Poetry in Music: Armenian Musical Folklore in Tumanian’s Masterpiece Anush

By sheehanl ()

Lecture by Dr. Beata Navratil



September 17, 2019



Rooted in traditional Armenian music, Anush opera (1912), a poem written by the Armenian poet Hovhannes Tumanian (1869–1923) and set to music by composer Armen Tigranian [...](1879–1950), borrows its style from traditional Armenian songs. Anush is representative of singing and dancing during Armenian traditional rituals—in particular, the celebration of the Feast of Christ’s Ascension ["Hambartsum"] and weddings. Songs incorporated into the poem serve as personifications of characters and their fate. The poet uses folk idioms based on natural phenomena to tell the story, encompassing three components of nature—mountains, flowers, and bodies of water—all intertwined and emulating the moods and emotions of the people. The presentation was accompanied by illustrative musical excerpts from Tigranian’s Anush opera.



Dr. Beata Navratil has performed in numerous venues throughout the United States and Europe as a soloist, chamber musician, and accompanist. Born in Armenia, she graduated from the Tchaikovsky Special Music School for Gifted Children. She received her Bachelor of Music and Master of Music degrees in Piano Performance from Manhattan School of Music, and her Doctor of Musical Arts in Piano Performance from the Graduate Center at CUNY. Dr. Navratil is a recipient of the Gulbenkian Foundation Award, the All-American Scholar Award, and the U.S. Academy Achievement Award.
More info