On April 17, Roulette, the Brooklyn-based performance space, hosted Ara Dinkjian and the New York Gypsy All-Stars for a special evening of music. The event was presented in partnership with Brooklyn Maqam, Lotus Music & Dance and Robert Browning Associates, which is celebrating 50 years of preserving and promoting world music.
Performing Ara Dinkjian’s own compositions, the event brought together an international group of artists — Armenian, Macedonian, Turkish, Greek and American — making music together as friends and neighbors.
Dinkjian led the group on oud, with Tamer Pinarbaşi on kanun (zither), Ismail Lumanovski on clarinet, Panagiotis Andreou on electric bass, Engin Gunaydin on drums and Jason Lindner on keyboards, combining the music of Armenia, the Balkans and the Middle East with jazz, funk and other diverse rhythms.
The chosen pieces and instruments reflected Dinkjian’s background — American Armenian and Western Armenian. Ranging from mellow to upbeat, the musical fusions added a fresh, innovative flair to the familiar Armenian sound.
A great example of that was “Dancing Girls,” the ultimate contemporary kef song. Andreou’s funky scatting and electric bass, and Lindner’s avant-garde synth, blended beautifully with the traditional sounds of Dinkjian’s oud and Lumanovski’s clarinet to create a dynamic beat for today’s Armenian picnics. You couldn’t help but clap your hands and look for space to start a line dance.
Dedicated to — and named for — bluegrass musician Tony Rice, “Pilaf” was another lively tune. The metallic tones of Pinarbaşi’s kanun married with the bright notes of the clarinet to produce a twang unique to Middle Eastern music that also paid homage to the bluegrass genre.
In addition to making the audience want to dance, Dinkjian’s compositions showcased music’s ability to heal and bring people together.
In “American Gypsy,” the audience got a glimpse of the slow, contemplative side of the versatile oud and kanun. On the drums, Gunaydin’s snare brushing evoked the steady rain on a gloomy, sleepy day, while the soft cymbal swell, paired with the cry of the clarinet, brought the sequence to a dreamlike end.
The melody for “The Mountain Sees Us All” came to Dinkjian after church one Sunday and refers to Mount Ararat being the only thing that really knows the truth. Beginning with classical piano, the piece alternated between the ancient and delicate oud and kanun and the hard rocking bass and drums — a musical East-meets-West. It was not a battle, but a fellowship.
“They try to tell me some of these guys on stage are supposed to be my enemies,” Dinkjian said before they began. “They’re not my enemies; they’re my friends.”
And in the audience, that feeling was evident. There was camaraderie, respect and trust among them as they experimented, played and shared their joy with the audience.
For more information on upcoming events, follow Ara Dinkjian on Instagram and Facebook and the New York Gypsy All-Stars on Instagram and Facebook.
