Musical Armenia

To the 100-year anniversary of the foundation of Komitas National String Quartet

Gohar Karlen Shagoyan — Fri, 09 Aug 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Musicologist, Founder-Editor-in-chief journal “Musical Armenia” Gohar Karlen Shagoyan. - “To the 100-yearanniversary of the foundation of Komitas National String Quartet”.The article is primarily written within the framework of Komitas Studies, focusing on the performing arts, as adedication to the 155th anniversary of Komitas. It is devoted to the history of the Komitas National String Quartet,the activities of its members, and its artistic directors, People’s Artists of the USSR Avet Gabrielyan and EduardTadevosyan. The article highlights the jubilee concerts held during the quartet's centennial year, the ceremonial eventat the Komitas Chamber Music House, which included the presentation of the quartet's cassette and commemorativebook, the awarding of the quartet's honorary medals to its musicians and public figures, and the official concert atthe Aram Khachaturian Concert Hall. The Komitas National String Quartet is presented as a bearer, preserver, andpromoter of national culture worldwide, particularly during its jubilee year.

Great in Everything

Villi Vahan Sargsyan — Mon, 12 Aug 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Honored Artist of the Republic of Armenia, Professor at Yerevan State Conservatory, pianist Villi Vahan Sargsyan.- “Great in Everything”.The article by pianist, Honored Artist of the Republic of Armenia, and Professor at Yerevan Komitas State Conservatory Villi Vahan Sargsyan presents the musician's memories of the outstanding violinist Avet Karp Gabrielyan. It recreates the emotional atmosphere of his concerts and conveys unforgettable artistic experiences associated with Avet Karp Gabrielyan s solo and ensemble performances. V. V. Sargsyan s recollections cover events that took place at the Dilijan Composers' Creativity House during the summers of the second half of the 1960s.

A Jubilee Portrait of a Honored Artis

Anahit Artavazd Kirakosyan — Sat, 12 Oct 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Ethnomusicologist, Docent at Yerevan State Conservatory after Komitas Anahit Artavazd Kirakosyan. -"A Jubilee Portrait of a Honored Artist: Tovmas Poghosyan 70th Birthday".The article is dedicated to the 70th anniversary of the beloved singer, People’s Artist of Armenia, ashugh scholar,Doctor of Philological Sciences, and Professor of the Conservatory Tovmas Gevorg Poghosyan. The artist is presented as a bearer, preserver, promoter, and devoted representative of national culture, particularly in the field of ashugh studies, his cherished area of expertise. The focus is on the series "Treasury of Ashugh Songs", with several volumes published during his jubilee year (the work is ongoing).

On the Musicality of Parajanov’s Film “The Color of Pomegranates””

Svetlana Koryun Sarkisyan — Thu, 24 Oct 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Doctor of Arts, Professor at Yerevan Komitas State Conservatory, Svetlana Koryun Sarkisyan. - “On the Musicality of Parajanov’s Film “The Color of Pomegranates'”.The article was written by S. K. Sarkisyan in 1969, when she was a student at the Theoretical and Composition Faculty of Yerevan Komitas State Conservatory, for the literary magazine "Garun" (Spring).At the suggestion of the editor-in-chief Alexander Topchyan, the material was intended to highlight the musicin Sergei Parajanov's new film "The Color of Pomegranates", specifically the work by composer Tigran Mansurian. However, due to a shift in the analytical perspective, the article was not accepted for publication(this task was successfully carried out by musicologist Nikoghos Tahmizian). Later, in 1987, during apersonal meeting with S. I. Parajanov, the author personally handed him the article. After the director’s, thanks to the initiative of Svetlana Shcherbatyuk (the director’s widow), Sarkisyan’s article from the archive of the Parajanov House-Museum in Yerevan, richly illustrated with frames from the film "The Color of Pomegranates", was published in the Ukrainian language in the journal "Kino-Theatre" (Kyiv, 1999, pp.43-46). At the end of the article, there is an editor's note: "The article was read and approved by Sergei Parajanov". The Russian version (original) is now being published for the first time with minor authorial revisions. The ideas presented in this article were further developed and theoretically expanded in the essay"The Musical Phenomenon in the Films of Sergei Parajanov", published in Armenian in the magazine"Garun" (Yerevan, 1994, No. 2, pp. 87-93). This was followed by its publication in Russian in Moscow("Iskusstvo Kino", "Musical Academy"), Kyiv ("Ukrainian Musicology"), Novosibirsk (the universityperiodical "Criticism and Semiotics"), Saratov (the collection of articles "Dialogue of Arts and ArtParadigms"), and in French in Zagreb (the academic quarterly "International Review of the Aesthetics andSociology of Music") and Paris (the selected articles and interviews "Sergei Parajanov. Cineaste, Trublionet Martyr"). Moreover, the essay "The Musical Phenomenon in the Films of Sergei Parajanov" wasincluded in S. Sarkisyan 's authorial collection of articles "At the Boundary of Centuries. Music and its Spheres" (Moscow, 2014).

«Komitas’ Observations on Makar Yekmalyan’s Liturgy in the Journal “Ararat”»

Grigor Harutyun Harutyunyan — Fri, 09 Aug 2024 00:00:00 +0000

PhD Candidate at the Institute of Arts, NAS RA, Choir Conductor, Deputy Head of the Choir Conducting Department at the Romanos Melikyan Music College Grigor Harutyun Harutyunyan. - «Komitas’ Observations onMakar Yekmalyan’s Liturgy in the Journal “Ararat”».The article examines a review written by Komitas Vardapet, in which he specifically analyzes Makar Yekmalyan's "Chants of the Holy Liturgy", published at the time. Our primary objective in this study has been to make Komitas's analysis more accessible. In particular, we have emphasized Vardapets approach to the structural aspects of Armenian musical art, focusing on the relationship between text and music. The second section of the article examines the sharakan "Khorhurd Khorin", drawing parallels between the harmonized versions in the Liturgies ofMakar Yekmalyan and Komitas Vardapet. The study refrains from delving into medieval musicology but touches ona few related terms.

Some Features of the Musical Language of Komitas՛ Choirs

Armine Valerik Atoyan — Fri, 09 Aug 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Composer, musicologist, PhD candidate at the Institute of Arts of NAS RA, and editor-in-chief of the monthly newspaper Yerazhisht (Musician) Armine Valerik Atoyan. - “Some Features of the Musical Language of Komitas՛ Choirs”.The article examines the characteristic features of the musical language in Komitas՛' choral works, based on his choral arrangements of folk songs. It explores the scale structure, harmonic language, texture, meter-rhythm, and other expressive means.

Some Features of the Musical Language of Komitas՛ Choir

Armine Valerik Atoyan — Fri, 09 Aug 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Composer, musicologist, PhD candidate at the Institute of Arts of NAS RA, and editor-in-chief of the monthly newspaper Yerazhisht (Musician), Armine Valerik Atoyan. - “Some Features of the Musical Language of Komitas՛ Choirs”.The article examines the characteristic features of the musical language in Komitas՛' choral works, based on his choral arrangements of folk songs. It explores the scale structure, harmonic language, texture, meter-rhythm, and other expressive means.

The Sazandaryan Almas

Julieta Volodya Nazaryan — Fri, 09 Aug 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Singer. Associate Professor at YSC, Julietta Vladimir Nazaryan. - "The Sazandaryan Almast".This article focuses on the creation of Alexander Spendiaryan's opera "Almast" and the interpretation of the singing part by Tatevik Sazandaryan. It outlines how A. Spendiaryan persistently searched for a plot with heroic motifs for his future opera and, becoming acquainted with Hovhannes Tumanyan and his poems, ultimately chose his poem "The Capture of Tmkaberd". The article also discusses Tatevik Sazandaryan 's portrayal ofthe part of Almast - how, at just 23 years old, the singer masterfully overcame the challenges of this demanding role and the reception it received from both the general audience and musicologists.

The State Symphony Orchestra of Armenia and National Musical Culture," excerpt from dissertation

Narek Valentin Tovmasyan — Fri, 09 Aug 2024 00:00:00 +0000

PhD in Art History, musicologist, Project Management Professional Diploma, PMP® Narek Valentin Tovmasyan. - "The Periodof New Rise and International Recognition of the Armenian State Symphony Orchestra: David Khanjian, Valery Gergiev (1974-1985)" ("The State Symphony Orchestra of Armenia and National Musical Culture," excerpt from dissertation)”.The author of the article presents the activities of David Khanjian within the Armenian Philharmonic Orchestra: his entry into theorchestra and the development of a new quality in the ensemble's formation during this period, particularly through Khanjian'sinterpretation of works by contemporary Armenian composers. Through his vibrant activity, he illuminated the orchestra until theend of his life - up to the year 1981. The author presents Valeriy Georgiev's activities in Armenia, particularly his role in leadingthe Armenian Philharmonic Orchestra from 1981 to 1985. Georgiev's conducting artistry seems to have filled the gap left by DavidKhanjian's unfinished plans. With the State Symphony Orchestra of Armenia, both in Yerevan and other cities (during tours),Georgiev conducted 67 concerts, performing Western European and Russian classical works. Of great value and significance arethe approximately 30 compositions by Armenian composers that were performed for the first time under his leadership with the StateSymphony Orchestra of Armenia.

Ludwig van Beethoven: Revolutionary and Innovator

Vardan Samvel Hakobyan — Fri, 09 Aug 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Conductor, Professor at LISMA Conservatory (Long Island), and Conductor of the "Shen Yan" Orchestra, Vardan Samvel Hakobyan. - "Ludwig van Beethoven: Revolutionary and Innovator".The author of this article describes and explores the work of Ludwig van Beethoven through a unique and personal interpretative approach. He analyzes Beethoven's aesthetic and philosophical views, drawing parallels with historical events. Based on his deep familiarity with Beethoven's compositions and his extensive experience in conducting, the author also presents conclusions about the composer's life, artistic legacy, and worldview. Throughout the article, the author draws insightful parallels related to human character types, ways of thinking, and psychological traits, as well as contrasts between the historical figures of Napoleon Bonaparte and Ludwig van Beethoven, employing innovative perspectives and research

The significance of the monumental and extensive musicological new publications (2024) of Haig Avakian

Haig Utidjian — Fri, 09 Aug 2024 00:00:00 +0000

The significance of the monumental and extensive musicological new publications (2024) of Haig Avakian: a brief appreciation and future implications, Haig Utidjian.The purpose of this article is to describe and evaluate five volumes edited by Haig Avakian and published in 2024, comprising musical manuscripts that were in possession of archpriest Sahak Šak‘arean, containing the chants and odes of the Divine Liturgy, hymns, and a volume devoted to the legacy of Papa Hambarjum Limōnčean. Fr. Sahak started copying the Divine Liturgy chants and odes in Jerusalemas a deacon in 1914, prior to the Armenian Genocide, and it is thus reasonable to expect some older Hierosolymite elements in thetranscriptions, alongside those originating from Constantinople; and indeed the collection does include some unique specimens. Themanuscript by Melik‘ Merker (1854-1939) is extremely interesting, containing as it does inter alia the verbal texts and, at times, alsomelodies of odes attributable to Limōnčean. It allows us to give Limōnčean his due as an Armenian nineteenth-century composer of the first rank.

THE SECRETS OF THE MASTERY OF PROFESSOR YURI HAYRAPETYAN ETUDE ON THE ETUDE

Armen Volodya Manasyan — Fri, 09 Aug 2024 00:00:00 +0000

This article is dedicated to the musical-pedagogical views of Professor of the Tchaikovsky Moscow State Conservatory, Artist of Armenia, Yuri S. Hayrapetyan - the principal custodian of the traditions of the piano school of Yakov Flier at the Moscow Conservatory of nowadays. The essay is based on a dissertation study about the interaction of piano schools within the context of Russian-Armenian musical connections and is part of a series of publications including the following articles: "The Basics of Analytical Score Reading in the Pedagogy of Yuri S. Hayrapetyan," "The Piano Concerto in the Pedagogical Conceptof Yuri S. Hayrapetyan," "Polyphony in the Pedagogy of Yuri S. Hayrapetyan".