NEW YORK — Nvak, a music education non-profit organization dedicated to cultivating young global musical talent, is releasing an Armenian folk album from its collective of singer-songwriters on April 24. The album features 5 songs from young Armenian singers/songwriters made in collaboration with prominent US and Armenian producers, including Sebu (Capital Cities) and Miqayel Voskanyan. The songs were originally written by Father Komitas [Gomidas Vartabed Soghomonian], a world-renowned Armenian composer, conductor and ethnomusicologist who was most prolific in the early part of the 20th century.
Komitas composed, collected, and transcribed thousands of songs, both sacred and secular, and toured Europe and the Middle East with huge mixed-gender choirs. Unfortunately, he was captured and tortured by the Turkish government during the Armenian Genocide in 1915. The trauma left him hospitalized in Paris for the remainder of his life. His legacy, however, continues to grow. The selections in this EP are modern arrangements of some of his most beloved tunes, sung by up-and-coming female musicians from Armenia, discovered and supported by the non-profit music label, Nvak.
“I Cannot Come Out And Play” is now live on all streaming platforms. This is the Collective’s second release of 2020 — the first being their debut album “Roses (Vartair),” a collection of 9 songs written by songwriters from Armenia and Israel.
Nvak was founded in 2016 by artist and social entrepreneur Tamar Kaprelian, a first-generation Armenian-American. After signing to Clive Davis at age 18, and Interscope Records at age 21, she recognized an opportunity for more mentorship in the industry and the need for people in positions of power to help young talent grow.
“I founded Nvak in order to be of service to a vibrant, talented population of global musicians with limited opportunities,” said Kaprelian. “Working in Armenia is very personal to me: I traveled to the country for the first time in 2015 after representing them in Eurovision and had a transformative creative experience while there. I wanted to use my platform and voice for a good cause – to help amplify the voices of women and girls.”
Four years after its inception, Nvak has a growing community of 1000+ young musicians in Armenia, Malawi, and Israel. At its core, Nvak takes a hyper-local approach to teaching collaborative songwriting, music production, and music business.
