Armen John Chakmakian (Western Armenian: Արմէն Չագմագեան; Eastern hy, Արմեն Չաքմաքյան) born (February 11, 1966)
in
Glendale, California
Glendale is a city in the San Fernando Valley and Verdugo Mountains regions of Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, California, United States. At the 2020 United States Census, 2020 U.S. Census the population was 196,543, up from ...
) is an
Armenian-American
Armenian Americans ( hy, ամերիկահայեր, ''amerikahayer'') are citizens or residents of the United States who have total or partial Armenian ancestry. They form the second largest community of the Armenian diaspora after Armenians in ...
musician, composer, recording artist, and producer. Formerly the keyboardist for the
GRAMMY
The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pre ...
® award-winning band
Shadowfax, their 1992 CD, ''
Esperanto
Esperanto ( or ) is the world's most widely spoken constructed international auxiliary language. Created by the Warsaw-based ophthalmologist L. L. Zamenhof in 1887, it was intended to be a universal second language for international communi ...
'' was nominated for a Best New Age Album
GRAMMY
The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pre ...
® Award. He has released two solo albums on his label TruArt Records: ''Ceremonies'' (1998); ''Caravans'' (2004). Two tracks from ''Ceremonies'', "Gypsy Rain" and "Distant Lands", also appear on the famed "
Buddha Bar
The Buddha-Bar is a bar, restaurant, and hotel franchise created by French-Romanian restaurateur Raymond Vișan and DJ and interior designer Claude Challe, with its original location having opened in Paris, France in 1996.Anthony D'Andrea, ' ...
" and "
Buddha Bar IV" compilation albums, respectively.
Armen's albums also feature world-renowned
oud
, image=File:oud2.jpg
, image_capt=Syrian oud made by Abdo Nahat in 1921
, background=
, classification=
* String instruments
*Necked bowl lutes
, hornbostel_sachs=321.321-6
, hornbostel_sachs_desc=Composite chordophone sounded with a plectrum
, ...
player, violinist and composer
John Bilezikjian
John Bilezikjian (February 1, 1948 in Los Angeles – January 19, 2015) was an Armenian-American musician and composer. Most renowned as an oud master, he also played the violin, mandolin and dumbek. He was also a traditional and contemporary si ...
,
duduk
The duduk ( ; hy, դուդուկ ) or tsiranapogh ( hy, ծիրանափող, meaning “apricot-made wind instrument”), is an ancient Armenian double reed woodwind instrument made of apricot wood. It is indigenous to Armenia. Variations of th ...
master
Djivan Gasparyan
Djivan Gasparyan (var. Jivan Gasparyan; hy, Ջիվան Գասպարյան, ; October 12, 1928 – July 6, 2021) was an Armenian musician and composer. He played the duduk, a double reed woodwind instrument related to the orchestral oboe. Gaspary ...
and former
Windham Hill
Windham Hill Records was an independent record label that specialized in instrumental acoustic music. It was founded by guitarist William Ackerman and Anne Robinson (née McGilvray) in 1976 and was popular in the 1980s and 1990s.
The label was ...
acoustic guitarist
Alex De Grassi. In 2006 Armen toured South America with
Cirque du Soleil's show,
Saltimbanco
''Saltimbanco'' was a touring show by Cirque du Soleil. ''Saltimbanco'' ran from 1992 to 2006 in its original form, performed under a large circus tent called the Grand Chapiteau; its last performance in that form was in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, ...
and in 2017 he toured South America again as keyboardist and background vocalist with
Roger Hodgson
Charles Roger Pomfret Hodgson (born 21 March 1950) is an English musician, singer and songwriter, best known as the former co-frontman and founding member of progressive rock band Supertramp. Hodgson composed and sang the majority of the band’ ...
.
Currently, he composes music for television, performs his own concerts as well as performs for other artists and productions.
Discography
*1998 ''Ceremonies'' (TruArt Records)
*2004 ''Caravans'' (TruArt Records)
With Chuck Greenberg
*2018 ''Into The Blue'' (single, Greenberg Music)
With Shadowfax
*1992 ''
Esperanto
Esperanto ( or ) is the world's most widely spoken constructed international auxiliary language. Created by the Warsaw-based ophthalmologist L. L. Zamenhof in 1887, it was intended to be a universal second language for international communi ...
'' (EarthBeat Records)
*1994 ''
Magic Theater
''Magic Theater'' is the tenth studio album by new-age/jazz group Shadowfax.
Track listing
# "Imaginary Islands" ( Chuck Greenberg) – 4:23
# "Hey! Your Hat's On Backwards" (Stuart Nevitt) – 4:52
# "Secret Gathering" (Armen Chakmakian) ...
'' (EarthBeat Records)
*1995 ''Shadowfax Live'' (Sonic Images)
See also
List of Armenian-Americans
This is a list of notable Armenian Americans, including both original immigrants who obtained American citizenship and their American descendants. Armenian Americans are people born or raised in the United States, or who reside there, with origin ...
References
External links
Armen Chakmakian Official websiteIMDb Page
Living people
Year of birth missing (living people)
American musicians of Armenian descent
Musicians from California
American jazz keyboardists
Shadowfax (band) members
Musicians from Glendale, California
Jazz musicians from California
{{US-musician-stub