This is one of the most important songs composed by the armenian priest Gomidas Vartabed. Its lyrics tells about his feelings in a cloudy-rainy day (pay attention at the pizzicatos remembering us the falling drops of rain). He wrote: "The sky is cloudy... what a sweet tune... I came and pass at her (house´s) door. My beloved is there...".

GOMIDAS VARTABED or KOMITAS (1869-1915)

One of the most renowned Armenian Churchmen and musician of modern times was Gomidas Vartabed, also known as Komitas. He was born Soghomon Soghomonian in Keutahya, Asia Minor, in 1869. His life had an interesting turn of events, when at the age of eleven, he was orphaned, and at a young age he was sent to a Seminary in Etchmiadzin to study. Because of his singing prowess, he decided to teach music at the Seminary after he completed his studies. In 1896, Soghomon was ordained a monk or "Apegha" of the Armenian Church. A few years later he was ordained a "Vartabed" , and as is the practice in the Armenian Church assumed his new name "Komitas"(or Gomidas).

Komitas learned a great deal of music from the monks and continued to study music with the famous composer Kara-Murza, which eventually led Komitas into both secular and religious music. Komitas continued to study music, and in 1896, he was awarded a doctorate degree in musicology. He later returned to Etchmiadzin as a choir director, and Instructor of music at the Seminary.

Komitas wrote over three thousand songs in Armenian, Arabic, Kurdish, and Persian, and also contributed significantly to the modern Armenian Badarak (the holy mass). His main contribution was to rediscover Armenian folk music and "to rescue" the genuine armenian rythms and harmonies from the influence of persian, turkish, arabic or other foreign cadences or styles. He spent years traveling throughout the historical armenian provinces (actually the third eastern part of turkey) and visiting many villages listening to native songs and dances, and making notes of them for further analysis. His work in arranging and collating the folk music he had collected over the years, eventually became excellent songs for 4 voices chorus music, and made the public aware of the existence of true classic armenian music. In addition to the folk music, Komitas arranged the entire music of the Divine Liturgy (Surp Badarak) of the Armenian Apostholic Church, for male voices sung every sunday morning in many churches of the armenian diaspora.

The internationally known priest was the first non-European to be a member of the International Music Society. Komitas performed concerts in Paris, Geneva, Berne, Constantinople, Venice, and Alexandria. It is interesting to note that in the spring of 1915, during the imprisonment of 700 leaders of the armenian community in turkey for their killing, Gomidas too was taken into custody. Through the efforts of Henry Morgenthau, Ambassador from the United States of America in turkey, and the turkish poet Mehmet Emin Yurdakul, who admired Gomitas' work, Father Gomitas was released.

After the April 24, 1915 massacres of the armenian people by the turks, he succumbed to mental deep depression and physical anguish and never fully recovered. Komitas lived as if a walking corpse for the next twenty years. The revered holy man died in Paris on October 22, 1935 in a mental hospital. One year after his death his ashes were transferred to Yerevan and interred in the Yerevan Pantheon. In the 1950's his manuscripts were transported from Paris to Yerevan where they were being studied and published.

THE GOMIDAS STRING QUARTET Was Founded in Moscow in November 1924 by four talented Armenian students of Moscow State Tchaikovsky Conservatory: Avet Gabrielyan - 1st violin, Levon Ogandjanyan - 2nd violin, Michael Terian - viola, Sergey Aslamazian - cello, the oldest performing quartet in the world. Made first public performance in February 1925. The oldest in the world and most famous Armenian music group carries the name of Komitas (Soghomon Soghomonian, 1869-1915), a hiermonk whose genius brought a renaissance to Armenian music at the turn of the XX-th century. Performed with S. Richter, N. Dorliak, E. Gilels, D. Shostakovich, M. Rostropovich, Merjanov, Igumnov, Walter Zeufert, Mario Brunello and other prominent musicians. Aram Khachaturian described the quartet as the jewel of the musical culture of Armenia. Many armenian and foreign composers dedicate their works to the quartet.

You can read and listen about Gomidas life and work in KOMITAS.AM. Enjoy it. (less info)