Jivan Gasparyan (his first name was also spelled Djivan) was born in 1928 in Solag, a village near the Armenian capital Yerevan. He began to play the duduk at age 6, gaining much of his knowledge by listening to the great masters.
In 1948 he joined the Tatoo’ Altounian National Song and Dance Ensemble, and also had his first professional engagement as soloist with the Yerevan Philharmonic Orchestra.
Most of Gasparyan’s repertoire featured traditional Armenian folk songs. He was also is an accomplished composer and a singer in the folk tradition. In addition to his original compositions and arrangements of traditional songs, he wrote love songs based on the poetry of Vahan Derian.
Gasparyan won Gold Medals in four worldwide competitions organized by UNESCO (1959, 1962, 1973, and 1980) and is the only musician ever to be given the honorary title of People’s Artist of Armenia, received in 1973 from the Armenian government.
As a professor at the Yerevan Conservatory, Gasparyan prepared more than 70 duduk musicians for professional performance. He greatly enjoyed teaching, and it brought him joy to know that through his efforts the tradition of duduk playing will not be lost.
Gasparyan toured Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. In the United States, he performed extensively in New York and Los Angeles, appeared with the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra, and received exposure to Western audiences through performances with the Kronos Quartet.
Gasparyan’s album of Armenian folk songs and ballads, I Will Not Be Sad In This World (All Saints, 1989), dedicated to victims of the Armenian earthquake, received worldwide recognition. He also collaborated with Lionel Richie and Peter Gabriel.
His contribution to the soundtrack of Gladiatorwas one of his continuing collaborations with the film industry both in Hollywood and in Europe: The Russia House, The Siege and The Crowand Atom Egoyan’s film Calendar, as well as for the American-Hungarian cable television co-production Storm and Sorrow.
At the age of 73, Jivan received the WOMEX (World Music Expo) lifetime achievement award of 2002.
Jivan Gasparyan died on July 6, 2021.
Discography
* I Will Not Be Sad in This World (Opal/All Saints)
* Moon Shines at Night (Opal/All Saints)
* Ask me no questions (Traditional Crossroads 4268, 1996)
* Apricots from Eden (Traditional Crossroads 4276, 1996)
* The Crow, soundtrack
* Black Rock, with Michael Brook (Realworld 46230, 1998)
* Djivan Gasparyan Quartet (Libra Music 1998)
* The Seige, soundtrack (1998)
* Heavenly Duduk (Network 1999)
* Armenian Fantasies (Network 34801, 2000)
* Gladiator, soundtrack
* Fuad, with Erkan Ogur (2001)
* Art of the Armenian Duduk (Arc Music, 2002)
* Endless Vision, with Hossein Alizadeh (World Village, 2006)
* Penumbra, with Michael Brook (Canadian Rational/bigHelium, 2008)
Author: Angel Romero
Angel Romero y Ruiz has dedicated his life to musical exploration. His efforts included the creation of two online portals, worldmusiccentral.org and musicasdelmundo.com. In addition, Angel is the co-founder of the Transglobal World Music Chart, a panel of world music DJs and writers that celebrates global sounds. Furthermore, he delved into the record business, producing world music studio albums and compilations. His works have appeared on Alula Records, Ellipsis Arts, Indígena Records and Music of the World.