From 6-13 June in Yerevan will be held 8^th Aram Khachaturian International Competition. This year it will be open for “violin” specialty. Organizers of the competition are RA Ministry of Culture, Cultural Foundation "Aram Khachaturian-Competition" and Yerevan Komitas State Conservatory. The competition is held under the patronage of the Spouse of President of RA Mrs. Rita Sargsyan, who is honorary president of the Board of Trustees.

Since 2010, the general partner of the competition is The Intergovernmental Foundation for Educational, Scientific and Cultural Cooperation of the CIS (IFESCCO), which opened wide opportunities for implementation of such grand project at a higher level and expended borders of the competition, extending it to the CIS countries.

Geography of participants is very wide; it incorporates representatives from about 20 countries, including Russia, Kazakhstan, Georgia, Moldova, Ukraine, Belarus, Poland, China, Korea, Colombia, Italy, Spain, USA, Japan, UK, and France.

The Board of Trustees of the competition includes such world-famous figures as Professor Jonathan Freeman-Attwood, Professor Reinhart Fon Gutzeit, Valery Gergiev, Professor Alexander Sokolov, Professor Alexander Tchaikovsky, the composer Robert Amirkhanian, Mikhail Shvydkoy, Pavel Kogan, and Elizbieta Penderecka, Krzysztof Penderecki, composer Eduard Mirzoyan, other significant artists.
The Organizing Committee of the Aram Khachaturian International Competition determined the following prize fond on a specialty "Violin":

First prize - 15,000 U.S. dollars and a laureate diploma

Second prize - 10,000 U.S. dollars and a laureate diploma

Third Prize - 5000 U.S. dollars and a laureate diploma

Non-prize-winning finalists will each receive a 2,000 U.S. dollars grant and a Diploma.

The honorary jury members are:

• Eduard Tadevosyan (Armenia) – Chairman of the Jury, professor and Dean of the Orchestral Department at Yerevan State Komitas Conservatory
• Boris Kushnir (Austria) - Professor at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Graz and Vienna Conservatory
• Igor Petrushevsky (United Kingdom) - Professor at the London Royal Academy of Music
• Karen Harutyunyan (Belgium) - Professor at Royal Conservatory of Liege and the Brussels Royal Conservatory of Music
• Sergey Kravchenko (Russia) - Professor and Head of the string department at Moscow State Tchaikovsky Conservatory
• Tanja Dorn (Germany) - Associate director Conductors and Instrumentalists Division  Germany & North/South America IMG Artists

Within the framework of the competition Yerevan will host such honorary guests as:

• Alexander Sokolov (Russia) - Rector of the Moscow State Tchaikovsky Conservatory
• Gagik Gabrielyan (Russia) - Executive Director of the Aram Khachaturian Foundation in Moscow
• Elizbieta Penderecka (Poland) – Chairman of the Ludwig van Beethoven Association, General Director of the International Ludwig van Beethoven Easter Festival
• Jean Disler (Belgium) – Maecenas
• Ino Mirkovic (Croatia) - UNESCO "Artist of Peace", the rector of the music academy "Ino Mirkovich" in Lovrane, Advisor to Harrison Parrott Artists Management

Marcus Marshall (UK) - artistic director of the music program I, Culture

On June 7-8 at Komitas Chamber Music Hall will be held the first round of the competition.

On June 10 at Aram Khachaturian House-museum will be held the second round of the competition.

On June 12 at Aram Khachaturin Concert Hall will be held third and final round of the competition.

On June 13 at Aram Khachaturian Concert Hall will take place the Award Ceremony and Gala Concert. During the evening will perform State Youth Orchestra of Armenia headed by artistic director and principal conductor Sergey Smbatyan and the winner of 2012 Aram Khachaturian International Competition.