Music of Armenia
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Armenia is situated close to the Caucasus Mountains, and its music is a mix of indigenous folk music, perhaps best-represented by Djivan Gasparyan's well-known duduk music, as well as light pop, and extensive Christian music, due to Armenia's status as the oldest Christian nation in the world. Armenian immigrant communities have maintained their folk traditions, especially in the area around Fresno, California.[1]
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[edit] Christian music
Armenian chant, composed in one of eight modes, is the most common kind of religious music in Armenia. It is written in khaz, a form of indigenous musical notation. Many of these chants are ancient in origin, extending to pre-Christian times, while others are relatively modern, including several composed by Saint Mesrop Mashtots, who invented the Armenian alphabet. Some of the best performers of these chants or sharakans, are at the Holy Cathedral of Etchmiadzin, and include the late soprano Lusine Zakaryan.
Armenian religious music remained liturgical until Komitas Vardapet introduced polyphony in the end of the 19th century. Apart from his contribution to religious music, Komitas may be considered the founder of modern classical Armenian music. From 1899 to 1910, he travelled through the Armenian highlands and collected more than 3,000 folk tunes many of which he harmonized and transformed into Lied.
[edit] The melodic basis of Armenian music
Traditional Armenian folk music as well as Armenian church music is not based on the European tonal system but on a system of tetrachords[2]. The last note of one tetrachord also serves as the first note of the next tetrachord - making the scale on which a lot of Armenian folk music is more or less based a theoretically endless scale.
[edit] Folk music
While under Soviet domination, Armenian folk music was taught in a rigidly controlled manner at conservatoires. Instruments played in this way include kanun (instrument) (dulcimer), davul (double-headed hand drum), oud (lute), and zurna. The duduk is especially important, and its stars include Margar Margarian, Levon Madoyan, Vatche Hovsepian, Gevorg Dabaghyan and Yeghish Manoukian, as well as Armenia's most famous duduk player, Djivan Gasparyan.
Earlier in Armenian history, instruments like the kamancha were played by popular, travelling musicians called ashoughs. Sayat Nova, an 18th century ashough, is still revered, as are more modern performers like Armenak Shahmuradian, Vagharshak Sahakian, Norayr Mnatsakanyan, Rouben Matevosian, Hayrik Muradyan, Hovhannes Badalyan, Raffi Hovhannisyan, Papin Poghosian, and Hamlet Gevorgyan. The most notable female vocalists in the Armenian folk genre have been: Araksia Gyulzadyan, Ophelia Hambardzumyan, Varduhi Khachatrian, Valya Samvelyan, Rima Saribekyan, Susanna Safarian, Manik Grigoryan, and Flora Martirosian.
[edit] The Armenian Genocide
In 1915, the Young Turk regime killed a large number of Armenians during the Armenian Genocide mainly in the eastern part of Turkey, the native Armenian lands, though other regions where Armenians lived were not forgotten, and oppressed Armenian culture, leading to widespread emigration. These emigrants settled in various countries, especially in the California Central Valley, and the second- and third-generation have kept their folk traditions alive, with oud-player Richard Hagopian being perhaps the most famous of these musicians. Another oud player, John Berberian, is noted in particular for his fusions of traditional music with jazz and rock in the 1960s. From Lebanon and Syria, George Tutunjian, Nersik Ispirian, Karnig Sarkissian and others performed Armenian Revolutionary Songs which quickly became popular among the Diasporan youth, notably ARF supporters. In Tehran Iran the folk music of the Armenian community is characterized by the work of Nikol Galanderian (1881-1946) and the Goghtan choir.
Other Armenian musicians include Ara Topouzian who performs on the kanun and VANArmenya,[3] who sings both folk, children's and patriotic songs, performs on keyboards, and promotes the music of "the other Gomidas," Grikor Mirzaian.<sup id="cite_ref-3" class="refere