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His famous Sabre Dance was once the most frequently played piece of music in the world, this week Donald Macleod explores the life and music of Aram Khachaturian.

Khachaturian's highly-colourful scores led him to be dubbed the "Rubens of Russian Music". On this 70th birthday he was showered with praise internationally including being hailed as the "Pride of Soviet Music". Yet Khachaturian was a late starter in the world of music. By the time he went to study it formally, he was already too old to focus on the piano. Instead he took up composition with Mikhail Gnessin, had private lessons with Reinhold Gliere, and then studied with Nickolai Myaskovsky at the Moscow Conservatoire, where his Trio made quite a stir. Khachaturian went on to have a significant impact upon Soviet music and he became famous around the world for his concertos, and also his ballets. However, he wasn't exempt from Stalin's purges and witch hunts. Khachaturian was accused of 'formalism', along with Shostakovich, Prokofiev and Myaskovsky. These once lauded composers now found themselves shunned. Once Stalin died however things began to change, and Khachaturian soon found himself as popular as ever. He was offered conducting tours around the world including trips to the UK, Mexico, and the USA. It was towards the end of his life that Khachaturian's Sabre Dance from one of this ballets, became the most frequently played work in the world.

Khachaturian was born in Georgia to Armenian parents. He considered himself to be a European Armenian and, although he lived most of his life in Moscow, the folk songs he heard as a young boy would always remain with him. Khachaturian went on to compose many songs of his own, and other vocal works, including his Ode of Joy.

As a student, Khachaturian played in the college brass band, although he frequently argued with the conductor. It was only after he moved to Moscow, to study, that Khachaturian heard a professional, classical piano recital for the first time. One of his student works, a Trio, made a big impression; Prokofiev took a copy with him to Paris to have it performed there.