Don’t ask Steven Tashjian to get down on his knees and say a prayer. He may never get up. With two knee replacements, he takes life as it comes and forgets about adversity.
Anyone closely associated with Tashjian throughout the Greater Boston scene would recognize the musicianship he has provided to listeners over the past four decades.
You may appreciate the virtuosity he has shown on both the clarinet and saxophone with his band Classic Groove. What you won’t recognize are the detours he has faced to get there.
You can start with the surgery on both knees and his disability. Or the fact his son Steven Jr. survived leukemia and bought out his sandwich shop (Jay Gee’s) in Watertown.
“I had a great passion for cooking and turned it into a catering business,” said Tashjian. “I had it for 15 years before passing it on to my son after he survived leukemia. I wanted to spend more time with my wife and two boys.”
It’s been a whirlwind tour for the man, ever since he graduated from Watertown High and studied accounting at Bentley College. When that didn’t work, off he went to UMass Lowell where he spent a year studying music.
The spark to entertain turned into an inferno. He bought himself a soprano sax, loved listening to artist Kenny G, and began playing smooth jazz. After that, it only got better.
He started an American group called Classic Groove with his cousin Kevin Magarian. They hired a bass player and drummer, and performed at venues like weddings and dances, private functions, and clubs. The more he played, the better it got.
On came a keyboard artist and soloist from Berklee School of Music, making the ensemble a complete entity. You may have heard them last summer at Boston’s Kermesse Festival, where they plan a return. Another popular spot has been the Armenian Library & Museum of America (ALMA).
Among his favorite moments was playing at the Ryles Jazz Club with an eclectic mix of Middle Eastern jazz and American music with such icons as Johnny Berberian and Leon Janikian.
Tashjian looks back to the time he was 10 and picked out a clarinet in the window of a music shop. He began taking lessons from Arlington instructor Charles Movsessian, which ultimately led him to the Boston Conservatory and a stint with Boston Symphony musician Atillo Poto.
On the Armenian side, the talents of Hachig Kazarian and the late Roger Krikorian had a big influence on this artist, not to exclude violinist Freddy Elias, another Boston Conservatory graduate. Tashjian has studied the Armenian language and is versed in reading and writing skills.
“The future of my musical career will only reach higher levels because of my love and passion,” he says. “Music is something everybody needs. As long as I can provide that magic to my audiences, I shall be in a wonderful groove.”
Tom Vartabedian
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