From Heavy Metal to Armenian Orthodox Chant | Tigran Hamasyan

Armenian jazz piano legend  @TigranHamasyan  joins Matthew Wilkinson on Pursuit of Beauty for a rare, in-depth conversation at the intersection of jazz, Armenian sacred music, medieval polyphony, and the theology of musical beauty. This is not a typical jazz interview, it goes deep into the musical, spiritual, and cultural roots that have shaped one of the most original voices in contemporary music.Tigran shares how influences like Jan Garbarek and Keith Jarrett first led him back to his own Armenian musical heritage, and how that discovery forced him to abandon bebop entirely and rebuild his musical language from the ground up. He discusses the tetrachord-based modal system of Armenian folk and Church music, the eight-mode octoechos of Armenian sacred tradition, microtonal ornamentation, the polyphonic vocal music of Komitas, and the extraordinary 10th-century poet-composer Grigor Narekatsi, whose Book of Lamentations Tigran describes as life-changing. He also discusses Armenian chant scholar and performer Aram Kerovpyan, based in Paris, with whom Tigran studied — and whose work he considers the most authentic living transmission of the Armenian modal tradition.The conversation ranges widely: why Machaut and Pérotin sound more contemporary to Tigran than Mozart; the polyphonic voice-leading approach of medieval music and how it maps onto jazz composition; John Coltrane as a model for taking modal music into twelve-tone territory while keeping it beautiful; Shostakovich's 24 Preludes and Fugues as some of the greatest piano music ever written; Messiaen's modes of limited transposition; the difference between harmony derived from voice leading versus voice leading derived from harmony; McCoy Tyner, Brad Mehldau, and Chick Corea as foundational influences; and the rhythmic world of Indian classical music, Meshuggah, and odd-meter Armenian folk music as the foundation of Tigran's approach to groove.Tigran also reflects on his compositional process — how most ideas go to the trash because they're too complicated, how he sequences drums and bass to feel out a groove before finishing a composition, and where he sees his music heading: toward more outlandish harmonic territory, anchored by melody and folk roots.A genuinely rare conversation for anyone interested in jazz piano, Armenian music, sacred music, early music, or the creative process of one of the most distinctive musicians working today.Tigran Hamasyan is an Armenian jazz pianist, composer, and vocalist born in Gyumri, Armenia. Winner of the Thelonious Monk International Jazz Piano Competition in 2006, his albums include Mockroot, An Ancient Observer, The Call Within, and StandArt. His music integrates Armenian modal and folk traditions with jazz improvisation, complex odd-meter grooves, and a deeply polyphonic compositional approach. He is widely regarded as one of the most original voices in contemporary jazz.https://www.tigranhamasyan.com/The Pursuit of Beauty is a long-form interview podcast exploring sacred music, sacred architecture, iconography, and the theology of beauty across Christian traditions. Hosted by Matthew Wilkinson, Doctor of Music and Director of Music and Organist at St. Michael's Church, Charleston, SC — one of the oldest Anglican churches in America, founded 1751.🎵 Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and all major platforms📩 Subscribe to the Pursuit of Beauty Substack: https://substack.com/@UCPo3842Pl_Z3Xqo9GYACUzw 🔔 Subscribe and hit the bell so you don't miss new episodesmy website: https://matthewwilkinson.net/my Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/MatthewWilkinsonMusic