Hamasyan Melds Musical Traditions at Berklee in Boston

Armenian folk music has developed over centuries, if not millennia, but has been made accessible to world audiences only after being processed and, in a sense, reformulated, by contemporary artists starting in the nineteenth century. Soghomon Soghomonian, better known as the priest Gomidas, was one of the major figures in this process. Today, Armenian folk music still serves as a source of inspiration for musicians working in various genres. Hamasyan is one of those who draws on the rich heritage of Armenian folk and minstrel music (e.g. Sayat Nova), as well as Armenian liturgical music, in his works, which may range from jazz or rock to classical in genre.

One of his many admirers among the student performers is Christina Azarian, pianist and composer, who is the daughter of Armenian jazz pianist David Azarian. She had transcribed and arranged a piece for the concert by Hamasyan called Kars. She declared at the event that when she first started at Berklee, she learned that many musicians she respected were studying Hamasyan’s music. She said, “That is because it is so intricate, and so complicated and incredible…I went home to my mom, and I told my mom, they are practicing Tigran Hamasyan’s music, and through that they are learning about Armenian culture and Armenian music. That is one aspect of it. You can learn so much from it. And then there is the other aspect of it, when you stop analyzing and just listen. And it speaks to your entire core.”

Azarian remarked that Friesen, during a practice session of Hamasyan’s Luys I Luso Suite, stopped for a second and exclaimed, “I just had a religious experience.” She said that “This music has that power — it has that power as a whole.” Karam too felt this. She later said, “It is so sacred, the content.” For this reason, and to respect Hamasyan’s creative vision, she and others at Berklee worked very carefully and were in constant touch with Hamasyan while transcribing and arranging his music for the Boston performance.

Karam, who grew up in Beirut, Lebanon, founded the Middle Eastern Festival nine years ago. Her goal for the festival was to “bring together cultures from the Middle East and neighboring regions with students here, from all over the world, and to educate people about these cultures, the meaning of the music and language, and many other things to which people are not exposed, especially in a time of conflict and prejudice.” Three years ago, she organized an Armenian themed festival. Being half Armenian, with grandparents from Urfa, she said, “I have a very strong connection to the music and culture.”

Karam had a student working on Hamasyan’s music for a year. After realizing that Hamasyan appeals to a lot of people, both students and the general public, she successfully convinced Hamasyan to participate in this year’s festival. The students and faculty worked hard from the beginning of the academic year to prepare for the concert, and held a rehearsal on Monday night, two nights before the event, with Hamasyan himself. The next day a recording with the students was done, and sound checks were held. Hamasyan also taught a master class while at Berklee, and gave students advice.

Hamasyan was born in Gyumri, Armenia in 1987 to a family that listened to a lot of music. Most of his ancestors were originally from Kars, and one was from Sepasdia (Sivas), but some were natives of Gyumri. By the time he was three years old, he began to play rock and jazz on the piano. His family moved to Yerevan when he was ten, and he studied classical jazz there under Vahag Hayrapetyan. In 1998 he performed at the First International Jazz Festival in Yerevan, and again in 2000, meeting jazz legends like Chick Corea.