Tigran Hamasyan
Luys i Luso
(ECM)
Last time Armenian pianist Tigran Hamasyan appeared in Scotland he ended up improvising with that most 21st century of instruments, his iPhone. His musical environment here could hardly be more contrasting. Luys i Luso – Light from Light – finds him exploring and improvising on Armenian sacred music, some of it dating back to the 5th century, with the voices, both solo and ensemble, of the Yerevan State Chamber Choir. The results are beautiful. As he’s already shown in his integration of jazz ballads with the emotions of his native folk music, Hamasyan has a wonderfully delicate, soulful touch and considerable harmonic imagination. He brings both to bear frequently on these tracks, not least the solo piano pieces. There are also more robust passages, though, where pianist and singers work in rhythmical union or Hamasyan really goes for it with the choir acting almost as his rhythm section. The epic Ov Zarmanali, the resurrection hymn Nor Tsaghik and the mercy-seeking Voghormea indz Astvats are particularly seductive.
Rob Adams
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