Armen Tigranian was an
ArmenianArmenian people or Armenians are a nation and ethnic group native to the Armenian Highland.The largest concentration is in Armenia having a nearly-homogeneous population with 97.9% or 3,145,354 being ethnic Armenian....
music composer and conductor. His best-known works were two national
operaOpera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
s,
AnoushAnoush is a five-act opera composed by Armen Tigranian, based on the homonymous poem written by Hovhannes Tumanyan in 1892. Originally composed in 1912, it was first performed in Alexandrapol, but it had to wait until 1935 for its full professional staging at the Armenian National Opera Theater...
(premiere: Alexandropol, 4 (17) August 1912, the first opera performance in Armenia) and
Davit BekDavid Bek is an opera composed by Armen Tigranian based on the Raffi novel David Bek . After the composers death, the opera was completed by Levon Khoja-Eynatov, G. Budaghyan, and the libretto was developed by A...
(1950); the latter of which premiered only months before his death and was his final composition. He was the younger brother of composer
Nikoghayos TigranianNikoghayos Tigranian was an Armenian composer, ethnomusicologist and pianist. People's Artist of Armenia . Hero of Labour...
.
Biography
Armen Tigranian was born in Alexandropol,
ArmeniaArmenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
. He started becoming interested in music at a very early age. In 1902 Tigranian finished the Tbilisi Music College, studying composition with
Makar EkmalyanMakar Ekmalyan was an Armenian composer.Ekmalyan studied at the Echmiadzin seminary and later in St Petersburg...
. Tigranyan devoted himself to teaching and continued composing music, mainly songs and romances in Armenian folk traditions.
Tigranian's Anush opera, written in 1908 and remodelled in 1932, is called the "national opera of the Armenian people".
Anoush, based on Hovhannes Tumanian's story of country romance and tragedy captured the attention of audiences and became a perennial of the concert repertoire. The American premiere of Anoush took place in 1981 at
Michigan Opera TheatreMichigan Opera Theatre is Michigan's principal opera company. The company is based in Detroit, where it performs in the Detroit Opera House. Each year it presents an opera and dance season. The company usually presents five operas in their original language with English supertitles and hosts five...
.
The history of Karabakh Melikdoms inspired the opera
David Bek (1950).
Among the other works by Tigranian are drama “Leily and Mejnun”, “Eastern Dance” for symphonic orchestra and “New Spring” chorus for 4 voices.
Awards
- Honoured art worker of Armenian SSR
The Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic The Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic The Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic The Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic The Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic The Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic The Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic The Armenian Soviet...
, 1935
- Honoured art worker of Georgian SSR, 1936
- Lenin order
External links