Armenian music | the legacy of generations
Armenian music is a distinct and long-standing tradition that dates back to the third millennium BC, with the discovery of musical instruments such as the five-hole Nay made of gold and bronze gongs that characterised the period between the third and fourth centuries B.C. by the singing epic tincture dating back to the sixth century B.C.
Religious music emerged following the spread of Christianity and differed from folk music in terms of presentation and melodies. Komitas Vardapet, a distinguished composer and musicologist, collected and copied this music in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. He is also credited with founding the current Armenian National School of Music and creating the Khaz musical note, which is still used today.
Musical composition
Armenian church music and traditional folk music rely on the tetragonal "tetrachord" system rather than the European tonal pitch system because the last note of one quatrain serves as the first note of the next. In addition to the pentatonic system, it is "Microtonic" music, which means that it is composed on a small part of the tonal dimension, as in Byzantine, Persian, Arabic, and Turkish music, and it is also distinguished by the presence of Oriental music in general.
Armenian musical instruments
The art of making Armenian musical instruments, whether traditional such as the four-stringed and eight-stringed harp, or renovated such as the zither, and the Arganon, developed between the tenth and fifteenth centuries; the concepts of playing and composing musical pieces also developed, and a style of singing and music were known in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries as the "art of adoration" appeared thanks to the foundation of Kochag Nahabid, which spread with Armenians in the countries of diaspora.
The music of the saz instrument prevailed, thanks to which ancient Armenian folk melodies were performed by the composer, who was often the author of his sung poems or one of the narrators of lyrical epic poetry.
By the end of the sixteenth century, the Armenian-style musical notation stopped, and continued until the twentieth century, which led to the loss of much of the Armenian musical heritage.
Deacon Krikor Kapasaklian tried to reshape the musical weights and complex ancient melodies with their writings and signs to create a new musical alphabet that includes all the musical Maqam and ancient melodies by merging the eastern Armenian and Byzantine musical notation. Although it did not work out, he managed to lay the foundation stone for modern Armenian musical pedagogy.
Artists of the Armenian diaspora Armenian music has retained its sad character, distinguishing it from the rest of the musical styles that we are accustomed to hearing in the Arab world, particularly with the concentration of Armenian communities in Egypt, Iraq, and the Levant, and the preservation of their identity and language while learning Arabic and its various dialects.
One of the most famous Armenian composers of modern times is the Armenian-Egyptian duo Georges kazazian and Tigrane kazazian.
George kazazian
George kazazian is an Egyptian-Armenian musician, composer, and oud player. He was born in Cairo in 1953 and completed his musical training as a self-taught artist.
His music expressed the essence of the Nile River, the symbol of ancient Egyptian civilization, as he found popular Egyptian musical instruments very sophisticated, so he loved the tunes and over the years turned them into music reflecting the ancient and modern spirit of Egypt. Kazazian composed soundtracks for films such as "Wife of an Important Man," "Hunger," and "Conqueror of Time."
He also composed soundtracks for several documentaries, including "Before the Pyramids," "Ramses II," and "Dance of Love." He also released several music albums, such as "Sabil," Sajaya, South, and "Blue."
Throughout his artistic career, he has performed many concerts throughout Europe and several concerts inside Egypt, especially in El Sawy.
Tigrane kazazian
Tigrane kazazian, also a French-Armenian composer, singer, oud player, guitarist, and pianist, playing original compositions inspired by folk and world music, was born at the foot of the Giza Pyramids on April 9, 1987, in Cairo, Egypt. At the age of six, he was attracted to his father's instrument, the lute. Fifteen years later, while listening to the works of his father, George kazazyan, he discovered his musical language and talent for composing, expressing himself through the Oud.
His music sounds somewhat like that of Ludovico Einaudi, a famous Italian pianist and composer, whose melodies are nostalgic for the past, In his way, Tigrane conveys various human emotions to the listener, what he feels as part of the composition. The duo collaborated on the Noor project, which was shown at the Opera House in Cairo, Egypt, in 2017, and in Yerevan, Armenia, in 2016.
The piece "Dance of fire" is perhaps the most famous representation of the relationship between father and son, as the duo plays the oud side by side, weaving many emotions.
Artistic career
He formed the Kazazian trio, with renowned percussionist Eduard Harutyunyan and Duduk player Arsen Petrosyan, an artist nominated for Best Artist in the Songlines Music Awards, in 2018.
Kazazian signed a deal with Gum (Green United Music) and Cezame Agency as the exclusive publishing company for his album Cairo Nights, in 2020.
His album, Cairo Nights, was published by Green United Music. In the same year, his music was featured in documentaries including:
1915: le Génocide des chrétiens en Turquie
2 mois après le drame: les chrétiens se relèvent by France 2 and on RTS Swiss Radio, in 2021.
In addition, he formed the Tigrane Kazazian Quartet. The Quartet gave its first three concerts in Armenia as part of the Francophonie Organization, in 2022.
Tigrane also collaborated with Swiss composer-musician Albin Brun in a show commemorating the 30th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Switzerland and Armenia on April 21, 2022, in Yerevan, Armenia.
