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Tigran Hamasyan: Live at the Barbican

Sometimes I feel like I’m late to the party on artists that other people have long-since discovered. One such happened last night, as a packed Barbican Hall was treated to a mesmerising performance by the incredible pianist and band-leader Tigran Hamasyan.

Photo (c) Daragh Drake

Virtuosity and invention filled the stage and blasted the audience as Hamasyan and his band performed work from his latest album - The Bird of a Thousand Voices. There’s an intensity about this music, that encompasses irregularity and rhythmic and melodic complexity that never descends into cacophony. Born from Armenian folklore - specifically in a retelling of Hazaran Bibul - the music tells the tale through rock, jazz, improvisation and quasi-classical virtuosity that all harks back to folk music.

Perhaps the reason I haven’t encountered Hamasyan before is precisely that eclectic mix of styles and influences. But once heard, never forgotten.

I missed this band at Cadogan Hall last year as part of the EFG London Jazz Festival, and I'm delighted that they returned as part of the Summer Series which is laying the foundations for this year’s festival.

Alice Zawadzki: Photo (c) Daragh Drake


Opening the night was the stunning Alice Zawadzki (who I also saw at Watford Jazz Junction in May). When I heard she was on the bill, I wondered who her band would be. As it transpired, there was no band. Just Alice owning the stage of the Barbican Hall with her voice, her violin and some electronic wizardry that never detracted from her solo performance. She introduced her set as pieces inspired by ancient connections to the natural world. This made her the perfect start to the evening, as Hamasyan’s music harks back to past times, stories and nature.

Some of my most memorable gigs in the last few years (and even longer ago) have taken place at the Barbican Hall and I look forward to many more, although this one is a tough act to follow.
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Location: Silk St, Barbican, London EC2Y 8DS, UK

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