The First “Iranian-Armenian” in America
- 4 minute read
The Bard of the Caucasus: Armenian, Azeri, and Georgian Legacies of Sayat Nova
If Sayat Nova wrote hundreds of songs in Armenian, Azeri, and Georgian, then why are the cross-cultural celebrations of Sayat Nova so few and far between? Gaps in the historical record and contemporary political environment make a pancultural perspective of the legendary bard of the Caucasus more difficult.
Ajam Mixtape #11: Future Sounds from Outtallectuals
This guest mix from Outtalectuals takes the Ajam mixtape series to new planes, both sonically and geographically. This mix came to fruition as an attempt to use the Ajam platform to show artists who are critically and uniquely engaging with music that is often cordoned off into the “world music” sphere. Instead, Outtalectuals takes these sounds as influences to deeply connect with, rather than cliches to reproduce and slightly modify.
Nowruz Greetings (And Mixtape!) from the Ajam Family
Nowruz — which literally means “new day” in Persian — means new beginnings. As a holiday associated with the coming of spring, it is naturally a productive force and a time of reflection on the year that has past as well as our wishes for the year to come. May the year 1394 be full of ideas, creativity, love, resistance, and power for all.
RSVP to Ajam’s First Ever Book Club: BLACK STAR, CRESCENT MOON with Sohail Daulatzai
To participate in the discussion forum on the Introduction, Chapters 1 and 2, click here. To listen to the first live-streamed discussion, click here. Some Sunday reading news–Ajam Media Collective is…
The Emergence of ‘Home Shows’: The Market and Politics of Television Entertainment in Iran
Recently, Iranian television production has the proliferation of “home shows” (namâyesh-e khânegui). These series have official government permission to be produced, yet are only allowed to be distributed through DVD sales. How has the “home show” network opened an alternative space of expression within the official media landscape of the Islamic Republic?
اینجا بایستی ایران میبود» : دبی در پنداشتِ ایرانیانِ دبی»
مترجم: ج.س For the English version of this article, “This Place Should Have Been Iran”: Iranian Imaginings in/of Dubai, click here. گاهی یک جمله در گفتگویی میتواند تاثیری پایدار در ذهن بگذارد.…
Ajam Mixtape #8: Shared Songs
Ajam’s latest podcast, this time featuring shared songs across from Southwest Asia. With samplings from Persian, Greek, Turkish, Arab and other language groups, this mixtape emphasizes the kinds of oft-forgotten transnational connections that exist in music.
Armenia’s Bangladesh: Portrait of a Yerevan Suburb
Never having visited the Republic of Bangladesh, my reflections are probably missing a certain something. Nevertheless I began to ask about the suburb’s unofficial name. “Why is it called Bangladesh?” mimicked a colleague, incredulous. “Because it’s hot, poor, far away, and nobody knows much about it.”
Shirin Mozaffari’s Tarab: How to Listen to Music, Soundlessly
In an e-mail conversation with Ajam Media Collective, Mozaffari said that Tarab “essentially represents the musically induced state of ecstasy transmitted by a performer to the audience through the syntax of music.”