Five Mournful Armenian Songs
for Horn and Drone
(a concert C drone is provided with purchase:
alternatively, live performers can sustain a concert C)
Buy "Five Mournful Armenian Songs"
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Listen to "Five Mournful Armenian
Songs"
"Five Mournful Armenian Songs for Horn and Drone" is an arrangement of
melodies by five prominent Armenian musicians spanning nearly 1,000
years.
A drone is provided with this composition, though use of other concert
C drones is perfectly fine (just avoid drones with heavy triadic
elements, as this music is not built on triadic harmony). Concert C
drones played live by other musicians are also encouraged.
The duduk is an Armenian double reed instrument: for some dance music
the timbre can be nasal, aggressive, and joyous, but it is most known
for being mournful, intense, and full of deep sorrow. I am half
Armenian, and I grew up hearing the duduk and always wanted to play it
someday. I bought a cheap duduk in the early 2010s: it was frustrating
to play, and I hit a wall in my ability and interest. In January of
2023, however, I bought a better instrument and high quality reeds, and
I have been playing it nearly every day for the past 6+ months. There
are several old songs that have become standards to play on duduk, and
as I was practicing them, I thought that a few would also work well on
horn.
This music should be played with freedom of tempo and rhythm: playing
it"accurately" is not the primary goal: the soul of the music is far
more important,and much of that is derived from rhythmic freedom and
indivuality of expression.
One of the elements of duduk playing is improvisation via
ornamentation: many of the ornaments and figurations are my own
interpretation, and as you become familiar with the music, you are
welcome (and encouraged) to make any changes you see fit to express
each song. Armenian musicians will often add an improvisation after the
initial melody has been completed: either based around a repetition of
the melody, or more free-form. You are welcome (and encouraged) to add
such an improvisation.
Though these arrangements are for horn, they were heavily influenced by
the timbre, ornaments, and overall traditions of duduk playing, so if
you are not familiar with the sound of a duduk or the style of Armenian
duduk playing, I suggest going to YouTube and searching the title of
each song + "duduk" to hear some representative examples.