11/26/2025
SPACE IS LIMITED AND TICKETS ARE SELLING FOR THIS FINAL CONCERT OF THE MUSIC FROM POPLAR HILL CONCERT SERIES. PLEASE PURCHASE YOUR TICKETS AT WWW.MUSICFROMPOPLARHILL.ORG AND JOIN US AS WE CELEBRATE THE CULMINATION OF SIX WONDERFUL SEASONS!
Our last post featured renowned trumpeter Chuck Seipp, of the Seipp-Kasparian Duo. On December 5 at 7:30PM, Mr. Seipp and his duo partner, Raffi Kasparian, will offer a program combining dazzling musical works with video images. The concert will take place at St. George's Episcopal Church in Valley Lee, just 15 minutes from Leonardtown.
Pianist RAFFI KASPARIAN, Mr. Seipp's partner in the duo, is a distinguished performing artist in his own right, and a man of many gifts and interests. His passion for the piano was ignited at age 14, and within a year he was already playing advanced repertoire. At age 16 he went to college to double-major in math and music. Kasparian obtained his bachelor’s degree in music from California State University at Northridge in 1982, his master’s degree from the Peabody Conservatory in 1984, and his doctorate in piano performance from the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor in 1988. He later continued with post-doctoral studies at the Cleveland Institute of Music.
Dr. Kasparian gives solo and collaborative recitals throughout the United States, Canada and the Philippines. His solo piano repertoire includes standard classical piano compositions by Liszt, Rachmaninoff, Beethoven, Chopin, Debussy, Kabalevsky and other well-known composers, as well as his own original compositions and arrangements. He also plays chamber music with accomplished instrumentalists and choral ensembles, as well as piano concertos with noted orchestras.
Dr. Kasparian retired from the United States Army after serving 24 years as pianist for The United States Army Chorus, the vocal counterpart of The United States Army Band “Pershing’s Own”, based at Fort Myer near Washington, D.C. One of the nation’s only professional all-male choruses, the Army Chorus frequently performed at the White House, the Capitol, the Kennedy Center and other well-known concert halls around the United States. In addition to Kasparian’s performing schedule, he composes and arranges piano and choral music, as well as coaches advanced piano students.
After establishing his music career, Kasparian indulged in his love of math by programming games on the Macintosh computer. From Pascal to C to C++ and finally Java, he honed his programming skills with fun projects that employed geometric concepts and game theory. Serendipitously, he landed a job as a software engineer for Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC). He also co-authored the book Java for Artists, widely used by programming professionals. Raffi is happily married and lives with his family in Northern Virginia.
Music from Poplar Hill is supported by the generosity of the St. Mary's County Arts Council, which is funded by the Maryland State Arts Council, and many private donors.
