Armenian singer’s death to be commemorated

Sunday, August 7, 2011

Vercihan Ziflioğlu

ISTANBUL- Hürriyet Daily News

The second anniversary of Armenian singer Aram Tigran’s death on Aug. 8 will be commemorated with two events in the capital Ankara and the southeastern province of Diyarbakır in the coming days. Tigran is best known for his songs in Kurdish, ‘Aram is the voice of the Middle East peoples,’ according to the organizer

Tigran’s committment to Kurdish music despite his Armenian roots was not surprising at all, according to the organizers of the commemoration event.

The second anniversary of Armenian singer Aram Tigran’s death on Aug. 8 will be commemorated with two events in the capital Ankara and the southeastern province of Diyarbakır in the coming days. Tigran, who was best known for his songs in Kurdish, had requested in his will that his body be buried in Diyarbakır but was denied permission on the grounds that he was not a Turkish citizen.

The first event will be staged at the Ankara Yapı Art Center on Mithatpaşa Avenue at 7:30 p.m. on Monday, while the second event will be held in Diyarbakır on Oct. 15.

“Aram is the voice of the freedom of peoples. With his voice and his instrument, he is the breath of the oppressed and bitter peoples of the Middle East,” Sait Çetinoğlu, one of the events’ organizers, told the Hürriyet Daily News.

“Many people who are not Turkish citizens can be buried on this land through a Cabinet decision. [Tigran’s] will should have been respected and followed through, but his burial on this land was prevented because of Aram’s Armenian identity,” Çetinoğlu said. “We intend to bring Aram’s will back into the public agenda through these commemoration ceremonies,” Çetinoğlu said, adding that they were expecting support.

“Even if we cannot yet bring his body [back] to this land, we are bringing his voice and breath [here.] We expect [to see] everyone who believes in the brotherhood of peoples at this event, regardless of whatever their religion, language or race might be,” he added.

Tigran’s family appealed to the Turkish Foreign Ministry, as well as the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, to fulfill his will. Failing to obtain the necessary permit, however, Tigran’s body was then burried in Brussels.

Tigran passed away on Aug. 8, 2009 following a brain hemorrhage he suffered in Greece.

Back in those years when no one sang in Kurdish

“He had given voice to the freedom of peoples in all languages spoken in the Middle East and conveyed their emotions,” Çetinoğlu said, adding that Tigran’s music was extremely diverse, as he had composed and sung songs in nearly every language.

Tigran’s committment to Kurdish music despite his Armenian roots was not surprising at all, according to Çetinoğlu.

“Gomidas, the milestone of Armenian music, had also issued his doctorate thesis on Kurdish music,” he said.

Gomidas Vartabed (Priest) was sent into exile along with some 230 Armenian intellectuals on the night of April 24, 1915, after which time he lost his mental balance. Gomidas Vartabed is known for his in-depth research over and compilation of Turkish, Kurdish, Azeri and Iranian music, just as much as he is known for his work on Armenian music.

“Aram was born in the city of Kamışlı in Syria. [Kamışlı] is a city densely populated by Kurds. As such nothing could have been more natural [for him] than to lend a voice to the emotions of the people he lived amongst in their own tongue,” Çetinoğlu said. “Back in those years, people singing in Kurdish were almost non-existent. It is for this reason that the Kurds cannot forget Aram who lent a voice to their emotions,” he added.