Yerevan is the capital and largest city of Armenia as well as one of the world's oldest continuously inhabited cities. Situated along the Hrazdan River, Yerevan is the administrative, cultural, and industrial center of the country. It has been the capital since 1918, the fourteenth in the history of Armenia and the seventh located in or around the Ararat plain. The city also serves as the seat of the Araratian Pontifical Diocese; the largest diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church and one of the oldest dioceses in the world.
The music of Armenia has its origins in the Armenian Highlands, where people traditionally sang popular folk songs. Armenia has a long musical tradition that was primarily collected and developed by Komitas, a prominent priest and musicologist, in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. American ethnomusicologist, Jonathan McCollum is a notable scholar of Armenian music. Armenian music has been presented internationally by composers Aram Khachaturian, Alexander Arutiunian, Arno Babadjanian, Karen Kavaleryan as well as by pop musicians and performers such as duduk player Djivan Gasparyan, composer/instrumentalist Ara Gevorgyan, singers Sirusho, Eva Rivas and many others.
Gyumri, is an urban municipal community and the second largest city in Armenia, serving as the administrative centre of Shirak Province in the northwestern part of the country. By the end of the 19th century, when the city was known as Alexandropol, it was one of the largest cities of Russian-ruled Eastern Armenia with a population similar to that of Yerevan. It was renamed to Leninakan during the Soviet period. The city's population grew above 200,000 prior to the 1988 Spitak earthquake, when it was devastated. As of the 2011 census, the city had a population of 121,976, down from 150,917 reported at the 2001 census.
The culture of Armenia encompasses many elements that are based on the geography, literature, architecture, dance, and music of the people.
Alexander Grigori Arutiunian, also known as Arutunian, Arutyunyan, Arutjunjan, Harutyunian or Harutiunian, was a Soviet and Armenian composer and pianist, widely known for his 1950 trumpet concerto. A professor at Yerevan State Conservatory, he was recognized with many awards for his work, including the Stalin Prize in 1949 and People's Artist of the USSR in 1970, as well as numerous honors from his homeland of Armenia.
Arto Tunçboyacıyan is a US-based avant-garde folk and jazz multi-instrumentalist and singer of Armenian-Turkish descent. He had appeared on more than 200 records in Europe before arriving in the United States, where he went on to work with numerous notable 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. Tunçboyacıyan fronts his own group called the Armenian Navy Band, and is also a member of the instrumental quartet Night Ark. He has worked with Turkish singer Sezen Aksu and the Greek singer Eleftheria Arvanitaki. Tunçboyacıyan's elder brother Onno Tunç was also a musician, and they have collaborated on several occasions.
Uri Caine is an American classical and jazz pianist and composer.
Dutch jazz refers to the jazz music of the Netherlands. The Dutch traditionally have a vibrant jazz scene as shown by the North Sea Jazz Festival as well as other venues.
Arno Babajanian was an Armenian composer and pianist during the Soviet era.
Artemi (Harutyun) Ayvazyan was a Soviet Armenian composer, conductor, founder of the Armenian State Jazz Orchestra, and People's Artist of Armenia (1962).
Earl Zindars was an American composer of jazz and classical music.
Armen Martirosyan is an Armenian musician and composer.
David Satian is Armenian contemporary composer, producer and jazz pianist.
Vladimir Bodegrajac, known as Van Bod, is a Croatian composer, pianist and pop singer.
William Weiner is an Armenian–Israeli composer, violinist and vocalist; Meritorious Worker of Art of Armenia (2008); a member of the Israel Composers League (2013); president of the Jewish cultural center "Menorah" in Armenia (1994), and director of the Yerevan State Chamber Choir (2018).
Vahagn Hayrapetyan is a jazz pianist, singer and composer. Honored Artist of Armenia.
Garik Saribekyan is a composer and musician, band lead and founder of Nuance Jazz Band. Garik is widely regarded as one of the most notable characters on the Armenian jazz stage, and has been named Honourable Culture Contributor of Yerevan in 2014.
Stepan Grigori Shakaryan was an Armenian jazz and classical composer, pianist, People's Artist of the Republic of Armenia (2017), and professor at Yerevan State Conservatory.
Levon Malkhasyan, also known as Malkhas, is an Armenian jazz musician, composer and pianist, one of the founders of the Armenian jazz scene, and owner of the "Malkhas Jazz Club".
