BELMONT, MA — The National Association for Armenian Studies and Research (NAASR) will host a special musical performance by acclaimed pianist Tanya Bartevyan on Thursday, March 5, 2026, at 7:30 p.m. at the NAASR Vartan Gregorian Building, 395 Concord Ave., Belmont, MA. The program is supported in part by a grant from the Belmont Cultural Council, a local agency which is supported by the Mass Cultural Council, a state agency.
The event is free and open to the public. Following the performance there will be a reception to which all attendees are cordially invited.
Tanya Bartevyan will offer piano works by two great American composers: Florence Price (1887/88-1953) and Dianne Goolkasian Rahbee (b.1938), highlighting identity and belonging. Both masters uniquely combine the classical genre with their ethnic cultural backgrounds. Price’s expressive piano sonata is a neo-romantic masterpiece with haunting and joyful resonances of the African American musical idiom. Price was the first woman of African American descent whose symphony was performed by a major orchestra (Chicago Symphony 1933). Dianne Goolkasian Rahbee’s lyrical and effervescent music blends a neo-impressionistic style with Armenian melodies and rhythms. Rahbee was born in Somerville, MA, educated at Juilliard and the Salzburg Mozarteum. Internationally recognized, she lives in Belmont, MA.
Tanya Bartevyan was born in Istanbul to the Armenian community. She started musical studies at age 3. She was educated at the Armenian Esayan Lycee elementary school and at the American Robert College Lycee high school. She came to the US to study at Harvard University and the New England Conservatory of Music and holds Honors degrees from both institutions, with additional experience in composition and orchestral conducting. The musical lineage of her mentors extends back to Beethoven and Liszt. Tanya has given concerts in major Boston area venues and abroad. She has a lifelong interest in math and sciences, and unities of art, science, and social-experiential phenomena. She has engaged in theater and is an active citizen in matters of truthful dialogue, transparent governance, and natural preservation.
Bartevyan’s May 2025 concert titled “Freedom, Courage, and Love,” featuring Florence Price and Beethoven, was part of celebrations in Concord, MA, of the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution.
