Concerts, dance recitals and poetry readings pay tribute to a thriving community
Throughout the month of April, AGBU Sofia commemorated the centenary of the Armenian Genocide with a series of artistic programs to highlight the survival of the Armenian community in Bulgaria. The chapter collaborated with Armenian and non-Armenian organizations to hold concerts, dance recitals and poetry readings and welcomed Gagik Agopyan, Ethery Hovanesyan and Diana Vardanyan, three young musicians from Armenia, to participate in the series.
On April 16, AGBU Sofia, the AGBU Sofia Arev Dance Group and the Ministry of Diaspora of the Republic of Armenia, on the invitation of His Excellency Ehiyazar Uzunyan, honorary consul of the Republic of Armenia in Plovdiv, gave a commemorative concert entitled “New Names of Armenia” to mark the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide at the Ethnographic Museum in Plovdiv. The performance featured classical Armenian music with Agopyan on the duduk, Hovanesyan on the kanun and Vardanyan on the oud and the kanun. The musicians performed works by Gomidas, Khachaturian, Hovhannesian and Babajanian and were led by Dzovinar Hovanisyan, a professor of the kanun at the Komitas State Conservatory in Yerevan.
On April 19, AGBU Sofia partnered with the Department of Culture of the Municipality of Sofia and a coalition of Bulgarian Armenian organizations for a commemorative concert by the AGBU Sofia Chamber Orchestra in memory of the victims of the Armenian Genocide. The orchestra was conducted by Maestro Bedros Papazyan and performed pieces by both Armenian and Bulgarian composers. The orchestra was joined by guest musicians Agopyan, Hovanesyan and Vardanyan who embodied the hopeful tone of the concert: “The atmosphere of the evening was saturated with positivity and proof that life is always strongest. Once again the participants showed that music is a wonderful art that speaks all languages and overcomes all barriers. It allows people to communicate freely despite the differences among them,” said Papazyan.
The week of performances continued on April 20 with an evening of Armenian poetry, music and dance at the Modern Theater in Sofia. Held under the auspices of AGBU Sofia and His Excellency Arsen Shoyan, ambassador of the Republic of Armenia to Bulgaria, the event featured poetry by Baruyr Sevag, Hovhannes Shiraz, Yeghishe Charents, Vahan Tekeyan, Kevork Emin and Silva Kaputikyan read by professional reciter Ani Yepremian of Lebanon. “Today, Armenian music and poetry resounds on the world stage,” said Anahid Azhderyan, editor-in-chief of the Bulgarian Armenian newspaper Yerevan. The poetry was accompanied by music from composers such as Gomidas, Khachaturian, Hovhannesian and Babajanian and dance performances by the AGBU Sofia Arev Dance Group and ballet dancer Maria Todorova-Tateosyan.
The final event of the week was held at St. Cyril and St. Methodius University in Veliko Turnovo during which AGBU Sofia presented a selection of music and poetry at a concert entitled “Waft of Armenia.” Agopyan, Hovanesyan and Vardanyan, along with Yepremian, performed for faculty, students and guests, exposing them to various aspects of Armenian culture. “The sounds carried us to the region of Ararat through the Caucasus to Lake Van and to the deserts of Der Zor,” said Ivaylo Djilianov, vice president of the St. Cyril and St. Methodius University Student Organization.
For more information on AGBU Sofia, please visit http://www.agbubg.org/en/.
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