Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Armenian music'

The extended program notes include historical facts of the composers and characteristics of the pieces being performed. The thesis also includes information about Armenian composers starting from 18th to the 20th century, composition's historical background, brief biographies of the composers as well as analysis of form and structure. The graduate piano recital comprised the following compositions: Sayat Nova - R. Andriasian Yes Mi Kharib Blbuli Pes; Komitas - R. Andriasian Garun a, Shoker Jan, Dzirani Dzar, Gakavik; A. Khachaturyan Poem; A. Babadjanyan Elegy in Commemoration of A. Khachaturyan; E. Bagdasarian Humoresque, Prelude in D Minor, Prelude in B Minor; A. Babadjanyan Improvisation and Traditional from six Pictures; A. Babadjanyan Prelude and Vagarshapat Dance; A. Arutyunian Dance of Sasoon; A. Arutyunian - A. Babadjanyan Armenian Rhapsody for Two Pianos.

The main objective of this thesis is to show that the thirty melodies ascribed to the ashoogh Sayat Nova are melodically and rhythmically homogeneous, and that they bear similarity to both Armenian folk and sacred melodies. Since very little has been written on this topic in Occidental languages, it has been necessary to provide (1) a descriptive account of the ancient Armenian music; namely, vibassan, koosan, folk and sacred traditions; (2) a presentation of ashoogh poetic forms, rhyming schemes, and accentuation patterns, which are summarized for the first time in a chart with corresponding sources; (3) a chapter on Armenian tzayns as a background to the melodic analysis and codifications of Sayat Nova's melodies, which is contrary to the accepted practice of codifying these melodies with Greek modal names.
Professor Nigoghos Tahmizian's analysis of Sayat Nova melodies was used as a starting point. Furthermore, through analysis based primarily on available secondary sources, certain conclusions have been obtained: such as, the unity of rhythm/meter with language conventions, presence of specific melodic patterns, cadential endings, intervallic patterns and ranges in Sayat Nova melodies, as characterised by individual tzayn codifications. Further research is suggested to clarify codification of poetic forms, tzayn designations, and specifically, to solidify accentuation conventions of the Armenian language and of its dialects.

Thesis (Ph. D.) -- University of Maryland, College Park, 2004.
Thesis research directed by: Music. Title from t.p. of PDF. Includes bibliographical references. Published by UMI Dissertation Services, Ann Arbor, Mich. Also available in paper.

With the exception of the music of Aram Khachaturian, the output of Armenian composers has been largely overlooked. This small Middle-Eastern country with a population of almost four million and an intriguing history indeed has a rich musical heritage. From its roots in sacred music and folksong, Armenian music has evolved into a unique blend of national elements and Western art music. Although it remains largely undiscovered, there is an entire repertoire of works in this aesthetic. The Trio for clarinet, violin, and piano by Khachaturian has long been a standard in the clarinetist's repertoire. This project brings to light lesser-known works of other Armenian composers. After providing a brief history of Armenia and her music (Chapter 2), this document presents an annotated bibliography of works using the clarinet (Chapter 3). Because there are a significant number of Armenians living outside their homeland, composers considered for this bibliography include all those of Armenian descent: those born,schooled, and presently living in Armenia, as well as those born to one or both Armenian parents residing in other countries. The bibliography includes works for unaccompanied clarinet, clarinet and piano, clarinet and orchestra, and chamber music for up to seven players. Each annotation includes the composer's name, dates, title of the work and its movements, date of composition, instrumentation, publisher and date of publication (in the case of published works), source from which the score can be obtained (in the case of unpublished works and works that are no longer published), duration of the work, and any recordings that are commercially available. Specific information about each piece, such as its dedication, first performance, historical background, musical characteristics, and performance practice issues is provided when available.

This thesis describes the invention and adoption of a new notation system, known today as ‘Hamparsum notası’ or ‘Hay ardi jaynagrut‘iwn’ (‘modern Armenian notation’), in nineteenth-century Istanbul. The first part focuses on a small group of Catholic Armenians who developed the notation system in around 1812, including the musician Hambarjum Limōnčean (1768–1839), the Mxit‘arist scholar Minas Bžškean (1777–1851), and their patrons the Tiwzean family. I argue that the notational reform was an aspect of a larger cultural and intellectual revival led by the monastery of San Lazzaro in Venice. Based on Bžškean’s treatise on music and excerpts from Limōnčean’s memoir, I show how discussions about notational reform were linked to broader concerns about the cultural and educational situation of the Armenians in the Ottoman Empire. Furthermore, drawing on a ‘connected’ historiographical model, I argue that the reform can be read as a translation of Enlightenment thought into local musical contexts, and that it should be seen in relation to the simultaneous reform of Byzantine notation by Chrysanthos of Madytos (ca. 1770–1846) and his collaborators. At the same time, I demonstrate that the reformers were deeply embedded in the urban and musical environment of Istanbul, and that the development of Hampartsum notation cannot be understood without reference to the history and practices of secular Ottoman music. In the second part of the thesis, drawing on manuscript collections of Hampartsum notation as well as theoretical treatises, Ottoman court histories and accounts by European observers, I show how shifting relations between different confessional communities led to the adoption of Hampartsum notation by Muslim musicians. Finally, I discuss polemical debates about notation in Turkish and Armenian during the late nineteenth century, showing how institutionalisation, print technology and nationalist ideologies shaped attitudes towards writing music.

Armenian music of today is largely influenced by Armenian folk music. Composers such as Sayat Nova and Gomidas Vartabed have left behind numerous tunes that are still sung today by Armenians whether in Armenia or the Armenian diaspora. This thesis comparatively analyzed piano arrangements of Armenian folk tunes by Armenian composers. The aim of this thesis is bifold: to find elements of piano arrangements that are commonly used by different composers and to introduce the riches of Armenian music to the Czech and International music communities. The comparative analyses revealed the existence of elements such as orchestral simulations, melodic and rhythmic variations, representations, composing introductions, and different accompaniment styles among the arragements of the same folk tunes by different composers or different folk tunes by the same composer at different levels of difficulty. Hence, the first aim of this thesis was verified, with the hopes of the second aim also being met and Armenian music being spread to all musical circles around the world. KEYWORDS Armenian music, folk tunes, arrangements, analysis, composers

The diploma thesis is focused on the Armenian piano music in context with Armenian culture. The first chapter summarizes important events of the history of Armenia from the ancient times to the present. Following chapters describes Armenian musical culture and Armenian piano music. The last chapter intended to be the most important, it tries to characterize giants of Armenian music and their most important works.

abstract: Armenian music has a rich history. It started as independent, monodic song, and succeeded in keeping its uniqueness from the influences of other countries' musical traditions. During the nineteenth century the great Armenian musicologist and composer Komitas started to travel and write down these songs from Armenian villages. Komitas, who had higher education in Western classical music, was one of the first composers to harmonize Armenian songs and sacred music using Western classical techniques. This was a milestone in the development of Armenian music. Arno Babajanian was a Soviet Armenian composer who, like Komitas, was interested in the combinations of Armenian folk and Western classical traditions. This document provides a formal and harmonic analysis of his Piano Trio in F-Sharp Minor, written in 1952. By identifying Armenian folk tunes used in his trio, I will demonstrate that Babajanian achieved interesting results by inserting exotic Armenian folk melodies, harmonies, and other elements into the Western classical sonata form. This document also points out the influence of other composers of the Soviet era on Babajanian's music. By combining Armenian folk and western classical elements in his Piano Trio, Babajanian created a piece that resonates with native Armenians and classical music lovers and deserves a place in the violin repertoire.
Dissertation/Thesis
Doctoral Dissertation Music 2016

The career of prolific Armenian pianist and composer Alexander Arutiunian [Alek’sandr Harut’unyan] spanned the Soviet age in Armenia (1920–1991), and his Trumpet Concerto (1950) achieved worldwide recognition and acclaim. Despite the importance of this work to trumpeters internationally, the information and context necessary for performers and scholars to understand Arutiunian’s Concerto and other works has not been previously available in English. Prior to this study, the composer’s biography, compositional style, and works have not been the subject of any significant published research by English-language scholars. This dissertation demonstrates that Arutiunian’s early compositional style was nurtured and influenced by the antecedents of Armenian folk music and early Armenian nationalist composers. To establish the nature of these influences, this discussion begins by exploring Armenian peasant song and professional folk-singer (ashugh) traditions, and traces the development of early Armenian nationalist composers including Komitas, Romanos Melik’yan, Aleksandr Spendiaryan, Sargis Barkhudaryan, and Aram Khachaturian. During his early schooling in the 1930s, Arutiunian studied both Armenian folk music and the music of these Armenian nationalist composers and developed a style which incorporated, emulated, and expanded on those precedents. During the 1940s, Arutiunian’s advanced training in Yerevan and Moscow led to a broadening of scope and internationalization of his style. He drew new influence from the distinct motives of Khachaturian, the Neo-Classical and modernist influence of Prokofiev, and the contrapuntal approach of Genrikh Litinsky. Following the Stalinist denunciations of 1948 (Zhdanov decree or Zhdanovshchina), Arutiunian’s Big Soviet style emerged, and is so-called because it blended his early style with the grand, dramatic, and Romantic tradition of Tchaikovsky and Rimsky-Korsakov. His first composition in this vein, Cantata About the Motherland (1948), was considerably more conservative than his other works but it so successfully fit the political requirements of Socialist Realism that it earned him the Soviet Union’s highest artistic honor, the Stalin Prize. In the wake of this achievement, Arutiunian’s Big Soviet style rapidly developed, producing major successes in his Festive Overture (1949) and Trumpet Concerto (1950). This study is based primarily on the examination of rare Soviet-era scores and recordings and the new translation of Russian- and Armenian-language primary and secondary sources, including Arutiunian’s own Memoirs (2000). The resulting descriptive and contextual analysis establishes the nature of Arutiunian’s compositional output up to 1950 and the influences that Armenian and Soviet antecedents had upon his music. It lays the foundation of background, context, and connections for performers and scholars to understand the idioms and stylistic conventions found in Arutiunian’s early works, culminating with a detailed examination of his Trumpet Concerto (1950).

abstract: Piano Quintet> is a three movement piece, inspired by music of Eastern Europe. Sunrise in Hungary starts with a legato song in the first violin unfolding over slow moving sustained harmonics in the rest of the strings. This is contrasted with a lively Hungarian dance which starts in the piano and jumps throughout all of the voices. Armenian Lament introduces a mournful melody performed over a subtly shifting pedal tone in the cello. The rest of the voices are slowly introduced until the movement builds into a canonic threnody. Evening in Bulgaria borrows from the vast repertoire of Bulgarian dances, including rhythms from the horo and rachenitsa. Each time that the movement returns to the primary theme, it incorporates aspects of the dance that directly preceded it. The final return is the crux of the piece, with the first violin playing a virtuosic ornaments run on the melody.
Dissertation/Thesis
M.M. Composition 2014

Il genocidio del 1915 ha portato alla creazione di diverse comunità armene diasporiche in tutto il mondo. Esse si autorappresentano, vengono indicate e raggruppate sotto l’etichetta diaspora armena spesso senza fare troppa attenzione alle diversità intrinseche ad esse. La letteratura critica riguardante la diaspora armena è in molti casi lacunosa per quanto riguarda i rapporti fra comunità diasporiche e musica, soprattutto nel caso degli armeni di Francia e Italia, focus di questo lavoro. Questa ricerca si basa sulla teorizzazione che le comunità armene in diaspora sono comunità immaginate, caratterizzate da cosmopolitismo. Applicando metodologie etnografiche, dialogiche e basandosi su un’ampia bibliografia riguardante la storia e la cultura armena, le teorizzazioni sulla diaspora e sui rapporti fra identità e musica, questa tesi analizza la costruzione dell’identità diasporica armena sub specie musicae e i meccanismi attraverso cui le pratiche musicali creano e rinforzano l’armenità. L’analisi etnomusicologica delle attività musicali e culturali nelle diaspore armene italiana e francese mostra identità musicali diverse e una ‘musica armena’ emblema di un paesaggio sonoro diseguale e contradditorio. Questa varietà musicale parla delle tante ‘piccole patrie’ fisiche e interiori che costruiscono lo stato transnazionale armeno. Si tratta di narrative che incorporano questioni legate all’identità ed esprimono le relazioni complesse fra diaspora e madrepatria, fra comunità diasporiche, fra esse e i paesi dove risiedono e fra individui e comunità di appartenenza.