Gurdjieff and Armenian Medieval Sacred and Ritual Music

A concert titled “Gurdjieff and Armenian Medieval Sacred and Ritual Music” was held on September 4 at the Komitas Chamber Music House, featuring the Armenian State Chamber Choir and the Gurdjieff Ensemble.

The program brought together the musical legacy of Armenian-born intellectual, spiritual teacher, composer, and philosopher George Gurdjieff, Armenian medieval sacred music, and examples of traditional Armenian ritual music.

The concert was conducted by Levon Eskenian, Artistic Director of the Gurdjieff Ensemble, who also created the arrangements for the works featured in the program.

At the opening of the concert, Eskenian spoke about episodes from Gurdjieff’s life and artistic journey connected to Armenian musical culture. He also discussed the concept behind the program and its distinctive artistic approach.

The evening featured several works from Gurdjieff’s musical legacy, including “Pythia,” “The Resurrection of Christ,” “Reading from a Sacred Book,” “Hymn from a Great Temple,” and other compositions.

Armenian medieval sacred music was represented through works by Khachatur of Taron, Grigor Pahlavuni, and St. Nerses Shnorhali, presented in arrangements by Komitas and Makar Yekmalyan. The program included such sacred works as “Khorurd Khorin,” “Ov Zarmanali,” “Aravot Luso,” “Amen, Hayr Surb,” and other examples of Armenia’s rich spiritual musical heritage.

The concert also featured traditional Armenian music, including “Sahari” (Arevagal), the traditional Musa Ler's dance tune “Chalmy Dangi,” and “Gorani–Tamzara.”