After having finished his studies in European Languages and Literature, the young Armenian bass decided to study Voice at the Conservatoire “Tchaikovsky” in Moscow with Evgenij Nesterenko. He also studied with Tom Krause and Helmuth Rilling. He won numerous important Voice Competitions such as “Belvedere” in Vienna in 1995, “Ard” in Munich in 1996, “Bbc Singer of the World” in Cardiff and “Operalia” in 1997, “Maria Callas” in Athens in 1999.
His first successes were in Mozart roles Leporello (1994) and the title role of Don Giovanni at the Flemish Opera in Antwerp (1995); in the same role he debuted with notable success at the Teatro Liceu in Barcelona as well. In 1999 he interpreted for the first time, with success, the role of Boris in Boris Godunov by Mussorgskj, conductor Michail Jurowsky. He was applauded in Berlin as Zaccaria in Nabucco, Gran Inquisitore in Don Carlo, Enrico VIII in Anna Bolena, Gremin in Eugene Onegin and in particular his brilliant Mephistophélès in Gounod’s Faust and the role of Wurm in Luisa Miller during the last opera season of Gotz Friedrich.
He sang the role of Ludovico in Otello with Daniele Gatti conducting at Covent Garden in London together with José Cura, the Priest in Moses und Aron by Schönberg, conducted by Kent Nagano in Los Angeles. In the past seasons he sang in Turandot at the Hamburg Staatsoper, in Bruckner’s Te Deum with Lopez Cobos in Madrid, in Oedipus Rex at Liceu in Barcelona, in Trovatore at Covent Garden in London, and in concerts with Vladimir Fedoseyev at the Konzerthaus in Vienna.
In addition, Arutjun Kotchinian carries on an intense concert activity, including Stabat Mater by Rossini and Dvořák, Requiem by Verdi, Mozart and Dvořák, Mussorgskj’s Songs and Dances of Death orchestrated by Shostakovich.
He recorded Tchaikovsky’s opera Iolanta with the Warsaw Philharmonic, Die Harmonie der Welt by Hindemith and Ritter Blaubart by Emil von Reznicek (with Marek Janowsky conducting) for Rso Berlin, Symphonies no. 13 and no. 14 by Shostakovich for Capriccio.