Armenian Arts in America: From chart-toppers to jazz innovators

Dedicated to the 250th anniversary of America’s founding, this is the third in a series titled “Armenian Arts in America,” exploring the history and impact of Armenians in the arts in the United States. Whether born in the U.S. or immigrants, Armenians have made an indelible mark on American arts. When thinking of Armenians in the music industry, a few big names likely come to mind. But this community’s involvement has more breadth and depth than one might expect. Pioneers and performers. Masters and multi-instrumentalists. Preservers and creators. Armenian artists have gravitated to all areas of music, both onstage and backstage. Whether working in American or Armenian music, many artists have drawn on Armenia’s rich musical traditions to spur innovation, build community and bring joy to a growing diaspora. And judging by the number of keyboardists, it seems those childhood piano lessons really do pay off. American Pop, Rock and Hip-Hop Whether the public knew it or not, Armenians have been in the studio or on the radio for decades. Ross Bagdasarian Sr. In 1939, Fresno, California-born singer-songwriter and actor Ross Bagdasarian wrote a song with his cousin. The song: Rosemary Clooney’s 1951 chart-topping, career-launching single, “Come On-a My House.” The cousin: famed writer William Saroyan. Bagdasarian later rose to prominence under the stage name David Seville, with the hit 1958 novelty song “Witch Doctor.” The high-pitched, sped-up voice became the basis for his cartoon chipmunk band: Alvin and the Chipmunks. As David Seville & The Chipmunks, Bagdasarian won three GRAMMY Awards, including Best Comedy Album and Best Album for Children. The Chipmunks are still active today — stewarded by Ross Bagdasarian Jr. — and as a franchise, have won awards for their music albums, films and television series. Kay Armen Clooney wasn’t the first to record “Come On-a My House.” That honor belongs to Kay Armen, who released a version earlier that same year. Born Armenuhi Manoogian in Chicago, Kay Armen was an actress, singer and songwriter in the 1940s and 50s. She was best known for her presence on the radio through her weekly NBC-Blue show “Kay Armen-Songs,” and starring role in the quiz show “Stop the Music.” Anita Darian Around the same time, another Armenian woman was taking over the airwaves, though you may not have known it. Born in Detroit, Anita Darian began her career singing in operas and performing with the New York Philharmonic under Leonard Bernstein, but is most widely heard in one iconic part. Though uncredited at the time, Darian sang the female soprano part — the high-pitched background vocalizations — on The Tokens’ GRAMMY-nominated 1961 song “The Lion Sleeps Tonight.” Russ Regan Record executive Russ Regan was born Harold Rustigian in Fresno County, California. In his decades-long career, Regan served as president of UNI Records and 20th Century Records and vice president of A&R at Motown, promoting or helping to create multiple number one hits, including 1961’s “Please Mr. Postman” by The Marvelettes. He was instrumental in launching the careers of popular artists like Elton John, Barry White, Neil Diamond, The Beach Boys, and Olivia Newton-John. He also supervised the soundtracks for movies like “The Karate Kid,” “This is Spinal Tap” and “A Chorus Line.” Cher Born Cherilyn Sarkisian in Southern California, Cher rose to prominence in 1965 as part of the duo Sonny & Cher with the hit “I Got You Babe.” With multiple nominations throughout her career, Cher won the GRAMMY for Best Dance Recording for “Believe” in 2000 and was awarded the Recording Academy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2026. In 2024, she was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Known for her deep voice, elaborate costumes, and long career, Cher has been dubbed the “Goddess of Pop” and continues to perform. Peyote Beats Armen Zabounian, known professionally as Peyote Beats, is a music producer and multi-instrumentalist from Palm Springs. In 2025, he won a GRAMMY for his work on the Best Rap Album, Doechii’s “Alligator Bites Never Heal.” Armenians have also been prominent members of popular music groups. Los Angeles-based Sebu Simonian is a singer-songwriter and keyboardist for GRAMMY-nominated indie-pop duo Capital Cities. Also from Southern California is keyboardist Derek Sherinian, who has toured with Alice Cooper and Billy Idol. Boston-born Sib Hashian was the former drummer for GRAMMY-nominated rock band Boston. Also from Massachusetts is Danny Bedrosian, the longest-tenured keyboardist for Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductees George Clinton and Parliament-Funkadelic. Hailing from Scottsdale, Arizona, Tamar Kaprelian is a singer-songwriter who served as the American representative of the supergroup Genealogy, Armenia’s entry in the 2015 Eurovision Song Contest with the song “Face the Shadow.” System of a Down Formed in 1994 in Glendale, California, System of a Down is composed of lead vocalist and keyboardist Serj Tankian, guitarist and vocalist Daron Malakian, bassist Shavo Odadjian, and drummer John Dolmayan. The band is known for its genre-blending alternative metal and in 2006, won the GRAMMY for Best Hard Rock Performance for “B.Y.O.B.” The band has been outspoken about their Armenian heritage in their music, such as with the tracks “Arto,” “Holy Mountains,” “Genocidal Humanoidz,” and “Protect the Land.” While they haven’t released a new album in over 20 years, the band periodically goes on tour. American Jazz and Instrumental Music From performers to composers and executives, Armenians have found a home in the most experimental and interpretive genres. Paul Motian Born in Philadelphia, Paul Motian was a jazz drummer, bandleader and composer. Beginning in the 1950s, Motian played with a number of jazz greats, including Thelonious Monk, Keith Jarrett, Bill Evans, Joe Lovano and Bill Frisell. Motian’s creative and innovative approach to drumming inspired contemporaries and future jazz musicians to consider the drum not just as a timekeeper, but as a fluid instrument. George Avakian George Avakian was a record executive in New York City. His love of jazz music led him to a long and successful career at Columbia Records and winning the GRAMMY for Best Album Notes in 1997 for “The Complete Columbia Studio Recordings.” During his time at Columbia, he produced the Hot Jazz Classics albums, helped popularize the 33⅓ rpm LP format, made the company the first to record live jazz and popular music performances, signed Miles Davis, and co-founded the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences (presenters of the GRAMMY Awards). In 2010, Avakian was named a National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Master. “My Armenian-American hero has always been George Avakian…His significance for me is the pivotal role he played in discovering, promoting and preserving the giants in jazz who became the founding fathers of this music,” Jazz vocalist Lucy Yeghiazaryan said. “The albums Avakian helped record have shaped me as a musician and I am eternally grateful that as an Armenian he possessed that chameleon-like quality which allowed him to read the room that was America in the first half of the 20th century and play such an active part in the music that is arguably the only positive export the U.S. has to offer today. Long live jazz and George Avakian!” Anahid & Maro Ajemian Violinist Anahid Ajemian, Avakian’s wife, and her sister, pianist Maro Ajemian, were also accomplished musicians who regularly premiered the works of composers Aram Khatchaturian, Massachusetts-born Alan Hovhaness, and Elliott Carter. Mary Kouyoumdjian Brooklyn-based Mary Kouyoumdjian is a composer and documentarian who draws on her experience as first-generation Armenian American, as well as the impact the Lebanese Civil War and the Armenian Genocide had on her family. In 2024, her sonic-documentary album “Paper Pianos” was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in Music and in 2026, her album “Adoration” was nominated for a GRAMMY for Best Opera Recording. Bear McCreary Born in Washington, Bear McCreary is a composer and the son of author Laura Kalpakian. He is responsible for the soundtracks of a number of popular films, television shows and video games, such as “Battlestar Galactica,” “Outlander,” “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” and “God of War.” McCreary frequently collaborates with his brother, musician Brendan McCreary, including on their latest project “The Singularity,” a hard rock concept album. His work has earned four GRAMMY Award nominations, six Emmy Award nominations and two Emmy wins. Michael Sarian New York City-based Michael Sarian is a jazz trumpeter and composer. His Armenian heritage is a frequent influence in his music, as seen in his arrangements and interpretations of pieces by Komitas, as well as his original composition “The Eyes of Parajanov.” Lucy Yeghiazaryan Lucy Yeghiazaryan is a New York City-based jazz vocalist, who frequently incorporates Armenian folk music into her performances. Her latest album “Hey Love!” is a compilation of love songs and features her frequent collaborator and husband, saxophonist Grant Stewart. Reflecting on the influence of her Armenian heritage on her music, Yeghiazaryan said, “The unfortunate historical circumstances that have forced most Armenians to live outside of our native land have had some surprisingly positive effects on us as diasporans. The ability to adapt quickly, read the room, think idiomatically, understand and embrace the depths of another's culture and yet maintain that native seed within you and regurgitate all things foreign through that distinctly Armenian lens is unique and powerful. I am an Armenian who sings the most quintessentially American genre of music, jazz. And yet in my mind I am always singing from our mountains, trying to reach the very last seat in the theater just like I'd be trying to reach a distant farmhouse on the plains of Aragats.”

Armenian Arts in America: From chart-toppers to jazz innovators

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Rosie (Toumanian) Nisanyan

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