AAMA launches inaugural Aram V. Chobanian Medicine and Humanities Program on May 15
On May 15, the Armenian American Medical Association will present the Inaugural Aram V. Chobanian Medicine and Humanities Program, a lecture series to explore the intersection of arts and medicine.
Historically, the Armenian American Medical Association (AAMA) has held programs exploring the role of the humanities in medicine and medical education. AAMA is proud to rename the series in honor of Dr. Chobanian, past Boston University president, past dean of the Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine, and past AAMA president. Moving forward, the program series will be known as the Aram V. Chobanian Medicine and Humanities Lecture Series. The proposed program series aims to explore the role of the arts, music and humanities in medical education and their role in community, health and healing.
Dr. Chobanian and his wife were patrons of the arts and advocated for integrating the arts and medicine and their role in health and well-being. In his later years, Dr. Chobanian composed music, spent time writing different operas and completed one based on Isabella Stewart Gardner. Educational experience in the arts and humanities is known to promote the core skills of doctoring and patient care, including observation, communication, listening, reflection, empathy, teamwork and well-being.
The inaugural event will be held on Thursday, May 15, 2025, at the Dorothy and Charles Mosesian Center for the Arts. There will be a reception at 6 p.m., and the official program will start at 7 p.m., including an interdisciplinary evening featuring a lecture on “Music, Emotion and Brain Health” by Dr. Aniruddh Patel, an esteemed professor of psychology at Tufts University. Dr. Patel studies the cognitive, neural and evolutionary foundations of musicality. His 2008 book Music, Language, and the Brain (Oxford Univ. Press) won the ASCAP Deems Taylor Award, and his 2015 lecture series for The Great Courses, titled Music and the Brain, has reached a wide audience. Renée Fleming invited him to contribute a chapter on musicality, evolution and animal responses to music to her 2024 book Music and the Mind: Harnessing the Arts for Health and Wellness.
Next, Dr. Justin Casinghino, Dr. Chobanian’s music teacher, will give remarks on the role of music, specifically in Dr. Chobanian’s life. Following the lecture, the audience will experience a live, immersive performance featuring acclaimed visual artist Kevork Mourad, whose real-time digital artwork will evolve in response to a live string quartet led by talented violinist Haig Hovsepian.
During the evening, the AAMA plans to present an award to a healthcare professional who exemplifies Dr. Chobanian’s dedication to the arts and medicine. This year’s recipient is Dr. Raffi Tachdjian, Associate Clinical Professor of Medicine and Pediatrics at the UCLA School of Medicine and Founder and President of the Children’s Music Fund.
This year’s program is about more than appreciation for the arts; it is about understanding the arts and humanities’ essential role in human health and well-being.
Thanks to our sponsors, the Avedisian 575 Foundation, Fund for Armenian Relief and Charles Mosesian Charitable Foundation, admission is free and open to the public.
Advanced reservations suggested by May 10 at http://bit.ly/AAMAmay.
Although the event is free, donations to the AAMA are welcome and can be made online at http://www.aamaboston.org or by mailed check to the AAMA (PO Box 812641, Wellesley, MA 02482).
Please specify whether you wish your donation to go to the general AAMA fund or the Medicine and Humanities initiative. As a 501(c)(3) organization, contributions to the AAMA are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law. We hope to count on your support as we embark on this initiative.
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