WILMINGTON, Mass.—After learning about the Armenian Genocide for the very first time, Francis Norton decided to vent his anger over the tragedy.
The Wilmington High senior sat behind a computer and composed an Armenian symphony he so aptly calls “Hellfire.” He debuted it inside a genocide studies class called “Facing History and Ourselves,” being taught by Lisa Joy Desberg and Maura Tucker.
The two-minute piece is full of ritualistic movement done with cello, violin, piano, and brass with multiple key and tempo changes, much like an early Alan Hovhaness work.
One might equate it to “eerie and unpleasant” at first, but that’s just the medium for which it was intended by the young composer. The entire work was compiled in just two days.
“It’s a dark theme that inspired the Armenian Genocide,” says Norton. “I thought of the mood and subject matter. In some instances, I had to stop writing when I thought about the torment and depression this nation faced. I felt the pain of the victims.”
Members of the Armenian Genocide Education Committee of Merrimack Valley have been making repeated visits to the school for each semester, as well as other communities throughout Greater Boston and Merrimack Valley.
While student essays on the subject of the Armenian Genocide are nothing unusual, the fact that it comes from a totally non-Armenian classroom setting taught by sympathetic instructors remains tantamount to our cause.
“They have a sincere desire to learn from outsiders who’ve approached our school with such motivation as the Armenians,” Desberg pointed out. “They want to be students who make a big difference in the world.”
Tucker’s symphony will be performed during a Merrimack Valley genocide presentation at local churches.
“I told them to pick their means of expression,” said Tucker. “Never did I expect a musical interlude on genocide.”
The results were vast and varied. Out of the assignment came an eclectic poem over an Armenian khatchkar done by Michelle Soel and Katie Finn, which reads in part:
“Giving justice where it’s due,
Honoring angels in our sky,
So many will not soon forget
The once-forgotten genocide.”
The addition of an Armenian tricolor and sunflower sprouting from the ground gives it added appeal. That’s not all. The Armenian word for freedom (azadoutoun) is etched on the side—in Armenian lettering.
Allie Silva and Danielle O’Brien emerged with a 20” by 30” Armenian tri-colored poster board with these poetic words inscribed:
“The genocide was an awful thing. Who knew what misery it would bring? Throughout the struggles of many, there remained hope. Thoughts of lost family members, Armenians had to cope. Never forgetting the lives that were lost. They all came at such a great cost.”
A collage by Mary Torres and Alana Madore depicted turmoil and unrest done in color. They said, “It’s easy to learn about genocide in black and white through facts and numbers, but they cannot account for the unique life of each individual who was sacrificed.”
Students Chris Palmerino, Patrick O’Connell, and Mitchell Goulet designed their own interpretation of the Armenian Heritage Park Memorial at the Rose Kennedy Greenway in Boston, done in the form of a labyrinth. A global configuration with a dove flying in its midst carries the words: “Give peace a chance.”
Other works also intensified the mood, including two inscriptions by writers Peter Balakian and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.
“We are all deeply touched by this tragedy,” said teachers Desberg and Tucker. “A lot of us are offended by the fact that Turkey still denies their guilt. We think it is very important that more people learn about what Armenians had to go through and respect the deaths of so many innocent victims.”
Another class at Melrose Middle School reciprocated by making a generous donation to the Armenian National Committee of America.
Tom Vartabedian
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Congratsulation to the Wilmington High School Student Francis Norton for composing an Armenian Symphony for the Martyrs of the Armenian Genocide of 1915. God Bless him for his talented work. Steve Dulgarian
May I have his coordinates, Armenian American Association for the Study of Stress and Genocide would like to add an award as well.