Dikran Tchouhadjian
| Tigran Tchouhadjian | |
|---|---|
 Painting of Dikran Tchouhadjian. | |
| Born |
1837 Constantinople |
| Died |
1898 Izmir |
| Other names | Dikran Chouhajian |
| Occupation | composer, conductor, public activist |
| Known for | Founder of the first opera institution in the Ottoman Empire |
Tigran Tchouhadjian (Armenian: Տիգրան Չուխաճեան;[1] 1837 - March 11, 1898)[2] was an Armenian composer, conductor, public activist and the founder of the first opera institution in the Ottoman Empire.[3] He is considered the first opera composer in Turkish history.[4]
Dikran Tchoukhadjian is the Western Armenian transliteration of his name. In Eastern Armenian it would be Tigran Chukhajian. In modern Turkish it is rendered as Dikran Çuhacıyan. Alternative spellings of his surname include Choukhajian, Chukhajian, Chuhajian, or Tschuchadshjan.
Biography
Tchouhadjian was born in Constantinople. He studied at composer Gabriel Yeranian's class, then had classes in Milan. Along with other Armenian intellectuals of that period he fought for the development of the national culture, organized Armenian musical societies, theatres, schools, papers and free concerts. In his works Tchouhadjian used the elements of European musical techniques and Armenian folk melodies.[5] He is an author of pieces for piano, songs and romances, chamber and symphonic works, operas (Zemire, 1890; Leblebiji, 1875) etc. He died in Smyrna (now İzmir). Tchouhadjian is buried in Armenian cemetery of Smyrna.
He created the first Armenian opera, Arshak II (1868, partially staged in 1873), based on a historical fact about King Arsaces II (Arshak II). It is the first “Armenian grand opera” with choruses and ballets, and was assembled on November 29, 1945 at the Armenian Opera Theater opera theater in Yerevan. Arshak II is a "gem" of Armenian musical culture and it has continued to grace the repertoire of the Yerevan Opera Theater. In 2001, it was staged at the San Francisco Opera.
As Dikran Çuhacıyan he is also remembered as the composer of what may have been the first original opera in Turkish, Arif'in Hilesi (Arif's Deception),[6][7] though Donizetti's Belisario had been staged in Turkish translation in 1840.[8]
Bibliography
- Nikoghos Tahmizian, Tigran Tchoukhajian - Life and Work (in Armenian), 1999, Drazark Publishing, Pasadena, Ca.
References
- ↑ The traditional spelling of his name in Armenian. In the reformed orthography it is spelled Տիգրան Չուխաջյան
- ↑ The Armenians: From Kings and Priests to Merchants and Commissars by Razmik Panossian, Michael J. Dwyer, p. 334
- ↑ Donald Jay Grout, Hermine Weigel Williams. A short history of opera, p. 529
- ↑ Cowden, edited by Robert H. (1992). Opera companies of the world : selected profiles. New York: Greenwood Press. ISBN 0313262209.
- ↑ Chukhajian in Great Soviet Encyclopedia
- ↑ Türk tiyatro tarihi - Page 66 Metin And - 1992 "Dikran Çuhacıyan, imzasıyla halka seslenirken ve amacını açıklarken, Güllü Agop da Arifin Hilesi'nin vodvil olduğunu, bu bakımdan tekelin kapsamına girdiğini ileri sürüyordu. Öteki gazeteler de tartışmaya katıldılar. Bu arada Güllü Agop'un ..."
- ↑ The Athenæum 1874 Page 616 "Tun Festival of the Ramazan, in Constantinople, has been marked by the production of an opera in Turkish and the foundation of an Opera house for the Moslem quarter of Stamboul. The name of the piece is ' Arifiu-heilessi'; the composer is ... The name of the piece is 'Arifiu-heilessi'; the composer is Mr. Digran Chohajian (= Tailor-son), an Armenian ; and the authors of the libretto are Haled Bey, Mahir Bey, and other Turkish gentlemen. The piece was received with enthusiasm by ..."
- ↑ Newsletter of the Research Centre for Islamic History, Art, and Culture - Page 41 1999 "... operettas were put on stage in the Naum Theatre in the Pera district of Istanbul. At the beginning, the plays were in French and the roles were undertaken by Armenian. Jewish and Greek artists. The first opera in Turkish was staged in 1840."
External links
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