The Inga and Anush sisters: Armenian Angels in Blue Kaftans

Friday, October 9, 2009

VERCİHAN ZİFLİOĞLU

YEREVAN - Hürriyet Daily News

The Inga and Anuş sisters, who represented Armenia at the Eurovision Song Contest in Moscow last May with the song 'Jan Jan,' say they have not been invited to Turkey for Wednesday's World Cup qualifying match, denying Turkish and Armenian reports suggesting they were planning to come.

Inga and Anuş’s traditional costumes and dances caused a heated debate both in Armenia and among members of the diaspora after the Eurovision contest.

Rumors are flying that the sisters who represented Armenia with the song “Jan Jan” at the Eurovision contest in Moscow in May will perform at the return World Cup qualifying match between Turkey and Armenia in Bursa on Wednesday.

The Inga and Anuş sisters broke their silence on the matter in an interview with the Hürriyet Daily News & Economic Review: “We have not received an invitation from Turkey. We don’t understand the speculation surrounding us. They are attempting to drag us into politics but our business is music, not politics.”

When asked about their attitude toward any prospective invitation to Bursa as well as their thoughts on Hadise and Aysel Teymurzade & Arash, the respective Turkish and Azerbaijani representatives at the Eurovision contest, Inga became tense: “This interview has started to get political. I do not want to comment on our Turkish and Azerbaijani neighbors at all; that does not serve any purpose except to raise polemics. If an invitation comes from Turkey, we will think about it then…”

Anuş praise for Hadise

Anuş said although they did not receive an invitation to football match scheduled for Wednesday, they have been invited to Turkey in previous years to play shows. “We could not come because of tours but we would be happy to meet audiences that enjoy us anywhere in the world. Besides, there is an Armenian community living in Istanbul. A show in Turkey would be a very different experience for us in that sense.”

Unlike her sister Inga, Anuş did not refuse to comment on Hadise and Aysel Teymurzade & Arash: “Hadise has a very friendly personality; her show was pretty successful. Turkey sends successful names to Eurovision every year.”

Anuş said they did not know the Azerbaijani finalists as well as they knew Hadise, but suggested that, as far
as they could tell, the duo also seemed friendly and personable.

‘The people of Armenia cannot be described through genocide only’

Inga and Anuş’s origins date back to Anatolia. Their mother is from Van and their father is from Muş. “We grew up hearing the tunes of Van and Muş from our grandfather and grandmother,” said Inga. When reminded that much anonymous music from both Turkey and Armenia share the same melodies, she said, “We are the people from the same region, so that is very natural.”
Anna Avenesyan, the duo’s manager, said Inga and Anuş have received offers from all over the world since the Eurovision contest and that their biggest dream was to become world class artists.

Anuş said: “The world thinks only of the Gyumri Earthquake in 1989 and the genocide when Armenia is mentioned. Yes, a disaster was experienced in the past but the people of Armenia cannot be described through genocide only; that would be unfair to our thousands of years of culture. Our mission is to introduce our culture to the world.”

The costumes carry the signature of an Azeri

Inga and Anuş’s traditional costumes and dances caused a heated debate both in Armenia and among members of the diaspora after the Eurovision contest. The general opinion was that a more Western style would have been better. “It is true that we received criticism for our costumes,” said Anuş. “We brought our culture onto the stage with those costumes. We emphasized the West with our song and the East with our costumes.”

The attire in question was prepared by Fresh Art Design in Moscow. Three of the company’s partners are Armenian and the fourth is from Azerbaijan, Aslan Memedov. Anuş met Memedov while the costumes were being prepared and said he had a very warm and friendly personality.

Turkey closed its border with Armenia because of the war in Nagorno-Karabakh between Armenia and Azerbaijan in 1993. The two countries are involved in ongoing negotiations to open border and restart diplomatic relations. When asked their opinion on the possible opening of the border, Anuş said, “There are no borders for music. My field is music, let the politicians handle the politics.”