Naghash Ensemble Lights Up Carnegie Hall

All songs were very rhythmic with recognizable Armenian undertones, and they reflected the anxiety of today’s world. The instrumentalists especially expressed the heartfelt Armenian feeling, with the singers also creating emotional body and hand movements as they performed. There was also a definite beat and modernistic flavor appealing to today’s generation.

The performance continued with the evocative Another Answer; the haunting Work of Darkness; and finally, the slow and mournful start of Lamentations for the Dead evolving to frantic speed and action. The repetitive style of the music persisted, but there was Armenian feeling throughout. An encore was performed to the delight of the audience, the lilting Armenian Lullaby, dedicated to all women putting a baby to sleep.

If there was anything missing in the performance, it was the spiritual and mystical words of the poems by Naghash and Erznkatsi that should have accompanied the music. Had it been distributed to the audience, it would have greatly enhanced the powerful meaning of the presentation.

Following a thunderous standing ovation lasting several minutes, Hodian introduced the musicians, all born in Yerevan, who voiced their individual feelings. He also expressed his deep appreciation to the Eastern Armenian Prelacy, Archbishop Anoushavan, and the Musical Armenia Committee for their dedication to the musicians and their hard work preceding the performance.

Naghash Ensemble

Mkrtich Naghash was the bishop of Amida (present day Diyarbakir) during the 15th century, a time when Armenians lived in dispersion, far from their ancestral lands. When the Armenian state vanished with the fall of Cilicia in 1375, Naghash became a respected figure by all groups. He was honored not only by Armenians, but also by Turks, Arabs, Kurds, Jews and many others. He was widely famous for his manuscript illuminations.

“The voice of Naghash calls on us to rely on each other to reaffirm the ties that bind individuals into communities, even in uncertain times of our own.” Hodian, the creator of the Naghash Ensemble, has been mainly performing in classical venues. “I grew up as an Armenian, but my background is Western music. Born in Philadelphia, he received his master’s degree in composition and conducting at the Philadelphia College for the Performing Arts. He has been the conductor of the Philadelphia New Music Ensemble and has conducted several European orchestras.

He has also been selected as a resident composer for the Sundance Theater Institute and has collaborated with celebrated theater figures. He is a two-time winner of the New Dramatist Award for musical theater.

Since moving to Armenia in 2005, he has spent the last 15 years composing music for The Naghash Ensemble. “The musical conceptions of these wonderful artists performing tonight, and the profound lyricism of Mkrtich Naghash and Kostandin Erznkats’i have been my guides,” he commented.

Leading soprano Baghdasaryan is Armenia’s main performer of medieval spiritual music. She has performed and recorded with many of Armenia’s finest ensembles and contemporary composers. She calls the Naghash Ensemble’s music the “most beautiful music I have ever sung. These compositions reach down into the deepest corners of the soul and translate them back to the world as music.”

Soprano Tatevik Movsesyan has won international acclaim for her outstanding performances of chamber music. She is a graduate of the acclaimed Komitas State Conservatory.

Alto Arpi Ter-Petrosyan has a remarkable vocal range and possesses the deepest female voice in Armenia. She graduated from the State Educational Khachatur Abovyan University in Yerevan, and recently has gained a great international following as “Arpi Alto.”

Multi-instrumentalist Harutyun Chkolyan, a specialist in Armenian folk wind instruments, graduated from the Komitas State Conservatory, and now teaches there. He has also performed with several international orchestras.

Oudist Aramayis Nikoghosyan began playing the oud at age six. He completed his education at Romanos Melikyan College of Music, and later attended the Komitas State Conservatory. He has performed with many outstanding Music Ensembles.

A master of dhol and dumbek, Tigran Hovhannisyan performs with the Armenian National Orchestra. He was a prize-winning student at the Henrik Igityan Music School for Folk Instruments and at the Romanos Melikyan College of Music. He also is a sought-after teacher of percussion instruments.