The
best known of Gomidas Vartabed’s “five disciples” and an accomplished
composer and choirmaster himself, Parsegh Ganachian is also known as the
author of the arrangement for the Armenian national anthem “Mer
Hayrenik.”
After
the restoration of the Ottoman Constitution in 1908, Ganachian returned
to Constantinople, where he founded the first Armenian orchestra,
“Knar.” His encounter with Gomidas in December 1910 and the concert of
the 300-strong “Kusan” choir in early 1911 were crucial for his career.
He entered Gomidas choir. The great musician selected eighteen members
of the choir as his students, and the number gradually diminished to
five, of which one of them was Ganachian.
The
future composer was drafted by the Ottoman army in World War I and
played in the military orchestra until he was exiled to Diarbekir, where
he fell gravely ill. He was sent to Aleppo, and he was there when the
armistice was signed in November 1918. Along with other surviving
intellectuals, Ganachian gathered young people and organized concerts to
the benefit of the exiles, creating a wave of enthusiasm in the
audiences. At that time, he composed the “Volunteer March” (Կամաւորական
քայլերգ
/ Gamavoragan kaylerk),
better
known as “Harach, Nahadag” by the first words of its lyrics, written by
poet Kevork Garvarentz. He later went to Cilicia, where he also gave
concerts, and then returned to Constantinople.
In
the Ottoman capital, the Gomidas students organized a group and
presented concerts, created a Gomidas Fund and published Gomidas’ works
in three songbooks. They also organized choirs and dealt with the
education of the new generation. Ganachian composed his well known
“Lullaby” (Օրօր
/Oror) for soloist and choir.
The
Gomidas’ students were sent to Paris to continue their musical
education. Going to the French capital in 1921, Ganachian followed the
courses of famous composer René Lenormand (1846-1932). Between 1922 and
1932 he toured Aleppo, Egypt, and Cyprus, forming choirs and giving
choral concerts. From 1926-1930 he also taught music at the Melkonian
Educational Institute. In 1932 he settled in Beirut, teaching at the
College Armenien or Jemaran (later the Neshan Palandjian College). In
1933 he organized and directed the choir “Kusan,” which achieved great
success in both Armenian and Lebanese circles from 1933-1946. The choir
also had presentations in other Lebanese and Syrian cities, as well as
in Egypt. It continued its activities until 1961.
Ganachian
maintained and promoted the musical principles enunciated by Gomidas,
deeply entrenched in national roots. He composed 25 choral songs and
orchestral fragments, as well as around 20 songs for children. He also
arranged Armenian and Arabic folk songs. Among his most important
compositions are the opera “The Monk,” with Levon Shant’s play
The Ancient Gods
as
its libretto, and the cantata “Nanor,” which depicts the pilgrimage to
the monastery of St. Garabed in Moush. He also produced arrangements for
the Armenian anthem, as well as the Lebanese and Syrian national
anthems (1936).
Ganachian
lost his sight in 1945, but his choir continued its performances. His
works were partly published in Beirut and Yerevan. Among other awards,
he was awarded the National Order of the Cedar (1957) by the Lebanese
government for his achievements in the cultural life of Lebanon.
The
composer passed away on May 21, 1967, in Beirut. The Armenian cultural
association Hamazkayin established an arts institute carrying his name
in Lebanon. An art school also bears Ganachian’s name in Yerevan.
