Over the past year, the Sound Archive project has taken a step forward. In addition to the monthly posts, the Museum hosted two listening events this fall. Meanwhile, our web features are covering the full range of our collection. Along with more "conventional" musical recordings, we've highlighted sound recordings that touch on Armenian cultural, political, and educational history, as well as the history of recording technologies.

Last month, we were honored to welcome the world-renowned composer and musician Ara Dinkjian to the Museum. Speaking to a packed house, Ara discussed the early history of some of the first recordings of Armenian music through the 1940's. The presentation built on Ara's book and CD compilation Armenians in America on 78rpm, compiled from his personal archive and published by Kalan Music. The Museum also brought musicologist Ian Nagoski to its galleries to weave the story of the influential but largely forgotten singer Zabelle Panosian. Ian’s talk drew from his recently published book and CD Zabelle Pansoian: I Am Servant of Your Voice, authored by Harout Arakelian, Harry Kezelian and Ian Nagoski, and published on Nagoski’s own Canary Books & Records imprint. 

Additionally we covered a broader range of histories and stories in our monthly features. We continued to explore the Museum's extensive collection of Soviet Armenian recordings while also turning our attention to records that serve as more than entertainment, anchored by a series of articles about moments of cultural and political history captured on record. In the first segment, listeners can eavesdrop on a party at the home of the writer Hamasdegh (Hampartzoum Gelenian) on the night of June 10, 1939. The commemorative disc opens with an introduction by none other than William Saroyan. The second article covers an NBC San Francisco radio broadcast from June 24, 1945, highlighting the Armenian National Chorus as well as advocacy work about the "Armenian Question" from celebrity chef George Mardikian and attorney Souren Saroyan of the Armenian National Committee.

We also presented a recording made by the educator Yeranouhi Mooshian aimed at teaching the Armenian language to children through song, while continuing to look at stories from the Armenian diaspora around the globe, this time with a recording made in Argentina. The Argentine recording is a charming personal token recorded on a lacquer disc, the same process which recorded William Saroyan's visit to Hamasdegh's home. These two lacquer discs represent the unique one-off format, a new and affordable technology which allowed individuals to make sound recordings for their personal use.

Many of our web posts continue to focus on the music and stories of some of the most influential Armenian artists recording during the 78 rpm era. This year we highlighted two post-war music icons, The Gomidas Band, a group at the frontier of kef style, and Guy Chookoorian, an artist and musical comic with a character and approach all his own. We also covered the folk songs of  Yenovk Der Hagopian, whose songs, paintings, and sculpture reflect a great depth of experience after traumas of the 20th century. Lastly, we covered Hovsep Shamlian and Edward Bogosian, two songwriters and performers who influenced the music of the post-war era. Shamlian and Bogosian acted as transitional figures between the old world folk repertoire of artists like Yenovk and the modern sound and attitudes which took form through groups like the Gomidas Band and Guy Chookorian. 

The work of this project is made possible thanks to the generous support of the SJS Charitable Trust. Writing, research, and audio digitization is undertaken by Harout Arakelian, Jesse Kenas Collins, and Harry Kezelian, with the excellent team of staff at the Museum keeping the program running. We look forward to exploring and presenting the Museum's recorded sound collection more in 2024. Until then, we hope you enjoy the selections from 2023 presented here, and encourage you to take a look back and explore the archive. 

A special thanks to the SJS Charitable Trust for their generous support of our work to digitize and share our collection of 78 rpm records.