I SING NATIONAL SONGS

Azat Artsakh – Nagorno Karabakh Republic (NKR)
22 Jan 05

Lusine Gasparian, 22 years old. Third year student at the music
college after Sayat-Nova in Stepanakert, the class of vocal. Finished
the lyceum after Aram Manougian in Shoushi and the course of the
musical instrument kanon (Armenian folk instrument) of the music
school. Works at the folk ensemble `Menk enk, mer sarer’ and the folk
pop quartet `Vernatun’. In 2004 she was awarded the prize `Best Singer
of the Year’ by the NKR Ministry of Education, Culture and Sport. We
present the interview with the young singer. – Who is Lusine and how
did she find her way? – I was born in Vayk. In 1992 my mother and
Imoved to liberated Shoushi. At school I sang and recited at school
performances. Oneday Sona Hovhannissian who was the director of the
dramatic theatre of Shoushi invited me to play the part of the Snow
White. I was in the ninth form whenI started working at the dramatic
theatre of Shoushi. Then I was given the part of Nastia in the
performance `Trouble from Caring Heart’, which was a good
role. Theatre gave me much in terms of perceiving and understanding
the stage. It lasted for a year. Then I entered the university, the
department of dentistry. – Why? – I did not want to oppose to the
wish of my mother because she is a doctor and wanted me to become
doctor. Frankly speaking I dreamed of becoming a singer but I liked
the profession of doctor too. My mother was able to persuade me. The
financial problem was the reason why I left the universityin the
second year and devoted myself to my dream. Besides, during the years
of study I worked at the dramatic theatre of Shoushi and the folk
ensemble `Menk enk, mer sarer’. – Was it the ensemble to find you or
you to find the ensemble? – I was singing in the ensemble of folk
instruments with Julia Arstamian. There were musicians in the ensemble
working at `Menk enk, mer sarer’ which needed young people. They
introduced me to the ensemble. The advice of singer Elmira
Harutiunian, my mother’s friend, helped me a lot. – That isto say, you
found your song and song found you. And your mother? Did she admit the
idea that you would become a singer? – With difficulty but she
admitted. – What genres do you like? – I like national music, be it
classical or folk. I do not like pop. It passes quickly, and the
national remains. – And what if it is national pop? I will sing it if
the melody and lyrics appeal to me. The quartet `Vernatun’ has a
modern approach to national music, both classical and folk. But the
basis, that is folklore, is preserved. Which of the two ensembles
where youwork is closer to you? – In the ensemble `Menk enk, mer
sarer’ the presence, the sounding of folk instruments attracts me. In
`Vernatun’ there are only two instrument, the kanon and the guitar. We
the singers complete them and create harmony. The thing to be done by
the instrument is done by the singer. Thatis to say, the singer is
given additional opportunities for self-expression. The two ensembles
are similar at the basis but they have different directions. And I
cannot give preference to any of them. – What kind of audience doyou
like? – I like audience of any age, any number, even few, but they
must understand me. – Do you feel the audience when singing? – I feel
it byan inner sense, a seventh sense. Their applause encourages
me. They make me work on myself, improve myself. – What other dream do
you have besides becoming a singer? – I think about continuing my
education, and achieving perfection. I do not burden my head with
dreams. I prefer to move and work in one direction than disperse
myself. – What are you like in life? – I neither want to praise
myself, nor to point out my disadvantages. My friends, relatives,
colleagues, my teacher Tigran Mkrtichian do that, and I believe
them. – Lusine does your mother come to your concerts? – Of course,
and she is proud of me. Once she said:`If God endowed you with voice,
then you chose the right way.’ `Nature was generous with Lusine,’ says
the art director of `Vernatun’ TigranMkrtichian. `The most important
is the tone of the voice which is a gift from above. This cannot be
worked out. Maestro only directs, cultivates taste. A singer is a live
instrument that has intelligence, heart and soul and must be educated
as a singer. She is devoted to her work. She is determined, which is
very important and produces good results. Lusine is a chamber
singer. Chamber art requires being highly cultured. You are alone on
the stage and you need taste and intelligence to perform a song. I
foresee a bright future for the singer. Lusine will become a singer
not only for herself but also for all of us, for the nation.’

NVARD SOGHOMONIAN.
22-01-2005