Naghash Ensemble captivates sold-out audience at Carnegie Hall

I don’t know the first thing about music theory and my cabinmates at Camp Haiastan would forbid me to sing Mer Hairenik because it came dangerously close to an act of treason. But I can listen to Gomidas and Sayat Nova for hours at a time, because it makes me feel good. But that, in and of itself, seems to be a problem. Our cultural inheritance is rich and comforting. But progress has no bigger enemy than comfort, and that’s where Newton’s First Law of Motion kicks in. An object at rest stays at rest and an object in motion stays in motion with the same speed and in the same direction unless acted upon by an unbalanced force. The Naghash Ensemble seems to be that force. It took the words of our medieval poets, with the archaic charm of Middle Armenian, and blasted them through midtown Manhattan in ways none of us had ever imagined end moved us to a place that was new and beautiful. Even the rumble of the New York City subway, just inches below Zankel Hall couldn’t mute them. It’s as if Mkrtich Naghash and Kostantin Erznkats’i made an investment centuries ago that just exploded as a windfall through the talents of John Hodian and his team. I hope the Naghash Ensemble serves as an example to all facets of our culture to move forward, even if it’s uncomfortable at first. Culture is important. That’s why our enemies go through so much trouble to destroy ours.
Naghash Ensemble seems to have taken the path that this quote by Arshile Gorky is talking about:
“My recollections of Armenia open new visions for me. My art is therefore a growth art where forms, pines, shapes, memories of Armenia germinate, breathe, expand and contract, multiply and thereby create new paths for exploration.”