Ektoras Tartanis won the special prize at the international Aram Khachaturian conduction competition 2021 in Jerewan, Armenia. With this prize the jury wanted to award the best interpretation of the Adagio of the composers’ most popular ballet “Spartacus”. Even though Ektoras Tartanis didn’t reach the final round of the competition the musical impression he left with this piece convinced the jury in the end: “Ektoras let the special colors of this piece shine in a new way. He took risks that were musically motivated and was yet always in control. His intense connection with the orchestra was felt throughout and it carried the music from the start to the end.”