Tweet
An Interview With Artyom Ayvazyan
Armenian News Network / Groong
August 8, 2005
By Onnik Krikorian
Artyom Ayvazyan is the President of the Antenna non-governmental organization (NGO), created to assist the development of independent radio broadcasting in Armenia. The NGO also seeks to help popularize contemporary popular music in the republic and has established ArminRock, a web site that serves a portal and forum for rock music in Armenia. This interview was held on 2 August 2005 at the Antenna office in Yerevan, capital of the Republic of Armenia. Artyom Ayvazyan
Narek, Bambir II guitarist,
Stop Club, Yerevan.
YEREVAN, ARMENIA
ONNIK KRIKORIAN: Perhaps you could start by introducing yourself.
ARTYOM AYVAZYAN: I'm the President of the Antenna NGO which was established in 1998 although at the time, we were working more with radio stations. After I was the Programme Director of two radio stations, Hye FM from 1994 to 1996 and from 1996-2000, Programme Director and co-owner of Radio Burg FM107, I began to realize that it was necessary to help and support radio broadcasting in Armenia. I wrote two books on radio stations, one published in Russian in 1998 and the second in Armenian in 2003. Then I started to think that we could do something to help Armenian musicians record their songs and albums as well as help promote them on radio stations. Basically, if we now we have very few rock groups being played on these stations, there was almost nothing before.
We are now trying to help popularize rock music in Armenia and though our organization, try to help these musicians. We received a grant from the Open Society Institute (OSI) in Hungry to help create a center for non-commercial music and after its establishment, organized a few concerts and festivals. The largest was the Firewall Festival held in October 2003 at the Puppet Theatre in Yerevan. Afterwards, a lot of Armenian rock bands started to work harder because they saw that there was an audience interested in their music. The Puppet Theatre has 300 seats, for example, but we attracted more than 500 people. It was a very interesting and large festival by Armenian standards and after that, every Armenian group started to rehearse and perform more as well as look to the future.
We try to help everybody. We have no favorites. I want to work with every Armenian rock group because I know that everybody needs help. It's very important that I'm not a musician because musicians usually compete with each other. Everybody wants to be considered the best but for me, I only have partners as well as good connections with every Armenian band. That's a plus for our organization and we're now working on a new project. We want to organize a tour of the whole of Armenia so that people who don't have the opportunity to see Armenian bands on stage in Yerevan can see them locally. Because there are many young people in the regions who have some musical talent, we hope that they might be encouraged to do something similar when they see their colleagues on stage.
OK: That sounds interesting. For example, not every band in England comes from London and in fact, most bands don't come from the capital. It would appear that even in Armenia the situation is the same. There's Bambir from Gyumri and Lav Eli and Gor Mkhitarian from Vanadzor.
AA: And now there's a new band, Vortan Garmir, from Vanadzor so I think that it's a very important project. I think that it's also possible for us to get a grant for doing this because it will require a lot of money to organize a bus, accommodation, and venue but I want to do it because it's very important. Every Armenian band wants to go somewhere. Maybe they want to perform in the United States or London but that's almost impossible at present. Instead, we'll start with small tours of Armenia and I think that this is very important.
We are also trying to help new Armenian bands record their demos so they can possibly find others to record their albums. Promoters and record labels need to hear their music and today, not every band in Armenia has access to the necessary facilities to record their demos. We also shoot every concert with a semi-professional video camera and have a large archive of material that can be used by TV stations.
OK: It's been interesting to look at the ArminRock web site, and especially the waves of Armenian rock article you wrote with Arman Padaryan, because most people outside of Armenia automatically assume that rock music came with independence. In reality, however, it existed beforehand and towards the end of the soviet era was actually quite strong. I was reading about Asbarez...
AA: Yes, in the late eighties Asbarez was a huge band and considered by the public to be on the same level as pop groups even from the West. However, they only played for about three years and after 1992 or 1993 started to work with other groups and didn't play as a band which is a pity. I saw them on stage a number of times and they were fantastic.
OK: In recent months I've been quite encouraged by the quality of some of the musicians playing rock music in Armenia. There's Artur Margaryan, the young and very talented guitarist with Sard and Army of God, and on Friday I saw Bambir (II) play at the Stop Club. They managed to attract a very large crowd in what I consider to be a very small venue and there were a few moments when I wondered if the stream of people coming in through the door would ever stop. They're also very charismatic on stage. Coincidentally, you're their manager.
AA: I was the producer for their first CD but I'm not their manager. There's a difference and because I work with every Armenian group, I have to make sure that I never help one band more than others.
OK: How did you become involved with Bambir?
AA: As I told you, I was a programme director for radio and was thinking about how little Armenian rock we had to play on air. When I first heard Bambir and their Armenian songs, I understood that they had a lot of very good songs and decided to help them record this music. They had a demo CD but without live drums so we recorded a CD that could be released here and in the United States.
OK: I was actually truing to find Bambir's CD for sale on Armenian music web sites in the Diaspora but couldn't find anything. They only had CDs by the older Bambir available. Is it possible to distribute their CD in the U.S.?
AA: That's another type of business and we must work to resolve this problem. Now, my friend who worked on this CD with me is going to the United States and he'll try to do something.
OK: Although we have problems with ArmenTel here, IT is quite a strong and growing sector of the economy. As people are moving towards downloading MPEGs in the West rather than buying CDs, isn't it possible to sell Armenian rock music over the Internet? That would solve a lot of problems with regards to distribution.
AA: We have thought about it but there's a problem. In Western countries you can buy anything you want over the Internet, all it requires is your credit card number. However, this is a problem in Armenia. We haven't such a service available although maybe in a year, there might be one.
OK: As I said, I've been very impressed by some of the new Armenian rock bands I've seen and heard recently. One of them was Sard but no sooner than they release their first CD, another band member gets called up to do his military service. This is quite a problem and a serious obstacle to overcome for young bands, I think.
AA: It's our reality and if you are young you will go to the army for two years. There are about 10 young musicians from different groups currently serving in the army. Yesterday, one guy from Vanadzor asked that his bass guitar be sent to him so he can practice while serving in Karabakh. I've also told Alik from Sard to use his free time while in the army to write new songs because he's a very good composer and he can write some very good hits.
OK: Zabaikalsky Rap was a very catchy tune with wide popular appeal, I think.
AA: It's very important for radio stations because they want to play such songs.
OK: Did it get a lot of airplay?
AA: Yes, of course. A second song, My Yerevan, is a good song as well.
OK: So, you're convinced when one of them comes back from Moscow and another comes back from the army they will be able to continue from where they left off?
AA: Of course.
OK: What about the main problem for rock music in Armenia and in fact, for music in general in Armenia? I don't believe that even the top pop stars here can make enough money to survive off CD sales and concerts. They need sponsors and for rock musicians it must be even harder. How can a young rock band make a living from rock music in Armenia? Is it possible?
AA: It's quite impossible now but it was totally impossible five years ago. In three years, however, it might be possible. We must make sure that it is because, for example, my daughter is 10 years old and she likes Sard and I want her to listen to young groups singing in Armenian. However, I think they can make some money from concerts. The band gets the cover charge on the door and the clubs make money from selling drinks.
OK: It's still not a lot though is it? Maybe Bambir made about $40-50 each on Friday for playing a very long set from 9pm to midnight. I don't think I've seen any band play such a long set in England.
AA: Sure, but you have to remember that before, they never had any money at all. So, it's already better than before but yes, it's a small amount of money and I'd like to organize some concerts in foreign countries. However, there are problems with that as well. If Bambir were to perform in Los Angeles they could earn a lot of money but for the band to get there it would cost a minimum of $4,000. We just don't have the sort of money to do that.
OK: Has there been an interest in Bambir from the Diaspora?
AA: There's been some interest and there have been a number of articles in the Diasporan press. However, Bambir play rock music which is not as popular as pop. Now, the Diaspora is working 90 percent with pop singers from Armenia and it's anyway easier and cheaper to invite just one singer to the U.S. rather than a group. Everything costs money.
OK: What other young bands show promise? For example, I had never heard of Strife until recently and when I did, it was by accident.
AA: Strife is a new band but as I said before, there is also Vortan Garmir from Vanadzor. We recorded them last Sunday. They play very good music with a young sound. Bambir plays hard rock with a 70's sound and their style is in that direction. However, we're also interested in a new sound and diversity. For me, that's essential.
OK: What about young Armenians listening to rock? From speaking to rock fans aged between 19 and 28 in Yerevan, many say they like Metallica but when you ask them about Armenian bands they say they don't like any. The reason for that, they say, is because Armenian rock is not good enough. However, from what I'm hearing, I know it's good enough. Do you think that there might be some kind of mental block that makes people think that anything from outside Armenia has to be good while everything here is of low quality?
AA: Yes, it's a mentality problem, of course, but also, they haven't heard anything by these new bands. TV doesn't show their concerts and radio stations rarely play their music. You have to go to clubs to hear them play and see them live on stage but these people don't go. On the other hand, many Armenian rock bands don't have a lot of material recorded for radio stations to play.
OK: When I spoke to Sasha from Sard as well as Ed from MDP at the beginning of the year, they both suggested that the market for rock music in Armenia is very small. For example, if a festival was arranged, they said the maximum audience they could attract would be about 1,000 people. Do you agree or is it again down to publicity and especially through the mass media.
AA: Of course, it depends on advertising but yes, it's true that rock music doesn't attract a lot of people here. However, there are many people who want to listen to something different but they don't know what. Many young people tell me that they like System of A Down, for example. They're a very heavy band so it's strange that people who say they don't listen to rock music say they like SOAD.
OK: Maybe it's simply because they're Armenian and famous in the West.
AA: Of course, they're Armenian but we can also see their clips on TV.
OK: It's encouraging to hear that SOAD are in touch with rock bands here. However, every one is waiting for them to perform in Armenia although it's complicated. It would cost a lot of money and require a lot of planning. Nevertheless, Narek from Bambir says that SOAD helped them play in the U.S.
AA: It was in 2000. System of Down weren't so famous at that time but yes, they did and can continue to help but I'm not sure how. For example, SOAD are signed up with the Sony Corporation so without Sony's permission, they can't do anything. It's big business. Before, they were free but not famous. Now, they're famous but not free.
--
Antenna has a web site at http://www.antenna.am. Antenna's portal to Armenian Rock, ArminRock, is at http://www.arminrock.am.
This interview forms part of continuing research into the rock music scene in the republic of Armenia. Other interviews originally distributed through the Armenian News Network-Groong can also be found online:
* Alexander Aslizadyan, SARD
* Hovhannes Kourghinyan, Vostan Hayots / Army of God
* Eduard Abrahamyan, MDP
--
Onnik Krikorian is a freelance journalist and photojournalist from the United Kingdom now living and working in the Republic of Armenia.
Redistribution of Groong articles, such as this one, to any other media, including but not limited to other mailing lists and Usenet bulletin boards, is strictly prohibited without prior written consent from
Groong's Administrator.
� Copyright 2005 Armenian News Network/Groong. All Rights Reserved.
Armenian News Network / Groong
August 8, 2005
By Onnik Krikorian
Artyom Ayvazyan is the President of the Antenna non-governmental organization (NGO), created to assist the development of independent radio broadcasting in Armenia. The NGO also seeks to help popularize contemporary popular music in the republic and has established ArminRock, a web site that serves a portal and forum for rock music in Armenia. This interview was held on 2 August 2005 at the Antenna office in Yerevan, capital of the Republic of Armenia. Artyom Ayvazyan
Narek, Bambir II guitarist,
Stop Club, Yerevan.
YEREVAN, ARMENIA
ONNIK KRIKORIAN: Perhaps you could start by introducing yourself.
ARTYOM AYVAZYAN: I'm the President of the Antenna NGO which was established in 1998 although at the time, we were working more with radio stations. After I was the Programme Director of two radio stations, Hye FM from 1994 to 1996 and from 1996-2000, Programme Director and co-owner of Radio Burg FM107, I began to realize that it was necessary to help and support radio broadcasting in Armenia. I wrote two books on radio stations, one published in Russian in 1998 and the second in Armenian in 2003. Then I started to think that we could do something to help Armenian musicians record their songs and albums as well as help promote them on radio stations. Basically, if we now we have very few rock groups being played on these stations, there was almost nothing before.
We are now trying to help popularize rock music in Armenia and though our organization, try to help these musicians. We received a grant from the Open Society Institute (OSI) in Hungry to help create a center for non-commercial music and after its establishment, organized a few concerts and festivals. The largest was the Firewall Festival held in October 2003 at the Puppet Theatre in Yerevan. Afterwards, a lot of Armenian rock bands started to work harder because they saw that there was an audience interested in their music. The Puppet Theatre has 300 seats, for example, but we attracted more than 500 people. It was a very interesting and large festival by Armenian standards and after that, every Armenian group started to rehearse and perform more as well as look to the future.
We try to help everybody. We have no favorites. I want to work with every Armenian rock group because I know that everybody needs help. It's very important that I'm not a musician because musicians usually compete with each other. Everybody wants to be considered the best but for me, I only have partners as well as good connections with every Armenian band. That's a plus for our organization and we're now working on a new project. We want to organize a tour of the whole of Armenia so that people who don't have the opportunity to see Armenian bands on stage in Yerevan can see them locally. Because there are many young people in the regions who have some musical talent, we hope that they might be encouraged to do something similar when they see their colleagues on stage.
OK: That sounds interesting. For example, not every band in England comes from London and in fact, most bands don't come from the capital. It would appear that even in Armenia the situation is the same. There's Bambir from Gyumri and Lav Eli and Gor Mkhitarian from Vanadzor.
AA: And now there's a new band, Vortan Garmir, from Vanadzor so I think that it's a very important project. I think that it's also possible for us to get a grant for doing this because it will require a lot of money to organize a bus, accommodation, and venue but I want to do it because it's very important. Every Armenian band wants to go somewhere. Maybe they want to perform in the United States or London but that's almost impossible at present. Instead, we'll start with small tours of Armenia and I think that this is very important.
We are also trying to help new Armenian bands record their demos so they can possibly find others to record their albums. Promoters and record labels need to hear their music and today, not every band in Armenia has access to the necessary facilities to record their demos. We also shoot every concert with a semi-professional video camera and have a large archive of material that can be used by TV stations.
OK: It's been interesting to look at the ArminRock web site, and especially the waves of Armenian rock article you wrote with Arman Padaryan, because most people outside of Armenia automatically assume that rock music came with independence. In reality, however, it existed beforehand and towards the end of the soviet era was actually quite strong. I was reading about Asbarez...
AA: Yes, in the late eighties Asbarez was a huge band and considered by the public to be on the same level as pop groups even from the West. However, they only played for about three years and after 1992 or 1993 started to work with other groups and didn't play as a band which is a pity. I saw them on stage a number of times and they were fantastic.
OK: In recent months I've been quite encouraged by the quality of some of the musicians playing rock music in Armenia. There's Artur Margaryan, the young and very talented guitarist with Sard and Army of God, and on Friday I saw Bambir (II) play at the Stop Club. They managed to attract a very large crowd in what I consider to be a very small venue and there were a few moments when I wondered if the stream of people coming in through the door would ever stop. They're also very charismatic on stage. Coincidentally, you're their manager.
AA: I was the producer for their first CD but I'm not their manager. There's a difference and because I work with every Armenian group, I have to make sure that I never help one band more than others.
OK: How did you become involved with Bambir?
AA: As I told you, I was a programme director for radio and was thinking about how little Armenian rock we had to play on air. When I first heard Bambir and their Armenian songs, I understood that they had a lot of very good songs and decided to help them record this music. They had a demo CD but without live drums so we recorded a CD that could be released here and in the United States.
OK: I was actually truing to find Bambir's CD for sale on Armenian music web sites in the Diaspora but couldn't find anything. They only had CDs by the older Bambir available. Is it possible to distribute their CD in the U.S.?
AA: That's another type of business and we must work to resolve this problem. Now, my friend who worked on this CD with me is going to the United States and he'll try to do something.
OK: Although we have problems with ArmenTel here, IT is quite a strong and growing sector of the economy. As people are moving towards downloading MPEGs in the West rather than buying CDs, isn't it possible to sell Armenian rock music over the Internet? That would solve a lot of problems with regards to distribution.
AA: We have thought about it but there's a problem. In Western countries you can buy anything you want over the Internet, all it requires is your credit card number. However, this is a problem in Armenia. We haven't such a service available although maybe in a year, there might be one.
OK: As I said, I've been very impressed by some of the new Armenian rock bands I've seen and heard recently. One of them was Sard but no sooner than they release their first CD, another band member gets called up to do his military service. This is quite a problem and a serious obstacle to overcome for young bands, I think.
AA: It's our reality and if you are young you will go to the army for two years. There are about 10 young musicians from different groups currently serving in the army. Yesterday, one guy from Vanadzor asked that his bass guitar be sent to him so he can practice while serving in Karabakh. I've also told Alik from Sard to use his free time while in the army to write new songs because he's a very good composer and he can write some very good hits.
OK: Zabaikalsky Rap was a very catchy tune with wide popular appeal, I think.
AA: It's very important for radio stations because they want to play such songs.
OK: Did it get a lot of airplay?
AA: Yes, of course. A second song, My Yerevan, is a good song as well.
OK: So, you're convinced when one of them comes back from Moscow and another comes back from the army they will be able to continue from where they left off?
AA: Of course.
OK: What about the main problem for rock music in Armenia and in fact, for music in general in Armenia? I don't believe that even the top pop stars here can make enough money to survive off CD sales and concerts. They need sponsors and for rock musicians it must be even harder. How can a young rock band make a living from rock music in Armenia? Is it possible?
AA: It's quite impossible now but it was totally impossible five years ago. In three years, however, it might be possible. We must make sure that it is because, for example, my daughter is 10 years old and she likes Sard and I want her to listen to young groups singing in Armenian. However, I think they can make some money from concerts. The band gets the cover charge on the door and the clubs make money from selling drinks.
OK: It's still not a lot though is it? Maybe Bambir made about $40-50 each on Friday for playing a very long set from 9pm to midnight. I don't think I've seen any band play such a long set in England.
AA: Sure, but you have to remember that before, they never had any money at all. So, it's already better than before but yes, it's a small amount of money and I'd like to organize some concerts in foreign countries. However, there are problems with that as well. If Bambir were to perform in Los Angeles they could earn a lot of money but for the band to get there it would cost a minimum of $4,000. We just don't have the sort of money to do that.
OK: Has there been an interest in Bambir from the Diaspora?
AA: There's been some interest and there have been a number of articles in the Diasporan press. However, Bambir play rock music which is not as popular as pop. Now, the Diaspora is working 90 percent with pop singers from Armenia and it's anyway easier and cheaper to invite just one singer to the U.S. rather than a group. Everything costs money.
OK: What other young bands show promise? For example, I had never heard of Strife until recently and when I did, it was by accident.
AA: Strife is a new band but as I said before, there is also Vortan Garmir from Vanadzor. We recorded them last Sunday. They play very good music with a young sound. Bambir plays hard rock with a 70's sound and their style is in that direction. However, we're also interested in a new sound and diversity. For me, that's essential.
OK: What about young Armenians listening to rock? From speaking to rock fans aged between 19 and 28 in Yerevan, many say they like Metallica but when you ask them about Armenian bands they say they don't like any. The reason for that, they say, is because Armenian rock is not good enough. However, from what I'm hearing, I know it's good enough. Do you think that there might be some kind of mental block that makes people think that anything from outside Armenia has to be good while everything here is of low quality?
AA: Yes, it's a mentality problem, of course, but also, they haven't heard anything by these new bands. TV doesn't show their concerts and radio stations rarely play their music. You have to go to clubs to hear them play and see them live on stage but these people don't go. On the other hand, many Armenian rock bands don't have a lot of material recorded for radio stations to play.
OK: When I spoke to Sasha from Sard as well as Ed from MDP at the beginning of the year, they both suggested that the market for rock music in Armenia is very small. For example, if a festival was arranged, they said the maximum audience they could attract would be about 1,000 people. Do you agree or is it again down to publicity and especially through the mass media.
AA: Of course, it depends on advertising but yes, it's true that rock music doesn't attract a lot of people here. However, there are many people who want to listen to something different but they don't know what. Many young people tell me that they like System of A Down, for example. They're a very heavy band so it's strange that people who say they don't listen to rock music say they like SOAD.
OK: Maybe it's simply because they're Armenian and famous in the West.
AA: Of course, they're Armenian but we can also see their clips on TV.
OK: It's encouraging to hear that SOAD are in touch with rock bands here. However, every one is waiting for them to perform in Armenia although it's complicated. It would cost a lot of money and require a lot of planning. Nevertheless, Narek from Bambir says that SOAD helped them play in the U.S.
AA: It was in 2000. System of Down weren't so famous at that time but yes, they did and can continue to help but I'm not sure how. For example, SOAD are signed up with the Sony Corporation so without Sony's permission, they can't do anything. It's big business. Before, they were free but not famous. Now, they're famous but not free.
--
Antenna has a web site at http://www.antenna.am. Antenna's portal to Armenian Rock, ArminRock, is at http://www.arminrock.am.
This interview forms part of continuing research into the rock music scene in the republic of Armenia. Other interviews originally distributed through the Armenian News Network-Groong can also be found online:
* Alexander Aslizadyan, SARD
* Hovhannes Kourghinyan, Vostan Hayots / Army of God
* Eduard Abrahamyan, MDP
--
Onnik Krikorian is a freelance journalist and photojournalist from the United Kingdom now living and working in the Republic of Armenia.
Redistribution of Groong articles, such as this one, to any other media, including but not limited to other mailing lists and Usenet bulletin boards, is strictly prohibited without prior written consent from
Groong's Administrator.
� Copyright 2005 Armenian News Network/Groong. All Rights Reserved.
he can tell you so interesting stories about "his GOD"...one time i said i wanna get high he said its a big sin....
Comment