Natalie Cole's unforgettable life celebrated at star-studded Los Angeles memorial with
Stevie Wonder, Lionel Richie, Smokey Robinson, Gladys Knight and more
Natalie Cole, who passed away on New Year's Eve, was remembered in a touching ceremony on Monday in Los Angeles
Stevie Wonder, Jesse Jackson, Lionel Richie, Gladys Knight, Smokey Robinson and David Foster were among those in attendance
Cole's longtime friend Chaka Khan sang at the funeral, which was held at West Angeles Church of God in Christ
One of the greatest voices of all time was celebrated by music's biggest stars on Monday in Los Angeles.
Natalie Cole, who passed away on New Year's Eve, was remembered in a touching ceremony that brought out such luminaries as Stevie Wonder, Jesse Jackson, Lionel Richie, Gladys Knight, Smokey Robinson and David Foster at West Angeles Church of God in Christ.
Also there was Cole's good friend, music legend Chaka Kahn, who sang at the funeral.
'I feel so blessed to have called you my friend, and my buddy, and many times my confidante,' said Robinson speaking at the funeral.
'You are so real and down to Earth. Now I have to say you’re so real and up to heaven.'
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Winston Churchill and His Love for ‘Ararat’ Brandy
BY ASSADOUR GUZELIAN
LONDON— October 29, 2015 was a special day for Sotheby’s Auction House. Under the auspices and with the participation of Albert, the Crown Prince of Monaco, an auction was organized on the occasion of the 50th Death Anniversary of Winston Churchill.
The main organizers of the event were Prince Albert of Monaco, the British Ambassador to Monaco and the former Prime Minister and current Ambassador of Armenia Dr. Armen Sarkissian. The entire proceeds of the auction were allocated to Prince Albert’s charities related to climatic changes.
Items being auctioned were the drinks, cigars and menswear of renowned brands and others objects favored by Churchill.
During the auction the main attention was focused on the statue of Churchill by the well-known sculptor Oscar Nemon and a decades old bottle of “Ararat” Armenian brandy with an interesting background history. Many years ago, this unique bottle of Armenian brandy was sold at an auction by Christy’s for more than GBP 15,000. According to the documents provided the bottle was filled from the same barrels from which for many years Stalin supplied Churchill with “Ararat” Armenian brandy.
The exclusive bottle of brandy was donated to the auction by former Prime Minister and current Ambassador of Armenia Dr. Armen Sarkissian.
Sotheby’s auction house was filled with many high class aristocrats. What happened at the auction next, surpassed everyone’s expectation; The 70 year old “Ararat” was sold for GBP 80,000, which is equal to USD 120,000!
The participants to the auction with amazement and admiration spoke about Armenia and the Armenians. Hopefully the unprecedented success of the Armenian brandy in misty Albion will help to promote the fame of “Ararat” brand.
When and where did Churchill first drink the Armenian brandy?
My wife Vivienne and I had the pleasure of enjoying the friendship of Winston Churchill’s daughter Sara for many years, starting from late 1960s. When for the first time she was invited to dinner, she noticed in our sitting room on the piano, a bottle of “Ararat” Armenian brandy. She looked at the bottle with amazement and said,
“From 1945 until his death, my father used to drink this brandy.”
Then Sara told us when and where Churchill first drank “Ararat” brandy.
During the Yalta Conference In 1945 February, after the dinner Stalin asks Churchill if he wished to have a drink?
“I like a brandy with my cigar”, answers the British Prime Minister.
The host offers Churchill “Ararat”, the best Armenian brandy.
According to Sara, Churchill “falls in love” with “Ararat” Armenian brandy and asks Stalin;
“Where can I purchase few bottles of this brandy?”
Stalin instructs the Soviet ambassador to the U.K. to present Churchill with a case (12 bottles) of “Ararat” every month.
“My father passed away, but we continued receiving every moth a case of ‘Ararat’. Many years later, someone realizes that the Embassy has been sending brandy to a “dead” Churchill for the past ten years! Unfortunately from that day on our source of the Armenian brandy dried up! By the way I used to enjoy ‘Ararat’ as much as my father”, added Sara.
And according to Sara, following dinner, the only thing left on the dining table was an empty bottle of “Ararat” brandy.
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Montegrappa’s New Pens Highlight the History of Armenia
Anush Benliyan
December 18, 2015
Crafted in collaboration with a group of Armenian artists, entrepreneurs, and clergy members, the new Montegrappa Erebouni series of writing instruments pays tribute to Armenia, the storied nation straddling Europe and Asia between the Black and Caspian seas. Carrying the ancient name of Armenia’s capital city of Yerevan, the collection comprises three versions: the top-shelf Hokevor, the limited-edition Haverj, and the standard-edition Kragan.
The Erebouni collection is heavily driven by symbols that recall the country’s heritage and history, especially the Hokevor and Haverj pens because they feature intricate die-cast metalwork depicting the 17th-century Zevartnots church on the cap, a reference to Armenia as the first Christian nation; pomegranates on the barrel and cap, a cultural representation for life; the Eternal Flame of Yerevan’s Dzidzernagapert memorial, lit in memory of the estimated 1.5 million victims of the Armenian Genocide; and a teardrop-shaped blue cubic zirconia by Swarovski on the clip, symbolizing both grief and hope.
Ranging in price from $5,699 to $53,000, the Hokevor series is available in three versions—vermeil, sterling silver, and solid gold (made to order)—each of which is limited to just 100 pieces. The Haverj pens range in price from $1,750 for a sterling-silver roller ball to $2,350 for a gold-plated fountain pen, with each style limited to just 1,915—a respectful nod to the date of the Armenian Genocide. The Kragan pens are special illustrated editions of the classic Montegrappa Fortuna and are priced from $790 for a yellow-gold ballpoint to $820 for a rose-gold roller ball. (armenianpen.com)
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ENCATC Cultural Policy and Cultural Management Research Award
AWARD CEREMONY 2015
On the evening of 25 November in Brussels, Alessia Usai from Italy and Annika Hampel from Germany were announced as the winners of the 2015 ENCATC Research Award on Cultural Policy and Management. ENCATC, the European network on cultural policy and management, is pleased to announce the recipients of the 2015 ENCATC Research Award on Cultural Policy and Cultural Management:
Annika Hampel, from Germany from the University of Hildesheim, for her PDH thesis on “Fair Cooperation. Partnership based cooperation in Foreign Culture Policy”.
Alessia Usai, from Italy from the University of Cagliari for her PHD thesis on “The Creative City. Cultural policies and urban regeneration between conservation and development”.
The award winners were revealed at the ENCATC Research Award Ceremony organised in Brussels on the 25 of November.
For the first time in the Award’s history, two PhD researchers were awarded ex aequo: “The work of Annika Hampel because she analyzed the process, the involved stakeholders and the outputs of Cultural Relations between Germany and India. Her focus on the relation between developed and development countries from an equal perspective and on the basis of reciprocity is very original and relevant. Her conclusions and recommendations contribute very concretely to the improvement of Foreign Cultural Policy in general. The one of Alessia Usai because she uses a different and innovative perspective: her research is related to cultural heritage, landscape and urban planning. She analyzes the relationships between cultural heritage and urban planning in order to identify best practices for the development of innovative cultural policies and new urban regeneration tools. From this perspective she developed an interesting holistic model that takes into account the local cultural ecosystem and that can be relevant for local cultural policy makers,” explained Annick Schramme, ENCATC President, to the ceremony participants.
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Concert in Vienna, dedicated to the Centennial of the Armenian Genocide
2015-11-07
The Concert “With you, Armenia” dedicated to the Centennial of the Armenian Genocide took place in Vienna, Austria on Saturday, November 7. The concert concluded the series of oversees cultural events took place recently in various major cities worldwide.
The concert was organized by the Armenian Genocide Centennial State Committee, Armenia’s Ministry of Culture and the Embassy of Armenia in Austria, in cooperation with Yerevan Perspectives International Music Festival.
The event took place at famous Wiener Musikverein concert hall’s main stage - the Grosser Saal.
Armenian Ambassador to Austria, Dr. Arman Kirakossian in his opening speech expressed the sincere gratitude to the renowned artists, who stand side by side with Armenian nation, share its sorrow and make invaluable contribution to the prevention of further crimes against humanity.
Violinist Emmanuel Tjeknavorian, pianist Nare Aghramanyan, world famous cellist Misha Maisky and his family trio played works by Komitas, Babajanian, Brahms, Rachmaninov, Bizet and other European and Armenian composers. A group of prominent opera singers, including Liana Harutyunyan, Hovhannes Ayvazyan, Varduhi Khachatryan and Barsegh Tumanyan performed Mozart’s Requiem to the accompaniment of famous Bachchor and Camerata Salzburg chamber orchestra.
Ambassadors accredited to to Austria, heads of various international missions, diplomats, Austrian politicians and governmental agents, Austrian-Armenian community members attended the event.
Pianist Martha Argerich is awarded top music honour
Clive Barda
Martha Argerich was presented with the medal by the RPS chairman John Gilhooly at a ceremony at London's Wigmore Hall
5 November 2015
Pianist Martha Argerich has been awarded the Royal Philharmonic Society's (RPS) Gold Medal, one of classical music's highest honours.
Argentinian-born Argerich, 74, follows in the footsteps of Placido Domingo and Antonio Pappano, among others.
Argerich is known as one of the most innovative pianists and a strong supporter of new talent.
The RPS said she was gifted with a "combination of technical mastery and passionate artistry".
The society's statement continued: "Martha Argerich's extraordinary live performances are a musical and intellectual tour de force."
The society also praised her commitment to emerging musicians and the "inspirational collaborations" between up-and-coming artists and established ones she had made happen.
Pianist Gabriele Baldocci, one of Argerich's long-standing duo partner, paid tribute to Argerich.
"She says everything through music. I've never had a formal lesson with her, but she is my greatest teacher," he said.
Child prodigy
Argerich is the 101st recipient of the gold medal, which was founded in 1870 in celebration of the centenary of the birth of Beethoven.
The Royal Philharmonic Society commissioned Beethoven's Ninth Symphony and continued to have a close association with the composer.
Argerich was born in Buenos Aires and began piano lessons at the age of five. Her talent was soon obvious and she gave her debut concert in 1949 at the age of eight.
In 1955, she and her family moved to Vienna, Austria, and she continued her studies in London, Vienna and in Switzerland.
In 1957, Argerich won the prestigious Bolzano and Geneva Piano Competitions, and in 1965 the Warsaw International Chopin Competition.
Since then, she has been one of the most prominent pianists in the world and has won many awards, including two Grammys.
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Yo-Yo Ma performs 'The Swan' from 'Songs from the Arc of Life'
Famed classical cellist Yo-Yo Ma's latest album "Songs from the Arc of Life" is filled with the music that he considers to be the soundtrack of his life with pianist Kathryn Scott, from childhood to adulthood. He is joined by Anna Polonsky on piano to perform Camille Saint-Saens' "The Swan" on TODAY.
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The Metropolitan Opera’s 2015 Summer HD Festival
Free admission (all visitors, all hours)
The Metropolitan Opera’s annual Summer HD Festival, which presents free outdoor screenings of operas on Lincoln Center Plaza each summer, returns with 10 screenings of performances featuring the company’s leading artists in a varied selection of operas by Bartók, Bizet, Gounod, Mozart, Offenbach, Puccini, Tchaikovsky, and Verdi, running on consecutive nights from August 29 through September 7.
In addition, this year’s festival will open on Friday, August 28 at 8 p.m. with a special presentation of the classic 1961 movie musical West Side Story. The film, which won 10 Academy Awards and features a score by Leonard Bernstein, is largely set in the neighborhood where Lincoln Center now stands. This screening is co-presented with the Film Society of Lincoln Center, which also co-presented the Met’s screening of Moonstruck last summer.
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The summer of classical continues at the renowned Tanglewood
As the Toronto Summer Music festival packs up for the season, world-class music can be found at the summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra.
Hilary Scott
Lativa's Andris Nelsons conducts the Boston Symphony Orchestra at the Tanglewood summer music festival. Nelsons is one of the most talked-about baton wavers of the 30-something generation, writes William Littler.
By: William Littler Music Columnist
LENOX, MASS.—In just over a week, Toronto Summer Music will pack up its scores for the season. Elsewhere, the festival season goes on, especially on a sylvan site in Western Massachusetts known as Tanglewood.
Tanglewood is the grandaddy of this continent’s major summer music festivals, the oldest, largest and most famous. This is where Leonard Bernstein studied conducting with Serge Koussevitzky and where Seiji Ozawa, one of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra’s most popular music directors, studied conducting with Bernstein.
Most significantly of all, this is the summer home of one of the world’s great symphonic ensembles, the Boston Symphony Orchestra, whose members come to play, to teach and to be bitten by mosquitoes.
Yes, most of the concerts take place in quasi-outdoor settings, the roofed 5,000-plus-seat Shed, and the roofed and side-walled 1,150-seat Ozawa Hall, both of whose backs open to sprawling lawns where corks are popped and chicken legs consumed to the accompaniment of Beethoven and Brahms.
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Conversation, master class and performance:Karajan conducts Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5
01/01/1966 — 31/12/1966
Berliner Philharmoniker
Herbert von Karajan
Programme
The Art of Conducting was the title given by Herbert von Karajan to the series of innovative music documentaries which he made in the mid-1960s with the distinguished French director Henri-Georges Clouzot. Karajan loved to know how things work and was convinced that in the modern world others thought likewise. At the same time he was convinced that too little was known about his own profession and that of the orchestral musicians with whom he collaborated. His aim in The Art of Conducting was to throw fresh light on this.
Karajan used a variety of combinations. In the Schumann programme it was rehearsal and performance; in the Dvořák it was conversation and performance. For this Beethoven film a further element is added, as an apprentice conductor is shown how to rehearse the slow movement of the Fifth Symphony. Karajan would tell students: “I cannot tell you how to conduct but I can tell you how to rehearse in such a way that in the concert you will not need to conduct.”
Karajan believed that words can establish an idea which will help unlock the music’s essential character. He also believed in the need for musicians to imagine the sound they require; lodge that in the mind and the fingers will do the rest. What Karajan does not say – though his comments during the rehearsal vividly demonstrate the fact – is how any aspiring conductor must know in the finest of fine detail the inner workings of the piece he is about to conduct.
The Berliner Philharmoniker have long been known for the visceral intensity of their music-making. In this 1966 film Clouzot’s cameras set out to celebrate the corporate togetherness of the Berlin playing in the context of Karajan’s own high-octane reading of this most celebrated of symphonies.
Berliner Philharmoniker
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The "King of the Blues", guitarist and singer BB King, has died aged 89
B.Guy & B.B. King | Stay Around A Little Longer
The 2015 International Jazz Day Global Concert
Streamed live on Apr 30, 2015
The 2015 All-Star Global Concert featured a cast of internationally renowned jazz artists including pianists John Beasley (Music Director), A Bu, Eliane Elias, Antonio Faraò, Isfar Sarabski and Herbie Hancock; trumpeters Till Brönner, Avishai Cohen, Hugh Masekela and Claudio Roditi; vocalists Dee Dee Bridgewater, Al Jarreau, Annie Lennox, Rudy Pérez and Dianne Reeves; saxophonists Igor Butman, Femi Kuti, Guillaume Perret and Wayne Shorter; bassists James Genus, Marcus Miller and Ben Williams; guitarist Lee Ritenour; drummer Terri Lyne Carrington, percussionist Mino Cinelu, harmonica player Grégoire Maret, and oud player Dhafer Youssef.
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Happy 75th Birthday Herbie Hancock!
Jeff Lynne's ELO to team with Ed Sheeran for Grammys
Photo: Peter Still, Redferns via Getty Images
Brian Mansfield, USA TODAY 7:02 a.m. EST February 4, 2015
Jeff Lynne's ELO will perform with Ed Sheeran Sunday as part of an all-star moment with Herbie Hancock, John Mayer and The Roots' Questlove at the 57th Grammy Awards Sunday (CBS, 8 p.m. ET/tape delayed PT).
The recently reunited ELO, which played its first full show in 28 years in London this past September, features founding members Lynne and keyboardist Richard Tandy. The appearance is likely a precursor to a new album and U.S. tour later this year.
ELO's '70s and early-'80s hits included Mr. Blue Sky, Livin' Thing, Strange Magic and Don't Bring Me Down.
The latest set of performer announcements for Sunday's telecast includes four-time nominee Sia and 20-time Latin Grammy winner Juanes. Sam Smith will duet with Mary J. Blige, and Smith's fellow new-artist nominee Brandy Clark will make her Grammy performance debut singing with Dwight Yoakam. Coldplay's Chris Martin will guest with Beck, and pianist Lang Lang will sit in on an as-yet unannounced song.
Those performers will join a Grammys lineup that already includes AC/DC; Tony Bennett with Lady Gaga; Eric Church; Common with John Legend; Ariana Grande; Hozier with Annie Lennox; Jessie J with Tom Jones; Miranda Lambert; Adam Levine with Gwen Stefani; Madonna; Rihanna with Paul McCartney and Kanye West; Usher; and Pharrell Williams.
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Ian Gillan addresses Gyumri Community
Photo: REUTERS
Yerevan /Mediamax/, Deep Purple Frontman Ian Gillan addressed a letter to the people of Gyumri regarding the tragedy of January 12.
Six members of the Avetisyan family, including their two-year-old daughter, were slain in Gyumri on January 12. Their six-month-old son Seryozha Avetisyan who got stab wounds on the day the rest of the family was killed died a week later. Soldier of Russian 102nd Military Base stationed in Gyumri Valery Permyakov is accused of the massacre.
Ian Gillan’s letter reads:
“Dear Friends,
I am writing to express my deepest sympathy and heartfelt condolences regarding the atrocity committed in Gyumri on Monday the 12th of January.
This heinous, senseless crime – the murder of the Avetisyan family – has left me feeling sick and desperately sad for the whole community; this brave and loving community; to which I feel a strong spiritual connection, through previous events of tragedy and endeavor.
I have tried for days to write words to explain my emotions, but the words just wouldn’t come. Now, on this peaceful Sunday at home in England I have finally found the will to reach out, but I can offer little apart from love and a communal hug.
It is impossible for ordinary people to imagine how such a bestial act can occur and so I pray that the authorities will do the right thing and that justice is not only done, but it is seen to be done in a manner that is respectful to the memory of these slaughtered innocents, who shall be remembered with respect and affection”.
In 1989, Ian Gillan took part in Rock Aid Armenia project which aimed to raise funds for Armenia affected by Spitak Earthquake in 1988.
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Lavash was inscribed on UNESCO Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity
Painter: Sevada Grigoryan
26.11.2014
On November 26 the decision to inscribe the nomination submitted by Armenia “Lavash, the preparation, meaning and appearance of traditional bread as an expression of culture in Armenia” on UNESCO Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity was made at the ninth session of the Intergovernmental Committee for Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Paris.
In 2013 submitted nomination went through procedural stages set out in the Convention, getting positive expert assessment.
Thus, yet another, the 4th Armenian cultural value, was added to UNESCO Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
The nomination was elaborated by the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography National Academy of Sciences Ministry of Culture and Armenian National Commission for UNESCO.
“Lavash, the preparation, meaning and appearance of traditional bread as an expression of culture in Armenia” nomination is available at the link below:
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Pink Floyd - The Endless River
The Endless River has as its starting point the music that came from the 1993 Division Bell sessions, when David Gilmour, Rick Wright and Nick Mason played freely together at Britannia Row and Astoria studios. This was the first time they had done so since the ‘Wish You Were Here’ sessions in the seventies. Those sessions resulted in The Division Bell, the band’s last studio album.
In 2013 David Gilmour and Nick Mason revisited the music from those sessions and decided that the tracks should be made available as part of the Pink Floyd repertoire. It would be the last time the three of them would be heard together. The band have spent the last year recording and upgrading the music,using the advantages of modern studio technology to create The Endless River.
The Endless River is a tribute to Rick Wright, whose keyboards are at the heart of the Pink Floyd sound. It is a mainly instrumental album with one song, ‘Louder Than Words’, (with new lyrics by novelist Polly Samson), arranged across four sides and produced by David Gilmour, Phil Manzanera, Youth and Andy Jackson.
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Watch President Obama awkwardly sing along to “On the Road Again” with Willie Nelson
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After 30 years, ELO frontman Jeff Lynne’s spaceship has come in again
An outstanding concert for Proms in the Park has got Jeff Lynne thinking of a comeback
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Wings to reissue classic albums
See Paul McCartney Jam With Johnny Depp in 'Early Days' - Premiere
Sir Paul shares the story behind the black-and-white clip for his "memory song" about growing up with John Lennon
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By SIMON VOZICK-LEVINSON
JULY 7, 2014 10:00 AM
"Early Days" is one of the highlights of Paul McCartney's most recent album, 2013's New, but its music video — which you can watch exclusively here — might never have happened if it was left up to McCartney. "When I've got a song, I don't think about the video," the singer says. "I'm sure some people do, but I don’t. I just think about the song, first writing it, then recording it."
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Paul McCartney at Early Days Music video shoot in Los Angeles, California
Photo: MJ/MPL Communications
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12th British Film Festival
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Androulla Vassiliou and Plácido Domingo present Cultural Heritage Prize
