paul chaderjian

“Seerom Em Eem Yergire” By Paul Chaderjian December 1, 2006 @ 6:04 A.M., Thursday, Thanksgiving Day 2006, California The elevator’s dull bell dings and its golden polished brass doors part to reveal the glamorous Arsinée Khanjian. The award-winning actress, celebrated for her leading roles in Atom Egoyan’s mainstream and art films, steps out, ready for her close up and ready to raise 15 million dollars during the Thanksgiving Day Hayastan All-Armenian Fund international telethon. Waiting for the Canadian-Hollywoodian-Lebanese-Armenian actress--a cross between Isabella Rosellini and Juliette Binoche—is a panic-stricken driver named Vartan. The immigrant from Armenia doesn’t care who’s who in the group of hosts gathered in the lobby; he just knows he has to deliver the talent to the studio by 6:30 A.M. He knows there is a rehearsal before the eight o’clock opening of the 12-hour fundraiser, and he’s been hired to get the talent to the studio on time... @ 1:35 P.M., Sunday,...

By Paul Chaderjian June 11, 2005 The woman who set the standard for introducing and reacquainting Diasporans and non-Armenians all over the world to Armenian songs and Armenian culture is returning to concert halls in the US and Canada with new songs, her biggest hits, dazzling costumes, and that recognizable voice which captures the drama, emotion and perseverance of the collective, enigmatic Armenian soul. She is known simply by her first name, Nune, and those who like her music all agree that they can't get enough. As a matter of fact, thousands congregate when she appears anywhere. Her summertime concert at the Cascade in Yerevan attracted fans from all corners of Armenia. A week before the Children's Day concert in Yerevan, Nune traveled to the remotest corners of Russia, where Armenians families have created small communities and financially support their cash-strapped extended families back home. Her Russian tour took her to the cities of Gorky, Perma, Samara, and Tumen....

By Paul Chaderjian June 11, 2005 The woman who set the standard for introducing and reacquainting Diasporans and non-Armenians all over the world to Armenian songs and Armenian culture is returning to concert halls in the US and Canada with new songs, her biggest hits, dazzling costumes, and that recognizable voice which captures the drama, emotion and perseverance of the collective, enigmatic Armenian soul. She is known simply by her first name, Nune, and those who like her music all agree that they can't get enough. As a matter of fact, thousands congregate when she appears anywhere. Her summertime concert at the Cascade in Yerevan attracted fans from all corners of Armenia. A week before the Children's Day concert in Yerevan, Nune traveled to the remotest corners of Russia, where Armenians families have created small communities and financially support their cash-strapped extended families back home. Her Russian tour took her to the cities of Gorky, Perma, Samara, and Tumen....

by Paul Chaderjian Sept 29, 2004 Nune Yesayan was born in Yerevan, Armenia, on August 5, 1969. Even before studying music in college, Yesayan made a name for herself at her high school for being a gifted vocalist and talented performer. She graduated from high school in 1986 and was accepted to the Polytechnic University of Yerevan to study engineering. During her first year in college, Yesayan excelled in her engineering studies and received high marks in both math and physics. She spent her time away from school performing Armenian folk music with an amateur band. The group, which included long-time friend and collaborator Arthur Hagopian, appeared at small venues and a few concerts. After successfully completing her first year of course work at the Polytechnic University in 1987, Yesayan decided to change her major and focus on her passion for music. She applied for admission and was accepted to the Jazz and Pop College of Yerevan, where she began her studies in the Fall of 1988. Ye...

Book Review by Paul Chaderjian My Brother's Road by Markar Melkonian with Seta Melkonian By any account, the enigmatic genius, scholar, political activist, soldier and freedom fighter Monte Melkonian led a short-lived but extraordinary life. In the newly published My Brother’s Road, Monte’s brother Markar, with the help of Monte’s widow Seta, chronicles one Californian’s journey from small town kid to legendary martyr. Monte’s modern-day epic begins in 1969, when the Melkonians visit their maternal grandmother’s ancestral village in Western Armenia, some 55 years after the Genocide. At the impressionable age of eleven, Monte sees his grandmother’s birthplace, watches the Turks who have taken up residence in the village, notices the Armenian Church has become a Turkish movie theatre and ponders about the outlines left when crosses were chiseled off doors. His people had disappeared from the village and the region, millions of Armenians had evaporated from th...

--> Book Review by Paul Chaderjian My Brother's Road by Markar Melkonian with Seta Melkonian By any account, the enigmatic genius, scholar, political activist, soldier and freedom fighter Monte Melkonian led a short-lived but extraordinary life. In the newly published My Brother’s Road, Monte’s brother Markar, with the help of Monte’s widow Seta, chronicles one Californian’s journey from small town kid to legendary martyr. Monte’s modern-day epic begins in 1969, when the Melkonians visit their maternal grandmother’s ancestral village in Western Armenia, some 55 years after the Genocide. At the impressionable age of eleven, Monte sees his grandmother’s birthplace, watches the Turks who have taken up residence in the village, notices the Armenian Church has become a Turkish movie theatre and ponders about the outlines left when crosses were chiseled off doors. His people had disappeared from the village and the region, millions of Armenians had evapora...