Arto tuncboyaciyan biography

Who is Arto Tunçboyacıyan? A Brief Career Overview

Arto Tunçboyacıyan is a remarkable multi-instrumentalist and vocalist who has made significant waves in the music world, captivating audiences with his unique blend of arab folk, avant-garde jazz, and turkish jazz. Known for his dynamic stage presence and masterful artistry, Arto has garnered attention not just for his solo work but also as the guiding force behind the Armenian Navy Band.

His contributions are far-reaching--over 2,000 recordings as a session musician--making him a vital figure in both the jazz and world music scenes. His encoded emotions and vibrant storytelling through music bring listeners to their feet while his vinyl releases have become coveted treasures in collectors' libraries. Arto's work embodies the essence of vinyl culture, resonating deeply with vintage sound lovers and modern music aficionados alike.

Arto Tunçboyacıyan's Early Life and Background

Born in 1957 in Galataria, Turkey, Arto Tunçboyacıyan is the youngest child in an Armenian family. Growing up in a household rich with musical traditions, he was molded by a heritage that celebrated storytelling and vibrant melodies. His father, a shoemaker, instilled in him a strong work ethic, while his older brother Onno, a composer and bassist, served as a powerful inspiration for Arto's early musical endeavors.

At just 11 years old, Arto joined a band alongside his brother, playing percussion. This early exposure led to a deep passion for music that would accompany him throughout his life. These formative experiences set the stage for his future love of vinyl records, which connect him to a world of sounds that echo both his ancestry and the evolution of music itself.

The Musical Influences That Shaped Arto Tunçboyacıyan's Sound

Arto Tunçboyacıyan's sound is a beautiful tapestry woven from diverse influences. He draws inspiration from traditional Armenian melodies, as we

“For us, Genocide is not just about one day, April 24. It’s about our lives, or a great part of our lives. To me, April 25 is even more important, as we Armenians have to move forward,” says avant-garde folk artist and Grammy award winner Arto Tunçboyacıyan.
 

As a singer, composer and multi-instrumentalist, Arto has heeded his own words and moved forward. He has appeared on over 2,000 recordings and, in 1998, he founded the Armenian Navy Band, incorporating traditional and contemporary Armenian music.

Arto’s maternal grandfather, Hovhannes Ptikyan, was a fabric seller in Chorum. Arto recounts that his grandfather spent months traveling from one village to another marketing his wares, while his wife, Haykuhi, stayed home to care for their children. As the Genocide progressed, Hovhannes and his relatives were killed. His grandmother then paid a fee of 50 lira each for herself and her two children to be driven by buffalo cart in the forced convoy. On the journey, she fell ill and the cart driver ejected her and her children. Alone and afraid, Arto says, “She fled into a forest. When she saw fireflies, she thought they might be people smoking cigarettes and approached them. She was horrified by what she saw. In the morning, one of her children was dead from eating soil.” 

Arto’s paternal grandfather, Hovhannes Tunçboyacıyan, was a church official in Sebastia (now Sivas, Turkey). As a member of the clergy, he was one of the first victims of the massacres. Arto says that churches were the first places Christians were taken from for execution. Other members of Hovhannes’ small family were also killed.

Sedrak Tuncboyaciyan, Arto’s father, was only 10 years old when the assaults began in Sebastia. “My dad saw how they slit the throats of two sisters who were his neighbors. Terrified, he ran in a

Armenian musician

Musical artist

Arto Sedraki Tunchboyachyan (Armenian: Արտո Սեդրակի Թունջբոյաջյան; Western Armenian: Արթօ Սէտրակի Թունճպոյաճեան, romanized: Art'ō T'unjpoyajean; born August 4, 1957) is an Armenian Americanavant-gardefolk and jazz multi-instrumentalist and singer of Armenian descent. He fronts his Armenian Navy Band group and is also a member of the instrumental quartet Night Ark.

Tunchboyachyan had appeared on more than 200 records in Europe before arriving in the United States, where he went on to work with numerous jazz musicians, including Chet Baker, Marc Johnson, Al Di Meola, and Joe Zawinul, as well as performing semi-regularly with Paul Winter and the Earth Band. He has worked with Turkish singer Sezen Aksu and the Greek singer Eleftheria Arvanitaki. Tunchboyachyan's elder brother, Onno Tunchboyanchyan, was also a musician, and they have collaborated on several occasions.

Early life

Arto Tunçboyacıyan was born in Istanbul, Turkey. His father was a shoemaker of Armenian descent.

At 11, he began his career playing and recording traditional Anatolian music with various musicians, including his brother Onno Tunç, thus establishing himself as a professional musician throughout Turkey and Europe.

In 1981, Tunçboyacıyan moved to the United States and settled in New York.

Career

Arto started an association with Armenian-American oud player Ara Dinkjian. In 1985, Ara D

Percussionist, singer

With more than 20 international solo and collaborative albums to his credit, Arto Tuncboyaciyan's international fusion rhythms have secured his position among the more timely musicians of the twenty-first century. Best known as a percussionist, he has shown a varied and exotic repertoire, further enhanced by his inventive, chant-like vocals. Tuncboyaciyan's productions represent a diverse sampling of music circles worldwide, with avant-garde jazz fusion figuring prominently into the mix. He is regarded highly for his innate musicianship and is known to his colleagues as a man who can play anything—even a chair. After fronting the Night Ark quartet in the late 1980s and establishing the 12-piece Armenian Navy Band in 1999, he issued the first of his collaborations with Serj Tankian, called the Serart project, in 2004.

Tuncboyaciyan was born in Turkey in 1957, to an Armenian family of the Anatolian (Turkish) Diaspora. The son of a shoemaker and the youngest of three siblings, he grew up near Istanbul, where he turned at an early age to the mentorship of his older brother, the late Onno Ohannes. A respected composer and bass player, Onno was an influential presence on the Turkish national music scene of that era. As a role model, he helped to turn his precocious younger brother into a talented musician. By age eleven Tuncboyaciyan was sitting in with Onno's band, performing westernized adaptations of local Middle Eastern rhythms and melodies. As a youth Tuncboyaciyan performed on both trombone and percussion. He was heard on hundreds of recordings with his brother, and likewise appeared on stage. After touring Turkey and Europe with his brother's band, at age 13 Tuncboyaciyan joined the Metronome, a combo led by the Turkish national star Burhan Toguc.

Moved to United States

In 1981, with more than a decade of musical apprenticeship to his credit, Tuncboyaciyan moved to New York City. Already an experienced studio mus