Gusan sheram biography

The following is a guest post written by Leon Aslanov, an independent researcher working on Armenian-Azerbaijani relations as well as the languages, cultures and politics of the South Caucasus. He works as a Middle East Analyst at Integrity UK and is also affiliated with the London-based Programme of Armenian Studies.

A few years ago, pianos were placed around London for passersby to play and, on rare occasions, bring joy to the public. One day while walking through King’s Cross Station my ears heard a melody coming from one of these pianos. It sounded Armenian in musical texture, with a dash of jazz.  Intrigued, I guessed which Armenian jazz musician it might be: Arno Babajanyan? Levon Malkhasyan?

I followed the sound and approached the musician: “Hello, are you playing Babajanyan?” – “No, who is that?” – “Aren’t you Armenian?” – “No, I’m Azerbaijani. I’m playing Vagif Mustafazade. The piece is“Baku nights” (Bakı gecələri)”. I was left perplexed- how could I have mistaken an Azerbaijani classic for an Armenian tune? I explained to him that I grew up listening to and learning to play the piano music of Arno Babajanyan, a relative of mine whose pieces were inspired by Armenian folk melodies, and that the music he was playing sounded similar.

He seemed to be just as gobsmacked as I was, and we proceeded to chat about these similarities. It was one of my first interactions with Azerbaijani music. But it began a long journey of recognizing how similar Armenian and Azerbaijani musical traditions really are. These similarities extend even to the instruments themselves, as the following video, focused on the shared kamancha heritage illustrates:

Despite living side by side for centuries, Armenians and Azerbaijanis often think of themselves as opposing groups. This can be seen clearly on Youtube, where music videos are littered with comments where people make national claims to songs that either sound similar or are exactly the same in both Armenian and A

Ancient Parthian and Armenian performers and storytellers

Gusans (Armenian: գուսան; Parthian for poet-musician or minstrel) were creative and performing artists - singers, instrumentalists, dancers, storytellers, and professional folk actors in public theaters of Parthia and ancient and medieval Armenia.

In Armenia, the term gusan is often used as a synonym for ashugh, a singer-poet and bard.

Etymology

The word gusan is first mentioned in early Armenian texts of V c., e.g. Faustus of Byzantium, Moses of Chorene, etc. In Parsian language the earliest known evidence is from Vis o Rāmin by Fakhruddin As'ad Gurgani in the eleventh century. It was originally thought to have been a personal name. However, in the 19th century Kerovbe Patkanian identified it as a common word possibly meaning "musician" and suggested that it was an obsolete Persian term, currently found in a form of a loanword in Armenian. In Harold Walter Bailey linked to origin of the word to the Parthian language. In Hrachia Acharian's opinion the word was borrowed into Parthian from Armenian govasan "praiser", then borrowed back into Armenian as gusan. The word is attested in Manichaean Parthian as gwsʾn. For a thorough linguistic treatment of the word see gwsʾn.

History

In Parthia and Sassanian Iran

Music and poetry constituted an essential part of Parthian culture, serving as an important indicator of belonging in the secular society of ancient Parthia. It is not known from ancient sources how the Parthian gosans were trained, but the predominance of hereditary transmission of professions in Ancient Iran makes it possible for transmission from family education and the transfer of knowledge from fathers to children. Historians believe that each feudal clan had its own clan minstrel gosans who knew the history and traditions of the clan and glorified them in their works.

The Gosans e

One of the founders of Armenian Gusan music, composer Gusan Sheram (Grigor Karapet Talyan) was born on March 20, He was born in Alexandropol (now Gyumri). Little Grigor used to spend most of the day in his father&#;s cafe, where ashughs were gathering. After his father&#;s death, he was a student of a carpenter, then a salesman. As a teenager, he learnt not only to play on musical instruments, but also to make them. Grigor formed a trio and performed in Baku, Yerevan, Tbilisi (Georgia) and other cities.

The poet Hovhannes Hovhannisyan named him Sheram as the creator of delicate songs after Grigor&#;s speech in Baku, Before that there was a teacher living in Baku with the name Sheram. The poem &#;Victims of Love&#; by the teacher Sheram was published in Baku,in , which is often confused with the poet Sheram.

His first song-poem &#;A Rose Has Opened in the Garden&#; was published in the &#;Games and Poems&#; selection by Alexander Mkhitaryan in .

His collection of songs &#;Love and Fight&#; was published in Gyumri, in He was a member of the Writers&#; Union of the USSR from The famous poet died in Yerevan on July 3,  

Post Views

Sheram (born Grigor Talian, 20 March , Alexandropol – died 7 March , Yerevan) was an Armenian composer, poet-musician (gusan), and folk musician (ashug).

He is known as the founder of the modern gusan (Armenian popular composing) art. He created melodies and songs that are popular to this day:

• "The Roses Blossom in the Garden"
• "I Beg You, Mountains"
• "She is Graceful"
• "You are my Muse"
• "Undefeated Fairy"
• "We are Brothers"

He authored "Like an Eagle", a song dedicated to Armenian national hero Andranik Ozanian. According to Vazgen I, Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians, this song is "one of the most popular and loved songs today", and it is "sung in family circles, at receptions, and on other occasions in Armenia".

A selection of Sheram's works was published in

References

External links