Aram Ilyich Khachaturian was a prominent Soviet Armenian composer. Khachaturian's works were often influenced by classical Russian music and Armenian folk music. He is most famous for the Adagio of Spartacus and Phrygia from his ballet Spartacus, and for the "Sabre Dance" from his ballet Gayane and the adagio from the same ballet, much used in films since its first use in Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey. Aram Ilyich Khachaturian was born in Tiflis, Imperial Russia to a poor Armenian family. His father was a bookbinder. In his youth, he was fascinated by the music he heard around... him, but at first he did not study music or learn to read it. In 1920, when Armenia was declared a Soviet republic, Khachaturian joined a propaganda train touring Armenia, populated by Georgian-Armenian artists. The following year he travelled to Moscow to join his brother, the stage director of the Second Moscow Art Theatre.
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| Birthdate: | June 6, 1903 |
| Birthplace: | Tbilisi |
| Date of death: | May 1, 1978 |
| Also known as: | Արամ Խաչատրյան, Aram Chatschaturjan, Amar Khachaturian |