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Notes From Hairenik
November 30, 2005
Armenians, democracy, and 'vochinch'

The determined results on the constitutional amendments referendum held on November 27 are finally in. Although the government declared victory with a 93% ballots cast by supposedly 1.5 million eligible voters for a “Yes” vote on constitution reforms, logic as well as common sense—both of which take on different meanings in Armenia—show otherwise. Despite reports that several polling stations were basically empty of voters, countless ballots made their way mysteriously into boxes. An independent NGO called “It’s Your Choice” claims that more ballots were stuffed this time around than for the presidential elections in 2003. In other words, although the government claims that people voted “Yes”, very few people actually showed up to their neighborhood polling station to cast their ballots. So someone cast the votes, albeit “Yes” ones, for them. (ArmeniaLiberty.org has done an excellent job in covering the referendum—go to the Archive section to read reports from the last week).

The opposition movement being the joke that it is declared foul as soon as the polling stations were open, claiming that their own observers were sent away. But even though they understand that was wrong, they left willingly anyway because they were boycotting the referendum (something isn’t making sense here). The movement managed to organize some protests in Central Yerevan that didn’t amount to anything, except to serve as an excuse for people to vent out their frustrations in public.

Strangely enough, the Council of Europe—the very organization that was pushing for these amendments to go through—criticized the way the referendum was conducted. The US cast its doubts as well in the results, calling on the president-appointed Central Election Commission of Armenia to investigate the reported vote fraud and so forth. It’s funny that the US, however, cannot manage to fuel the democracy-building process in Armenia, other than to dump money into programs that don’t work. Let’s be frank—there are the Peace Corps, whose volunteers go out into the regions and do things that no one seems to know about, the National Democratic Institute which, as far as I have heard, does absolutely nothing to promote democracy awareness, and other US NGOs or institutes working to install Internet centers in schools throughout Armenia that kids had been using for surfing porn sites. Some citizens are also sent to the US on “civil society exchange” programs, which are beneficial or useless to them, depending on who you speak with. But judging from what continues to happen at election time, nothing is being done to really “promote civil society” as I have read so many times to having been conducted.

Then again, there are no Diasporan Armenian organizations doing the same from what I am aware. One organization that has the experience, the manpower, and the know-how to mobilize Armenian citizens to be proactive about building democracy in their nation, called the Armenian National Committee of America, is not doing anything in the slightest towards this vain. I have often said to deaf ears that the ANCA should have long ago opened a field office in Yerevan and conducted its “grassroots” training programs it is so famous for to get citizens motivated, especially the youth. But they have too many other things to worry about, such as how to get the Armenian Genocide to be recognized by the US and Turkey—apparently this is still more important than pushing forward democracy in the homeland, since everything seems to be okay there.

It should be mentioned that Armenians generally suppress themselves in any undertakings that affect them as a whole. Criticizers of issues that are political, cultural or socio-economic in nature regarding the Armenian nation are considered “anti-Armenian” or against the cause or interest group(s) backing the issues at hand—the referendum is without a doubt an excellent example of this. Surely Armenians are hampering their own progress in the modern world, as Armenia moves relentlessly towards international economic integration or globalism. The nature and psyche of Armenians, albeit stereotypical, with features of paranoia, arrogance, resentment, and intolerance, impedes the positive outcome of the nation’s capabilities for sociopolitical advancement on domestic as well as international levels. The most detrimental factor in ensuring the survival of the Armenian nation, namely indifference, is something that can be compared to a computer worm virus, as it damages the user that receives the infection, then quickly spreads to dismantle all related systems on a network.

The nation also does not necessarily comprehend that the two miracles facilitating mankind’s advancements in the 21st century, namely transportation and communication, can very easily wipe it out of existence within the next 100 years. Armenians do not yet understand that the mountains no longer protect them from their enemies and environmental or socioeconomic dangers. Transportation, while allowing some form of economic growth continuity by ensuring commerce across state boundaries, can also be the precipitator for instantaneous invasion or destruction at a moment’s notice. Advancements in communication, which seem to outdo themselves with each passing year, contribute to the disintegration of Armenian socio-culture—younger generations become more attracted to the pleasures or lifestyles that other cultures have to offer, and thus a degeneration of traditions continues ever onward. Youth become increasingly disillusioned with what they perceive around them, and rather than try to rebuild, they leave in search of what they have seen and heard to be what is “right,” damn the consequences.

Armenians are too busy obsessing with their own legacy and past tragedies to address the challenges that lie ahead regarding their own statehood. They are chronically short-sighted as a nation with no insight as to how to set viable, long-term country-building agendas. It is quite obvious now that there is no real concerted effort to bring about change in Armenian civil society because no one is serious about making that happen, including the government and especially its opposition, which is fueled by obtaining seats of power rather than enacting governmental reform. The people need to wake up if they want their voices to be actually heard, because what is happening to them is truly a crime. But as a whole they don’t care. And as long as they don’t, democracy will not work in Armenia as it should. With no end on the horizon, “vochinch” continues.

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Posted by Christian Garbis at 1:15 PM.
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November 28, 2005
Determining the Future
By now the polls have long closed for the vote on the Armenian constitutional referendum. The government was expecting that most if not all of the approximately 2.4 million registered voters turn up at their polling stations to cast a “Yes” vote. The government opposition, in a united effort, naturally urged voters to vote against the referendum or not at all.

It’s important to understand why this vote is so crucial. First and foremost the entire intention of passing constitutional reforms is to show the world that Armenia was taking the necessary steps to become more “democratic,” primarily by reducing the powers of the president and instead passing certain decision-making procedures on to the Armenian National Assembly. Updates to the constitution were strongly urged by the Council of Europe (CE), and President Kocharian’s administration was more than willing to comply. Member parties of the pro-Kocharian coalition, namely the Republican party, Country of Law (Orinats Yerkir), and ARF-Dashnaktsutiun, were quoted in the printed press and on television urging voters to cast a “Yes” ballot basically because it would be good for them—no other conducive message was conveyed from what I read.

Individuals representing the opposition—a ragtag, disorganized solidarity movement that has no concrete leadership or agenda—opposed the constitutional amendments, claiming that basically a “Yes” vote would be a vote for Kocharian and not for the future of Armenia. They also claimed that the amendments would not amount to anything, and thus concluded that voters should basically boycott the elections. This last demand seemed idiotic to me since it is the vote that counts—the vote determines what the people want rather than an effectively blank ballot which means nothing. However, they concluded that since there would undoubtedly be election fraud anyway, a boycott would possibly lead to an overall negative outcome, since the law stipulates that there must be votes cast by at least one-thirds of registered voters to have a valid election.

The government also sponsored a huge propaganda effort for people to vote “Yes”—an information office was set up on the corner of Tumanian and Abovyan, and university students were out on the streets encouraging people to vote—I was approached about two weeks ago. Opposition interests however were supposedly refused when requesting to air on broadcast television paid public service announcements denouncing a “Yes” vote. Most television stations if not all are pro-government.

An interesting turn of events occurred on Friday, September 25 when a rally was held in front of the Opera House lead by popular renegade and former Foreign Minister Raffi Hovhanisian, who had effectively retired from politics. He also conveyed for the most part the same message as other opposition forces, claiming that the government was run by a bunch of gangsters and thieves and so forth. An interesting thing he noted was that a “Yes” vote would encourage the possibility of Armenian diasporan citizens to have dual citizenship and thus vote, which he sees as being detrimental since this would be dangerous for Armenia’s socio-political climate. Basically you would have people voting for candidates or issues without necessarily having a clue as to what the consequences would be for citizens actually living in Armenia, and I generally agree with this point. But Hovhanisian is a Diasporan himself, having been born in the US who was granted Armenian citizenship only in 2001, so this stance seems hypocritical to some degree.

I read over the proposed constitution as well as the amendments. The article that troubled me the most (which has not been amended) empowers the National Assembly under advisement of the president to change the country’s borders without holding a referendum. This would thus allow the government to effectively single-handedly end once and for all the Karabagh conflict by agreeing with the Azeri side as to what the Armenia-Azerbajan borders should be.

Article 81 reads that:

Upon the recommendation of the President of Republic the National
Assembly shall:

1) declare amnesty;

2) ratify, suspend or denounce the international treaties of the
Republic of Armenia.

The National Assembly shall ratify those international treaties:

a) which are of political or military nature or stipulate changes of
the state borders,

b) which relate to human rights, freedoms and obligations,

c) which stipulate financial commitments for the Republic of Armenia,

d) application of which shall bring about legislative amendments or
adoption of a new law, or stipulate norms contravening the laws,

e) which prescribe ratification,

f) in other cases defined by law.

3) resolves on declaring war and proclaiming peace. In the event when
convening a sitting of the National Assembly is impossible, the
President of Republic shall solve the issue of declaring war.

The National Assembly can annul the progress of measures prescribed by
Clauses 13 and 14 of Article 55 of the Constitution.


This article alone is dangerous as it suppresses the voice of the people in deciding what the final outcome would be regarding Karabagh in a referendum. Armenian citizens would effectively have no say as to what their nation’s borders should be, which is wrong I believe. Another troubling amendment, Article 56.1, stipulates that the president is immune and cannot face criminal or other charges during or after his term in office.

Recent news reports are already confirming that the government has already claimed victory, although not all ballots have been counted. In the next day or so the final outcome will have been determined, albeit with huge protest from either side respective to a “Yes” or “No” winning vote.

Basically the Armenian people need to decide what they want. This election hopefully will demonstrate that decision fairly and honestly, but knowing Armenians all too well, it will be difficult to determine what the truth will actually be.

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Posted by Christian Garbis at 1:05 AM.
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November 22, 2005
Notes from the other Hairenik
During the coming weeks I will be writing blog entries from the capital of the Armenian Diaspora, Los Angeles. Actually, I am currently residing in Irvine, as I am here on a business trip for up to two months. So I will try to write about my observations here regarding Armenian life as well as about current events in Armenia.

For the most part so far I have been surprised about how one segment of Armenians lives. Armenians constitute one-third of Glendale’s population of about 200,000 people. Glendale is supposedly one of the safest cities in the country, although there is an average of five murders a year as well as about 180 robberies. The median household income in 2000 was $41,805, and the median house value the same year was $325,700, but I have heard that it has since nearly doubled. The city is clean and lined with trees, parks, and so forth, as are many areas in the Southern California that I have so far visited. For some reason I expected to find a dirty, dilapidated dust bowl. Instead I found a rather pleasant environment, although I cannot imagine living there personally. And I don’t know why recent Armenian emigrants would necessarily choose the valleys of semi-tropical Southern California over the mountainous terrain of their native Armenia to live since they are at two totally opposing extremes. Armenians are mountain people. They belong in their native environment. What I saw didn’t seem natural to me; it seemed like an artificial farce, as there are huge cultural differences, not to mention social ones. Then again, my native Armenian community of Boston now seems the same. I have yet to explore parts of West Hollywood, otherwise known as “Little Armenia” or the other areas where many of the total 1 million Armenians supposedly reside.

The other day I overheard a conversation at a social gathering. A young woman who has become totally “Americanized” leaving Armenia at least 10 years ago complained that she feels no attachment to her homeland because “people and things” have changed, including landmarks and so forth. I felt like telling her quite bluntly that it wasn’t Armenia that changed—it was clearly her. Her remarks irritated me because they demonstrate a total apathy for Armenia and its potential. She represents thousands of young Armenians that fail to do anything to bring about positive change in Armenia, even from a distance. Many potential leaders continue to leave, although they may be professionally successful, citing that they cannot withstand corruption. The interesting thing is that corruption is not necessarily felt in lower levels of society, unless of course people sell out their votes at election time or pay off cops when their vehicles are pulled over, for example.  

Although I should point out that I do not blame young Armenians living in Glendale or elsewhere since economic or even political factors were at play when they left Armenia, probably unwillingly. Many are no longer Armenian citizens. But I expect activism from them nevertheless.

In the next few days I hope to comment on the coming events in Armenia, namely the vote on the constitutional referendum, the public’s view of it, and the opposition’s negative reaction. It is important to closely look at Sunday’s elections (Nov. 27) to understand what Armenians perceive as being democracy as well as what they are prepared to do to ensure that the democratic process works. However, I am not convinced that Armenians understand what that process means for them, nor what they expect of their own future.

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Posted by Christian Garbis at 11:06 PM.
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November 14, 2005
Khash for a Baby Girl
My friend and Godfather Karen Minasian, who incidentally is a press photographer for Armenpress, is a proud father a baby girl born Sunday night. Both baby and mother are doing fine, but unfortunately no one has access to them. Apparently there is a hospital rule left over from the Soviet era stipulating that visitors are not allowed to visit newborns or their mothers. Husbands cannot visit their wives, new grandparents cannot visit their own daughter and so forth. Usually in more modern hospitals newborn babies are kept in special wards that are surrounded by windows so that visitors can at least see the newborn while a nurse holds it up for everyone to admire. But in Armenia, you have to wait until mother and child leave the hospital. No exceptions (unless you make a “donation” of course).

Apparently it is a tradition among some people who live or were raised in a village to eat a celebrative khash meal when a child comes into the family. Naturally, I was invited to take part in this tradition Monday morning. For some reason only men were present, save for Karen’s mother and wife’s sister, who were doing the serving.

To eat the much coveted khash you must follow strict rituals before consuming it. Khash is essentially a broth which is acquired from slowly simmering the lower leg shanks and ankles of steers. All the fat and cartilage that is attached to the bone is left on, which gives a fatty, subtle gelatin-like flavor to the soup. It is simmered for several hours, usually throughout the night so that it can be eaten early to mid-morning. No seasonings are added, as the eater is allowed to add specific ones according to his or her taste.

The consumption of khash can be ranked as one of the most complex forms of meal preparation that can be found in the civilized world. Khash is served in a medium-sized to large soup bowl. Next to each table setting can be found a pile each of dry and soft lavash--paper-thin bread--preferably baked in a tonir, which is an in-ground round clay oven about four feet deep and a foot or so wide. In the soup bowl with the broth there is usually a piece of beef shank, full of cartilage, fat, sinew, and very little meat, which is promptly removed and placed on a small adjacent salad plate, to be eaten later. The khash eater can request that the bone not be included, although this is sometimes frowned upon.

Once the khash has been served, the process of seasoning it begins, which can take up to several minutes to a half-hour, depending on the diner’s taste. The allowed seasonings for khash include finely ground salt as well as lemon juice laden with fresh pressed garlic. Nothing more can be added for taste. The additives are added gradually and stirred into the broth with a table spoon, with which the eater periodically tastes to check whether the suited flavor has been acquired. Once the diner is satisfied with the seasonings, the dry lavash is crumbled into inch-sized bits and dropped into the broth. The objective is to completely drench the bread with the broth to the point where only a spongy, sloppy mass is left in the bowl. For city dwellers it is not uncommon for less bread to be added so that the broth can actually be enjoyed with a spoon along with the soaked lavash; however this is also usually frowned upon by professional khash eaters. Several times I have been accused of refusing to eat khash the proper way when refraining from crumbling three or more sheets of dry lavash into my 8-oz bowl of broth. I have even been criticized for adding the bread too slowly to the broth.

To properly eat khash, you must pick up segments of the broth/bread mixture using fresh lavash in a scooping motion, then promptly devour them. Naturally, eating soup with your hands can be a rather messy dining experience, so there is plenty of fresh lavash and sometimes napkins provided with which to wipe your mouth. And to help digest the khash, or to add additional, complementary flavor, albeit relished in between gulps of khash, there are several condiments offered. Such include but are not limited to mixed greens, scallions, sliced radish, pickled hot peppers, black olives, and sliced lemon. These offerings are usually standard fare with khash and are eaten most probably to help disguise the smell of liquor that is to be consumed during the course of the meal.

Aside from carbonated beverages, preferably Jermuk to help wash down all the bread being devoured, the preferred beverage that is drunk with the meal is, not surprisingly, vodka. One half-liter bottle is usually served for no more than four people. During the meal, in between seasoning the broth and lapping up the khash, an unlimited amount of toasts are made with various, sometimes haphazard reasons for making them. All khash participants clink glasses and down a shot of vodka, then resume their meal. However, the vodka aside from serving as an instrument of merriment also acts as an antibacterial agent, instantly annihilating any mischievous microbes that may have formed during the extensive khash-making process.

Because so many people were being expected throughout the day to enjoy khash, a near 50-liter aluminum pot was used to boil the bones and fat to produce the broth. The pot was too unwieldy to place on a kitchen stove, so instead it was mounted on a portable hot plate, basically something resembling a short stool with a grooved ceramic surface intertwined with a thin, coiled electrified wire to produce the heat. It is highly unsafe but very effective. There was no room for the women to prepare other vittles while the khash simmered in the middle of the kitchen, so instead the pot rested on its hotplate in the bathroom, out of the way from traffic.

I am not someone that actually seeks out khash when on an empty stomach, mainly because it’s a messy meal and not that satisfying. What makes it special is the company that shares in the whole khash process, as well as listening to the few conversations that take place while diners are busy with adding just the right amount of salt and garlic. The toasts are almost always suitable, depending of course on who makes the toast and for what reason. But in general, the experience can be pleasant, especially if it is marking a special occasion, like the birth of a baby girl.

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Posted by Christian Garbis at 6:35 PM.
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November 9, 2005
Back from Meghri

Last weekend I had the opportunity to travel to Meghri with two friends, both from the Boston area. Ara Sarkissian, a composer who lives in Boston and who incidentally recently performed with Arthur Meschian (see the previous entry) asked me if I wanted to come along as he wanted to visit a family he stayed with during a visit last year. His plan was to travel for seven hours by minibus crammed over capacity. I said I would go but only if I would drive. We, including our friend Hamlet who left the US after living there for 15 years to return to his native Armenia and study dentistry, piled ourselves and our stuff into my Niva and were off.

The drive through southern Armenia is truly majestic and never ceases to leave me in awe. I would say that Vayats Dzor has to be one of the most beautiful regions in Armenia, not just because of the mountains but the sudden changes in elevation, climate, and landscape. Then there is Syunik that has its own amount of beauty, with the high plains of Sisian and its surroundings as well as the majestic town of Goris, which is situated in basically a large bowl at the foot of a curving mountain range. For me it was the first time traveling south of Goris and through the Shikahogh nature reserve, which thankfully will remain untouched from promises of constructing a new, alternate trade route. Although the mountains were completely covered by mist and driving at times was nearly impossible, we finally descended into the Meghri valley to find a landscape I had not imagined.

Meghri is truly a magical place because it has its own climate zone. It is the only tropical area of Armenia, which is fully accessible three times a year. Although little to no snow falls during the winter, the high mountain ranges separating it from Kapan, which is the administrative center of Syunik, occasionally cuts off the town from the rest of the country. Meghri is also situated in a valley, with the older parts of town lying on the mountain slopes, leaving the center of town for the main transport route and newer construction. There are approximately 5500 people living there, not including the smaller adjacent villages. The population of the area has hardly changed since Armenia claimed independence

We stayed with the assistant mayor of Meghri, Gagik Hampartsumian, who is a gracious host but a bit of an eccentric. It is rare to meet people that have an ironic sense of humor in Armenia—in Yerevan irony does not exist (except in politics). He along with several other administrators throughout the Syunik region visited Boston on a civil society exchange visit four years ago. Although I remember his face, I did not have the chance to mingle with him since I was busy caretaking other visitors. But I am lucky to have met him, because he is truly a decent, genuine guy, and his family is hospitable as well.

The weather during the weekend was entirely overcast, and at times it rained heavily. When we first arrived, I noticed that there was an indescribable aromatic scent in the air, much of it emanating from Gagik’s home. It was a mixture of boiling cabbage, persimmons, and other fruits. Most of the trees on their own property, as well as those of their neighbors, was completely covered by persimmon trees, which in turn were full of huge fruits. Both persimmon and pomegranate trees grow throughout Meghri like weeds—they are everywhere. Of course, Meghri is know for its pomegranates, and they are considered to be of the highest quality available in the Armenian marketplace—depending on where you are in Armenia you can find mostly those from Georgia and even Azerbaijan. In Vanadzor I could not find any pomegranates from Meghri, probably because the price of transport outweighs the fruit’s worth at market.

There are two churches in Meghri, both high up on the slopes, as well as four ancient fortresses that are perched even higher. The interior of one church, which is about 300 years old, is completely lined with intricate, richly colored frescoes. It simply blew my mind because it is extremely rare to find preserved frescoes in churches throughout the country. It is worth making the trip to Meghri just to visit the church, even though you must walk along several winding narrow streets and climb a few jagged boulders to get to it.

The atmosphere of the town is extremely relaxed, and there is not much happening. A few grocery stores sell some fruits and things that are not readily available in the town—for instance I could not find any local fruits for sale, since everyone seems to have trees growing in their yards and thus do not need to buy them. Now there is an art renaissance of sorts—the only cultural center is organizing special programs for the youth, namely pottery and rug weaving lessons. A pottery specialist from Sisian has been invited by the town’s school administrative board to instruct students how to make pottery—mostly jugs and bowls. In another room a large loom can be found near which students sit and begin weaving a carpet, which has already begun to take shape. The current administration has already completely repaired one of the two schools, replacing the windows and heating mechanisms. And to attract tourism, the defunct Soviet-era hotel has recently been purchased, with plans to renovate and reopen soon. There is already a small bed and breakfast under construction that is expected to be open by the spring.

Meghri has been a contested strategic area because of its proximity to the Iranian and Nakhichevani borders. As part of a controversial peace deal to the Karabagh conflict in 2001, which was ultimately rejected by the Azeri side, Meghri was to be converted into a free transit zone, providing a direct corridor connecting Nakhichevan and Azerbaijan, from which the former is completely cut off. Naturally, Meghri would have provided for a route to Turkey as well. Gagik was proud that they—Meghri citizens and the Armenian side—would never allow that to happen, although it probably would have happened had Baku agreed to all the terms of the deal, including the never-clearly defined official Karabagh separation from Azerbaijan.

Meghri is one of two land lifelines to the outside world for Armenia. Many domestic goods come in through the Iranian border and are sold in Yerevan and elsewhere, whereas northern cities and towns in the country are flooded with bypassed-through-Georgia Turkish goods. Much of Armenia’s current economic stability is dependent on the open border with Iran, since it is encouraging huge business. Armenia’s tight relations with its southern neighbor ensure investment in the country as well as incite tourism—it is widely know that Iranians are snapping up real estate throughout Yerevan at highly attractive prices, and many vacation in Yerevan.

To sum up Meghri is one of the most beautiful areas in Armenia that has excellent potential for high economic growth. It could easily be established as an attractive rest resort for Iranian tourists. Although it is far away from being that, both logistically and most probably psychologically for the town’s residents, it is doable. Armenian tourism, particularly in autumn, needs to happen there as well. Apparently it is rare for people from other areas of Armenia or tourists for that matter to visit Meghri, which is inconceivable given the splendor and tranquility the town offers.

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Posted by Christian Garbis at 1:15 PM.
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November 8, 2005
An evening with Arthur Meschian

Last Friday I had the rare and privileged opportunity to see rock musician Arthur Meschian perform in front of a small audience of about 300 at the Gomidas Chamber Hall on Khanjian Street (which was also the site of the public space destruction protests about 10 days ago). The musician just returned to live in Armenia only a few weeks ago from Boston, where he worked steadily as an architect. The concert lasted for about two hours.

Meschian was in prime form despite a 40 degree Celsius fever, and his voice was fantastic. The hall has excellent acoustics, thus minimal sound projection devices were used. Musicians who performed included famed folk-rock troubadour and Meschian’s disciple Vahan Ardzuni and Ara Sarkissian, a composer in his own right from Boston, who is a friend of mine. Although the musicians at times sounded as though they were robots, the drummer especially who apparently was restrained by Meschian’s meticulous arrangements, the music that emanated from their performances was stunning. Meschian played keyboards as well as acoustic guitar, and he even played violin at one point.

On stage he is as intense as his music, which is explicit with introspect, longing, and satire. Meschian’s stance is stoic in front of the microphone, but he lives the music through accentuating gestures. At the end of some notably potent songs, he would point to someone randomly in the audience, then crack a smile, in an act to instantly relieve the listener with a sigh of hope that so much is not to be despaired as his lyrics suggest.

Meschian carefully selected songs from his near 30-year-old repertoire, most of them being officially recorded on three self-released albums from the early 1990s, namely “Monologue of a Crazed Violinist,” “Catharsis,” and “Wander.” He is known and admired for setting the words of poet Moushegh Ishkhan to music, which can be heard on the “Wander” album. He did not perform any tracks however from the last recording he made titled “Communion,” which was a seven-part introspective, philosophical composition focusing on religious themes. Most songs played were from “Monologue,” which arguably can be considered his finest album.

Incidentally all four albums were remixed and remastered a couple of years ago, having been released in a four-disc set, which sounds excellent. He cleaned up the murky-sounding pieces and even raised the volume level a few notches on some tracks to produce a heavier rock sound. This boxed set can be found in a few shops in Yerevan that actually sell non-pirated recordings, and was once available at the Hairenik Bookstore in Boston as well as on Narek.com, from where I purchased it.

The musician was a pioneer in the Armenian rock movement of the 1970s, a time when rock was very much underground in Armenia and probably still is, given the tremendous popularity of rabiz and its manifestations amongst the youth. He, along with others such as Ruben Hakhverdian, was part of protest movements in the late 1980s, particularly one demanding that the then-faulty Medzamor nuclear plant be shut down. I do not know the circumstances regarding his leaving Armenia about 15 years ago, but I am assuming it was a result of his brave protests against government policies and decision making.

It is rumored that Meschian will give a much larger concert in December or January, but that has to be confirmed—probably in the next few weeks.

At the end of the show Meschian spoke a few emotional words, mainly about his own long-awaited return to his homeland as well as the stage. This concert marked his much-anticipated emergence from retirement, and it is welcomed.

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Posted by Christian Garbis at 1:36 PM.
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