A brave space for creation: How Hosq is redefining creativity
For the second consecutive year, the Armenian State Philharmonia’s classical music venue was transformed into a platform for contemporary experimentation. On Aug. 1-2, it hosted the Notations Lab & Festival, organized by Hosq Initiative, creating a space where artists collaborated and presented new works.
Last year, the festival was inspired by Avet Terterian’s Third Symphony, which was digitized for the first time through a collaboration between the Hosq Foundation and Armenian National Music. The symphony became the creative starting point for about 60 artists from nine countries. The idea of choosing Terterian’s Third Symphony as the foundation of the festival was proposed by curator Aram Hovhannisyan.
“When we were discussing which work from Armenian heritage could serve as a foundation, we realized that Terterian’s Third Symphony had never been digitized. This became a very important step because we bring artists to Armenia, and Armenian culture becomes their creative starting point,” said Lusine Mlke-Galstyan, head of the Notations Lab and Festival.
The experience of the previous edition demonstrated that there was demand for this format not only in Armenia but also across the region. This year, Notations expanded significantly: the laboratory brought together 111 artists from 27 countries. Over two weeks in Armenia, they collaborated on more than 80 new projects, including concert programs, performances, installations and exhibitions. This year’s central theme was rituals.
“We believe that ritual is one of the most important social bridges in human history. It is a space where communities and cultures encounter one another,” Mlke-Galstyan said.
One of the festival’s projects, “Communitas,” explores folk music and rituals through contemporary technological approaches. It is conceived as a cycle of rituals — a musical and visual journey through different stages of human life. The project begins with a Georgian lullaby, then moves toward Armenian wedding rituals, reinterpreting them through elements of electronic music. It concludes with a reflection on Yazidi funeral rituals.
Another distinctive project is “Diverse Tower,” created by Hosq’s visual director and lead curator Andriesh Gandrabur. In this work, the audience becomes part of the artwork itself. Through special sensors, participants’ levels of relaxation and tension are measured, and the collected data is transformed into visual and musical changes.
London-based composer and interdisciplinary artist Zygmund Somogyi is participating in the “Refrain” project, curated by Aram Hovhannisyan and Sergey Umroyan. The project brings together different rituals into a single collective ritual and is built around the foundation of an ancient Armenian chant.
Somogyi said, “The question we were given was, ‘How do collective experiences of ritual — especially performances that become rituals themselves — come together and permeate our everyday lives?’ There is an incredible piece by Matteo Generini, an Italian composer, which explores the ritual of transformation: what happens during the process of transformation, and how does it feel? It is not necessarily about changing your appearance, but about experiencing transformation in a deeper, almost supernatural sense.”
For the project, Somogyi created “Goodbye Juliet,” a work exploring the ritual of departure.
“One of my friends once said that instead of creating only safe spaces, we should create brave spaces. I think Hosq and all the wonderful artists gathered here at the Armenian State Philharmonia have created exactly that kind of brave space. It is truly special,” Somogyi said.
Musician, actor and visual artist Van Sadakh also participated in Notations. He has created several musical projects combining folk and electronic music.
“I created two original songs that will soon be released on different platforms. I will also perform them here. Together with the folk band Department Communitas, we worked on variations of electronic and folk music. The result became a very interesting one-hour concert program. I also created my own stage costume. I have always dreamed of creating my own stage image. I had many theatrical sketches that were never realized, and now, for the first time, I finally created the costume myself,” he said.
The organizers emphasized that Armenia has the potential to become a center for creative encounters and a voice of the region. The projects created during the two-week laboratory will extend beyond that space, becoming a shared public experience.
Founded in 2023, Hosq is an international cultural platform and foundation dedicated to developing creative industries by connecting artists, producers, researchers and members of creative communities. Through laboratories, residencies and research programs, the organization creates an environment where art, technology and innovation intersect. Today, Hosq’s network includes more than 300 artists and creative initiatives.
