Armen comments on his upcoming April Rhythm of the Arts Concert featuring his original compositions inspired by Armenian/American Artist Archille Gorky:

“It is a great honor to have the opportunity to musically interpret the art of Arshille Gorky. Gorky’s work contains great intensity of subject matter and makes a very powerful aesthetic statement. My connection to Gorky’s work transcends our common cultural make-up and exists most significantly on a spiritual plane. Composing music for Gorky’s work has been the most rewarding and emotionally challenging of all my visual art inspired composition.”

Listen to KFSR 90.7's Morning Jazz with Joe Moore from 9:00AM-12:00PM to win to this thursday's Rhythms of Art concert at the Fresno Art Museum.

Armen has already begun plans to record his first solo piano CD and second CD as a leader, with Armen due to be released on March 31st. The solo CD will also be a studio recording and is scheduled to be recorded in late April will a possible release in July. Stay connected to armennalbandian.

In addition to the March 31st CD release concert, Jazz at the F.A.M. will feature concerts on May Sunday 14th (a special Mother’s Day concert with proceeds benefiting American Cancer Federation) performances include recently commissioned compositions from Jimmy Emerzian, Joe Lewis, and David Aus among others. On June 2nd at 11pm, the F.A.M. will present a rare performance of Armen’s highly acclaimed suite Witness. The suite has been (re) arranged for Octet and will be premiered that night. More concerts are coming soon!

Late March, armennalbandian.com will post the Jazz @ the F.A.M 2006-2007 season calendar. In addition to the monthly ROA concerts, the program will feature additional monthly concerts featuring tributes to the Jazz Masters, in addition to collaboration concerts with poetry (Speak the Blues), dance and film. 2006-2007 Jazz @ the F.A.M. will also feature an exciting new Afro-Cuban Jazz division. Stay connected for more details.

Armen Nalbandian debut CD will be released on March 31st as is simply entitled, Armen. The CD features the Armen Nalbandian Trio featuring Kevin Hill on bass and Brian Hamada on drums. This recording was recorded in early January 2006 and features five original compositions by Armen, as well as performances of compositions by Thelonious Monk, Wynton Marsalis and George Gershwin among others.
A page will soon be created that will host more information on this eagerly anticipated release as well as information on how to purchase this recordings. Negotiations are also underway to post MP3s of alt. Takes from the CD.

This month’s ROA concert will feature music inspired by all four of the primary exhibited artists at the Fresno Art Museum. Included will be DeStaebler, Neff, Bertoldi, and Shimano. Musicians participating in this concert include Kevin Hill, Eva Scow, Gary Newmark, Mike Dana and Joe Lewis.

JazzFresno has generously raised funds to assist the programming of the remainder of the 2006 Rhythms of Art season. Over the past month JazzFresno has made a very significant impact in world of the Fresno Jazz scene. For more information on JazzFresno, please visit JazzFresno.org.

March’s ROA concert date has been changed from Thursday March 30th to Friday March 31st. Instead of featuring music inspired by the exhibiting artists, the concert will be the CD release concert of the debut CD, Armen featuring the Armen Nalbandian Trio. The two-hour concert will feature compositions from the CD in addition to additional selections from the Trio’s repertoire. This will be your first opportunity to purchase the CD. Stay connected to armennalbandian.com for more details.

The following press release was sent out today:

Bring the Family!


Swing your family by the Fresno Art Museum the last Thursday of every month for The Rhythms of Art Jazz Concert Series with Musical Director Armen Nalbandian. The Rhythms of Art Jazz program is proud to announce the addition of a professionally monitored area for children to learn and play, while the adults watch and listen to the Rhythms of Art concert. The standard ticket price ($10 members, $15 non-members) includes the option to have your children supervised during the concert. Enjoy the intimacy of a unique Jazz concert while your kids participate in professionally supervised games and learning only feet away. For more information visit fresnoartmuseum.org and armennalbandian.com.


Sponsored by 90.7 KFSR & Jazz Fresno