Nune Romances San Franciscans
by Paul Chaderjian
September 14 2002
San Francisco, California - Center stage at the 900-seat Herbst Theatre in the heart of the City by the Bay, Nune Yesayan, Armenia's pop diva, effortlessly romanced her audience with great passion and grand emotion on Sunday night.
"The concert was amazing," said 30-year-old Cory Shakarian, who stood in suit and tie in the lobby of the War Memorial Performing Arts Center after the concert, observing several hundred people waiting for autographs and photographs. "Nune's voice was captivating and mesmerizing. She captured the audience's attention with her soothing voice and brought them to their feet with joyful bursts of energy."
Under the gleaming spotlight of the most elegant and intimate stage in San Francisco, Nune's presence permeated from center stage to the last row of the balconies, enveloping her diverse audience in the essence of Armenian culture and history.
Enjoying Nune's renditions of Armenian folk songs and dramatic interpretations of original love songs were American-Armenians, Armenians from the Middle East and Europe, non-Armenians and fans from ranging in age from very old to very young.
"I have three young sons, and I don't know how else they would have been exposed to this music and appreciate it," said Suzanne Abnous. "Sayat Nova is heavy stuff, but the boys appreciate it now because of Nune. They loved her."
With her amazing vocal range and soulful rendition, Nune performed several songs from her sixth and newly released Sayat Nova album. Woven into the fabric of Armenian culture and history, Sayat Nova earned his fame for preserving hundreds of Armenian folk songs. Like Sayat Nova, Nune is also traveling from one Armenian community to another and introducing Armenia's rich heritage to the next generation.
"Before Nune, I would play old recordings of Sayat Nova, but the boys would be turned off," said Abnous. "Nune has taken our rich heritage and made it accessible for our young people. She's brought our music to their level, modernized it for them. My son even takes her CD to school and listens to it when he's working on his art in art class."
As a guest of the Hamazkayin Cultural and Educational Association, Nune brought to life Armenian folk songs and engaged her audience not only through her music and dances, but by walking down the isles and serenading her fans face-to-face.
"Nune was very dynamic," said Yedvart Misserlian, a San Francisco resident who is also a representatives of the global Central Executive of Hamazkayin. "She makes Armenian music and Armenian folk songs understandable, accessible for our youth, especially the generation growing up in America. What makes her unique is not some operatic genius but the charisma that allows her to connect to her audience, the talent to bring people together."
Surrounding Nune were members of the talented and high-energy Zvartnots Dance Group. Choreographed by Vartan and Armine Agajanian, the dynamic and fluid movements of the dancers, donning traditional and colorful Armenian costumes translated Nune's music into a memorable audio-visual treat.
When she wasn't at the orchestra level dancing with her audience, Nune shined bright on stage, hand over her heart, swaying back and forth while telling her heart-wrenching modern tales of love from "Love," her fifth album.
"I was impressed by Nune's ability to bring together modern day, youthful music and older more traditional Armenian sounds in one great package," said Shakarian. "The younger, youthful sound she creates was very appealing to me. Yet hearing more traditional Armenian sounds encouraged me to explore my Armenian culture more extensively."
The first time Shakarian saw Nune on stage was during the closing ceremonies of the 2001 Pan-Armenian Games in Armenia.
"I was there competing in basketball with a group of young men and women from the Bay Area," said Shakarian, who works in the front office of San Francisco Giants ball club. "Nune caught my attention with her beauty and her incredible voice. After hearing her sing only two songs, I went the record store in Yerevan and bought one of her CDs the next day."
It was this charismatic radiance that drew Shakarian to help the Hamazkayin of San Francisco organize Nune's Bay Area appearance.
"It is important for me to be involved because I'm constantly looking for ways to get in touch with my heritage. Hamazkayin and Nune helped take me a step further. Nune is a wonderful ambassador of Armenian music and culture."
"The most important aspect of this concert," said Serop Samurkashian, who headed the concert planning committee, "was that we had a committee of sixteen people of all ages. This committee worked for two-and-a-half months. They met on a weekly bases, and they didn't spare any effort to make sure this was a successful event."
Samurkashian says a Bay Area event that attracted a few hundred people is considered a success, but the turnout at the Nune concert was beyond the committee's dreams.
"This is what Nune loves most about her concerts," said publicist Houri Vartanian. "She loves bringing Armenians closer to their heritage, and people enjoyed the San Francisco concert so much, a few are planning to see her again next weekend in Fresno and on September 22nd at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood. Nune is very excited. She can't wait, and her fans say they can't either."
"Nune is a survivor," said Misserlian. "She is vulnerable and a survivor who has conquered and won against great odds. That's why all of her fans in San Francisco love her."
