Renaissance -- Arthur Margaryan

Hovhannes Kourghinyan's Army of God, Yerevan, Republic of Armenia © Onnik Krikorian

Last night was a blast. A few months ago I blogged on Blogrel about a young 22-year old rock guitarist in Armenia, Arthur Margaryan. He's studied oud and now plays lead guitar in Hovhannes Kourghinyan's new band, Army of God (photographed above - Artur Margaryan is in the background on the left). Anyway, Artur emailed me a few weeks ago asking me to come to the club to pick up a copy of his new demo CD which I did last night.

However, what really made the night a blast was the fact that the young guitarist of another Armenian band, Bambir II, was in the audience and didn't need much encouragement to join Arthur on stage for a guitar duel and improvised soloing session. Magnificent. Incredible guitar playing and quite a charismatic performance from Bambir's Narek. In fact, as a frustrated musician, i.e. talentless, and envious of anyone who can play Jimi Hendrix covers, including the solos, as a matter of habit I think these guys should have their fingers broken!

Gutted, but a fantastic night. Well recommended if you're in Yerevan this year. A video of Arthur Margaryan's guitar playing is available online at http://www.oneworld.am/artur.wmv. Incidentally, at the end of Arthur's video there's some scenes of the Armenian festival of Vardavar which happens to be today. So, time to grab my camera and take to the streets hoping not to get drenched!

Tag: armenia | music