YerazArt: New Musicians from Armenia

I had the pleasure to attend the YerazArt concert at Alex Theater in Glendale on Sunday. With a busy schedule and too many demands I don’t find myself at Armenian events very often, but this was special.

It was described to me as a concert with six talented musical prodigies who won a competition in Armenia that would bring them on a tour through Glendale, Toronto and Boston. Even beyond the music and talent, being recognized in this way for your effort and accomplishments at this age is a rare treat that I appreciated. There is a difference between talent, application of talent, and recognition for what you put forth so I was touched to hear that these kids were given this opportunity.

The shows that I generally go to are multi-layered in their application but this was raw and real – there were no barriers, only me and the music and I very much enjoyed that from these kids. For many it was a throwback to the music they grew up with or connected them to grandparents. My absolute favorite moment was when Vartan Davtyan took the stage with his guitar and began to play Noubar Noubar (Komitas by Iakovos Kolanian). The melody was gorgeous, one I had heard before, but never live and that has stayed with me the most...

Thanks to my good friend Dzovag who took part in bringing this show to Los Angeles! I wanted to come here and put up a little blurb about my experience with YerazArt:)

If they come to your city, enjoy!