AMERICAN MUSIC SERIES                                                                                31 a,b

Alan Hovhaness

with Charles Amirkhanian

San Francisco, CA

October 2, 1989

Speaking of Music from the Exploratorium

-guest performers-

Shahan Arzruni, piano

and

William Winant, percussion

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Side a                                                                                                                         pp. 1-22

[Two ghazals played by Hovhaness]--Armenian heritage--collaboration with Maro Ajemian and John Cage--Invocations to Vahaken--Erchmiadzin--experimenting with percussion instruments--Carroll’s Music--Lousadzak--Tzaikerk--Merce Cunningham--working with Greek musicians for Works Progress Administration (WPA)--early influences from Greek, Armenian and Oriental music--Uday Shankar and Vishnu Das Shirali--friendships with painters--study with Leo Rich Lewis at Tufts--mysticism and becoming a Rosicrucian--Hyman Bloom, painter in Boston--Yenouk Der Hagopian--Gomidas Vardapet--Floating World--Kostelanetz--Dannoura--Dane Rudhyar--finding titles for compositions--d’Indy--compositional methods--sketch book--experience in Japan and playing Japanese instruments--piano techniques--European tradition v.s. Oriental music--Out of Silence--using world music--Khaldis Concerto--jhala technique--avoiding diminished 7th chords--[two short recorded selections from Khaldis]--European and Oriental use of fifths--Fra Angelico--”aleatory” or “spirit murmur.”

Side b                                                                                                                                    pp. 23-34

[recorded selection from Fra Angelico]--visionary painters--Arzruni’s piano playing--[movements from Invocations to Vahaken played by Arzruni and Winant]--Hovhaness as organist in an Armenian church in Watertown, MA--Der Hagopian--Hovhaness’ amateur orchestra--Arzruni’s perspectives of playing Hovhaness--Anahid--Boston Symphony percussionist--visit to Chicken Wing the medium--Arzruni’s technique--Hovhaness’ name change from Chakmakjian--living in Boston--destroying his unpublished works--Leslie Heward and the English connection--symphonic writing (“concertos for orchestras”)--Arevakal--First Symphony--compositional form--visit to Armenia--Lake of Van Sonata--Khachaturian--Gomidas--[Arzruni plays “Erangi” from Six Dances for Piano by Gomidas].