ADVOCACY
Orchestra in bars and beyond
Tigran is known for finding unusual venues for classical performances. In 2009, he conducted Beethoven's symphony no.1 and Kammermusik no. 1 by Hindemith (Pacific Northwest Premiere) at a bar in the Capitol Hill neighborhood in Seattle, WA. This is known to be the first orchestral performance at a bar in the Pacific Northwest. Since then he has conducted at homeless shelters, cafes cideries, abandoned spaces and various unusual venues.
Funding and Creating for Arts
Tigran has established several impactful initiatives, including a BIPOC composer commission project, a free one-on-one private lessons program, a public school outreach initiative, a free masterclass series, and various scholarships, grants, and funding opportunities for underserved youth. Additionally, he has founded numerous musical projects, such as an orchestral strings festival, a chamber orchestra, young artist competitions, composer competitions, and a chamber music series. Tigran was also the founder and Music Director of the Cadence Chamber Orchestra (WA), the Youth Orchestra at Lark Musical Society (CA), and the co-founder of Campus Philharmonia at the University of Washington.
New England Conservatory adopted a change to a course title
NEC adopted the change I requested for Music of Turkey.
Firstly, the response from a top NEC administrator was prompt, respectful and thoughtful. I appreciate the individual and their approach to this situation. As stated in my initial email to the institution, my intention was not to be harmful to the program, course, professor or the
NEC which is one of the top conservatories in the world.
Very happy to announce that the New England Conservatory adopted the change I requested for their Music of Turkey course and now it is officially called Music of Turkey and the Ottoman Period. For those interested in more details, happy to share but there were three basic points.
1. Turkey as a state was established in 1923 and most of the music and curriculum I saw were from the Ottoman Period which includes Armenians, Greeks, Assyrians and many other cultures which the title Music of Turkey does not represent.
2. More than ever, people are influenced by titles, headlines and short duration content. Powerful and influential institutions shape the understanding of world cultures and it is their duty to be thoughtful and respectful in their presentation of programs, classes and events.
3. Respect and representation of cultures who existed, created and were influential in the region. The change will amplify and credit the diverse cultures who lived in the Ottoman Empire and not just the present state of Turkey.
Amy Beach
Over the past few years, I was contacted by former employees and board members of major professional orchestras as well as top youth orchestras confirming the reason they performed the Gaelic Symphony by Amy Beach were my calls and emails.
In 2017, for the 150th anniversary of Amy Beach's birth, I contacted 73 professional and youth orchestras in the US. The goal was to raise awareness about a key figure, a pioneer in American classical music and in particular orchestral music. There was a lack of recognition and programming of her work during a sesquicentennial anniversary. Many orchestras programmed her works in years to follow. Very few I heard from as stated above but many programmed her Gaelic symphony between 2018 and 2022.
Khachaturian as Russian
Soviet-Armenian composer, Aram Khachaturian has been mislabeled since the fall of the Soviet Union. Born in Georgia to Armenian parents, he associated himself with his Armenian roots. Many orchestras, program notes, books, papers and research still describe him as a Russian composer. He can be described as Armenian, Soviet and even Georgian but definitely not Russian. Tigran has contacted orchestras and advocated for a change which has happened in collaboration with over two dozen organizations. First change took place in 2015 with an orchestra from Arizona.
Tigran is known for finding unusual venues for classical performances. In 2009, he conducted Beethoven's symphony no.1 and Kammermusik no. 1 by Hindemith (Pacific Northwest Premiere) at a bar in the Capitol Hill neighborhood in Seattle, WA. This is known to be the first orchestral performance at a bar in the Pacific Northwest. Since then he has conducted at homeless shelters, cafes cideries, abandoned spaces and various unusual venues.
Funding and Creating for Arts
Tigran has established several impactful initiatives, including a BIPOC composer commission project, a free one-on-one private lessons program, a public school outreach initiative, a free masterclass series, and various scholarships, grants, and funding opportunities for underserved youth. Additionally, he has founded numerous musical projects, such as an orchestral strings festival, a chamber orchestra, young artist competitions, composer competitions, and a chamber music series. Tigran was also the founder and Music Director of the Cadence Chamber Orchestra (WA), the Youth Orchestra at Lark Musical Society (CA), and the co-founder of Campus Philharmonia at the University of Washington.
New England Conservatory adopted a change to a course title
NEC adopted the change I requested for Music of Turkey.
Firstly, the response from a top NEC administrator was prompt, respectful and thoughtful. I appreciate the individual and their approach to this situation. As stated in my initial email to the institution, my intention was not to be harmful to the program, course, professor or the
NEC which is one of the top conservatories in the world.
Very happy to announce that the New England Conservatory adopted the change I requested for their Music of Turkey course and now it is officially called Music of Turkey and the Ottoman Period. For those interested in more details, happy to share but there were three basic points.
1. Turkey as a state was established in 1923 and most of the music and curriculum I saw were from the Ottoman Period which includes Armenians, Greeks, Assyrians and many other cultures which the title Music of Turkey does not represent.
2. More than ever, people are influenced by titles, headlines and short duration content. Powerful and influential institutions shape the understanding of world cultures and it is their duty to be thoughtful and respectful in their presentation of programs, classes and events.
3. Respect and representation of cultures who existed, created and were influential in the region. The change will amplify and credit the diverse cultures who lived in the Ottoman Empire and not just the present state of Turkey.
Amy Beach
Over the past few years, I was contacted by former employees and board members of major professional orchestras as well as top youth orchestras confirming the reason they performed the Gaelic Symphony by Amy Beach were my calls and emails.
In 2017, for the 150th anniversary of Amy Beach's birth, I contacted 73 professional and youth orchestras in the US. The goal was to raise awareness about a key figure, a pioneer in American classical music and in particular orchestral music. There was a lack of recognition and programming of her work during a sesquicentennial anniversary. Many orchestras programmed her works in years to follow. Very few I heard from as stated above but many programmed her Gaelic symphony between 2018 and 2022.
Khachaturian as Russian
Soviet-Armenian composer, Aram Khachaturian has been mislabeled since the fall of the Soviet Union. Born in Georgia to Armenian parents, he associated himself with his Armenian roots. Many orchestras, program notes, books, papers and research still describe him as a Russian composer. He can be described as Armenian, Soviet and even Georgian but definitely not Russian. Tigran has contacted orchestras and advocated for a change which has happened in collaboration with over two dozen organizations. First change took place in 2015 with an orchestra from Arizona.