Jivan Gasparyan is known in the world as a promoter of the Armenian musical culture. Masterfully wielding an unusual instrument called "duduk", Jivan Aramaisovich has been improving his performing skills throughout his long, extremely eventful life. Gasparyan's ascetic activity brought the master worldwide fame.
Jivan Gasparyan: facts from the biography
The Armenian composer and musician was born on October 12, 1928 in the village of Solak. The childhood of the Armenian boy was difficult. Mom died, my father went to the front. Jivan was only six when he mastered playing the national instrument - duduk. Subsequently, he also learned to play the shvi and zurna.
Jivan learned the basics of playing national instruments himself, the young man did not have any special education. He tried to listen to the performances of famous duduk players, trying to comprehend the mystery of extracting sounds from an unusual wind instrument. It took him about a year to learn the national instrument. The rest of the time he improved and honed his skills. The natural talent of the performer was his help in this.
For centuries, the duduk has been an adornment of Armenian celebrations: it was played on national holidays, at weddings and solemn ceremonies. It is believed that duduk very subtly reflects the mood of the Armenian people and the structure of their language.
Armenian musician career
Since 1948 Gasparyan has been a member of the Song and Dance Ensemble of Armenia. At the same time, Jivan performed for the first time with the Yerevan Philharmonic Orchestra. The subsequent years of Gasparyan's life were completely filled with musical creativity, to which he devoted all his free time.
After the war, Jivan was in the capital of the USSR and took part in a concert where Joseph Stalin himself was present. The head of state then presented Gasparyan with a Pobeda watch. Everyone around was talking about this event. Jivan calls that momentous day fateful.
In the late perestroika 80s, as well as in the subsequent 90s, Gasparyan worked in the United States. He came to another continent with only a hundred dollars in his pocket. Friends helped to raise money for the ticket. Dzhivan Aramaisovich took his grandson with him, who became the successor of his grandfather's work. Thanks to Gasparyan, Armenian national music was recognized in many parts of the world. Some of the compositions by the Armenian author turned into soundtracks for films.
Jivan Gasparyan had a chance to fruitfully cooperate with Lionel Richie, Hans Zimmer, Peter Gabriel, Boris Grebenshchikov, Igor Krutoy, Vladimir Presnyakov.
America, with its external well-being, has never made an Armenian musician happy. Gasparyan retained his love for his native land. As soon as the opportunity presented itself, he returned to the origins of his culture.
Now the musician lives in the capital of his native republic. D. Gasparyan is a professor at the Yerevan Conservatory. An experienced teacher has trained many professional performers. The People's Artist of the Republic and an honorary citizen of the capital of Armenia have many very prestigious awards.
