Western Armenian Music: From Asia Minor to the United States

Western Armenian music is the broad range of compositions composed and played by Western Armenians from Asia minor and the lands westward to Istanbul, in present-day Turkey. It is the music of the dances and songs of the agrarian and provincial Armenians from the countryside of Asia Minor, the poetry and music of the Armenian  Ashugh (meaning minstrel), and the compositions of the Armenian composers of Ottoman court music.

This book is about the Western Armenian music that was brought to the United States by the Armenians from Asia Minor. It is the story and personal narrative of a second-generation Armenian musician and the manner in which Western Armenian music was preserved in the United States.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

• Chapter 1- Does Armenian Music Really Exist?
• Chapter 2-Roots of Armenian Music from Asia Minor
• Chapter 3-Gomidas Vartabed Soghomonian: His Life And Work in Relation to Western Armenian Music
• Chapter 4-A Comparison of Two Opposing Styles of Western Armenian Music: Folk Music from the United States and Folk Music from Lebanon
• Chapter 5-Maintaining the Folk Dance Tradition in the United States and Melody-Specific Dances
• Chapter 6-What is Georgina-Jurjuna or a Rhythmic Mode?
• Chapter 7-The Infamous Quarter Tone (Microtones) and the “Western Ear”
• Chapter 8-Accuracy of Transcription, Authenticity and Documentation of Western Armenian Music Through 78 RPM Recordings
• Chapter 9-Essay on Armenian Folk Dance by Gomidas Vartabed
• Chapter 10-Nationalism, Demographic Engineering, Turkification, and the Armenian Genocide
• Chapter 11-The Author’s Hypothesis Concerning the Effects of Western Armenian Music
• Chapter 12-The Next Era of Armenian Music
• Chapter 13-Notation of Armenian Folk Dance Melodies from the Villages of Asia Minor
• Chapter 14-The Development of Armenian Musical Notation and the Guide and Rudiments to Understanding Hampartsoum Notation
• Chapter 15-Understanding Armenian Modal Systems: Tsayn or Yeghanog in Practice and Theory with Explanations and Examples