovision Young Musicians Competition in 2010.

Since then Arakelyan has been instrumental in expanding the recognition of the classical saxophone, gracing some of the world’s most prestigious music festivals, including the Mosel Festival, Beethoven Fest Bonn, Festspiele Mecklenburg Vorpommern, Schleswig Holstein Musikfestival, Bachfest Leipzig, Dresdner Musikfestspiele, Musikfestival Graffeneg, Schumann Festival in Düsseldorf, Emilia Romagna Music festival, and the New York Chamber Music Festival.

A sought-after soloist, Arakelyan has performed with renowned orchestras such as the Radio Symphony Orchestra Vienna, Sinfonia Varsovia, Boston Pops Orchestra, Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra, Poznan Philharmonic Orchestra, Düsseldorf Symphony Orchestra, and Folkwang Chamber Orchestra.

Arakelyan's recording career includes several CDs released among them under the prestigious labels Deutsche Grammophon and Sony. Among these, the “ECHOES” album, recorded in 2020 with the SIGNUM Saxophone Quartet, holds the distinction of being the first saxophone quartet album ever released under Deutsche Grammophon—a milestone in the instrument’s classical history.

From 2018 to 2022, Arakelyan held the position of Alto Saxophone in the SIGNUM Saxophone Quartet. During this time, the quartet performed over 220 concerts, and their innovative approach to new compositions by prominent composers such as Georg Friedrich Haas and Christian Jost, specifically written for them. As a chamber musician, Arakelyan has collaborated with prominent artists such as Daniel Hope, Sabine Meyer, and Daniel Müller-Schott, consistently pushing the boundaries of what the saxophone can achieve in a classical setting.

In recent years, he has also been invited to serve as a judge and tutor at international saxophone competitions and masterclasses, contributing his expertise to the next generation of saxophonists.

Since September 2022, Hayrapet Arakelyan has served as an associate professor of saxophone at Nanjing University of the Arts in China. He is also a D’Addario Performing Artist and Henri Selmer Paris Artist.