Author: Badalian Vardan

The Register-Guard, Oregon
May 1 2005
Beethoven didn’t make it easy for singers
By Paul Denison
The Register-Guard

Last month, Diane Retallack’s Eugene Vocal Arts Ensemble sang Sergei
Rachmaninoff’s Vespers in Russian with a Ukrainian choir. On
Saturday, the ensemble and her larger Eugene Concert Choir will sing
Ludwig van Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis in Latin, with Austro-German
pronunciation.
“It’s extremely challenging, the hardest thing we’ve ever done,”
Retallack says. And she’s not talking about Latin with a German
accent. She’s talking about the music.
“Beethoven’s personality was very erratic,” she says. “And this is
reflected in his music, with extremes of dynamic expression and range
changes. The changes happen very quickly, and Beethoven often
obscures the meter with difficult rhythmic changes.”
The Eugene Concert Choir and the Oregon Mozart Players will perform
Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis next weekend at the Hult Center.

Lisa Gislason, a singer who also serves as the choir’s general
manager, agrees.
>From a soprano’s viewpoint, she says, “Beethoven is brutal. He
expects you to float through your passagio on a pianissimo, wail on a
high B-flat, drop down more than an octave, and still look like a
lady.”
“Beethoven was totally deaf by the time he wrote this,” Retallack
adds, “and some have said that if he could have heard it, he
wouldn’t have done it this way. But I think not. He was hearing it in
his head.”
Beethoven went deaf gradually, she says, and “he continued to hear
music long after he could no longer hear speech.”
The music he heard as he composed the Missa Solemnis is not only
difficult but also stirring and beautiful, Retallack says.
“He’s definitely into Romanticism with this piece,” she says. “Some
of the lyrical passages are so glorious that you want to weep, and
there’s an exquisitely beautiful violin solo in the Benedictus.”
In her written program notes, Retallack describes this violin part,
to be played Saturday by Alice Blankenship, as “so significant as to
practically be a violin concerto accompanied by solo voices.”
Joining the choir as soloists will be soprano Kelly Nassief,
mezzo-soprano Victoria Avetisyan, tenor Yeghishe Manucharyan and
bass-baritone Clayton Brainerd. All four have sung with the choir
before, Nassief and Manucharyan in the Verdi Requiem, Avetisyan and
Brainerd in G.F. Handel’s “Messiah.”
Manucharyan and Avetisyan, both Armenians, are also husband and wife.
Beethoven started writing his Missa Solemnis – it’s a grand mass, not
a requiem, Retallack points out – on learning that his friend and
patron, the Archduke Rudolph, was going to become an archbishop.
But the composer was still working on the mass, and on his Ninth
Symphony, when Rudolph was elevated to archbishop in 1820.
The Missa Solemnis was performed for the first time in St. Petersburg
in April 1824. The Ninth Symphony had its premiere in Vienna on May
7, 1824. That program also included three sections of the Missa
Solemnis.
“Known for his decisively grand and final endings,” Retallack
writes in her program notes, “Beethoven leaves the Missa Solemnis
instead with a question.”
Trumpets and drums, “the sounds of war,” punctuate the singers’
repeated pleas for peace. “The answer is not forthcoming,” Retallack
writes.
Beethoven lived in Vienna when it was occupied by the forces of
Napoleon, whom he initially admired but eventually became
disenchanted with.
Retallack herself has sung the Missa Solemnis twice, both times under
conductor Robert Shaw.
The first time was in the Krannert Center for the Performing Arts at
the University of Illinois in Champaign-Urbana.
Retallack says the audience was “absolutely transported.” So was she.
“It was then and is now the peak musical experience of my life,” she
says.
In addition to Saturday night’s concert, some 250 elementary and
middle school students from Eugene and Springfield will get the
thrill of singing a single movement (Benedictus) of the Missa
Solemnis in the Hult Center’s Silva Concert Hall with the choir,
orchestra and soloists.
This lecture, demonstration and performance is part of the choir’s
Singing a Masterwork educational outreach program. It’s scheduled for
7 p.m. Thursday and is open to the public without charge.
CONCERT PREVIEW
Eugene Concert Choir and Oregon Mozart Players
What: Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis
When: 8 p.m. Saturday
Where: Hult Center, Seventh Avenue and Willamette Street
Tickets: $14-$26 ($9-$22 for students and senior citizens), through
the Hult Center box office, 682-5000
Also: 250 elementary and middle school students will sing the
Benedictus with the orchestra, chorus and soloists at 7 p.m. Thursday
in the Hult Center. It is part of the choir’s educational outreach
project. The performance is free.

The Guide: States of confusion: They have armies, governments,
passports and stamps, but these breakaway nations are not recognised
as countries by the rest of the world. Simon Reeve reaches for his map
The Guardian – United Kingdom;
Apr 30, 2005
SIMON REEVE

The detention cells in the KGB secret police headquarters in
Transdniestria, a country between Moldova and Ukraine, are not the
ideal place to spend a Saturday night. Perhaps I have seen too many
cold-war thrillers, but after being detained by the Transdniestrian
KGB for spying last autumn, I had visions of being held for years in a
dark cell and having to write escape plans in blood using my toenails
for nibs. Fortunately, the KGB dispelled these fears by offering me a
tasty salad, giving me a KGB cap-badge as a souvenir of my
incarceration, and eventually setting me free.
It was a strange experience. But then Transdniestria is a fairly
strange country. Stuck in a Soviet time warp, it is not actually a
“real” country at all. According to the international community and
most maps of the region, Transdniestria does not even exist. There are
almost 200 official countries in the world, but there are dozens more
independent breakaway states like Transdniestria. They have
parliaments, armies and passports, but are not recognised as countries
by the rest of the world. So, in a bid to find out more about these
obscure countries, a BBC film crew and I spent many months travelling
to a group of countries that don’t officially exist.
Somaliland
Although rarely found on maps, Somaliland sits next to Djibouti. It
used to be “British Somaliland”, but locals think Whitehall has long
since forgotten they exist. After joining Somalia in the 1960s to form
one country, Somaliland had to fight a bitter war for independence
against the Somali dictator in the 1980s, during which thousands died.
On the way there we stopped in the Somali capital Mogadishu, perhaps
the most dangerous city in the world. Twelve gunmen provided
protection and I bought a Somali diplomatic passport from a man called
Mr Big Beard. Somalia has no real government, but is recognised as a
proper country. Somaliland, by contrast, has a government, president,
lively parliament and traffic lights, but is not recognised as a
proper country by any nation in the world. Lack of recognition means
Somaliland has trouble getting foreign aid to help with a terrible
drought. Tens of thousands of people were at risk of starvation.
The Somaliland president said he runs the country on just a few
million pounds a year, or “whatever we can get”. Edna Ismail, his
dynamic foreign minister, doubles as head of the maternity
hospital. Because nobody recognises their government, it cannot get
loans, which at least means Somaliland is not burdened by foreign debt
repayments.
Transdniestria
After the Soviet Union collapsed, two-thirds of Moldova wanted closer
ties with Romania and neighbours to the west. But the area of the
country to the east of the Dniestr river wanted to stay close to
Ukraine and Russia. War broke out, and the east split to form
Transdniestria, which remains unrecognised by the world.
Soviet statues still stand in Transdniestria, and a mysterious firm
called Sheriff – headed by former Red Army officers – runs much of the
economy. Independence day was being celebrated when we visited. The
Soviet-era army goose-stepped along the main road, and small children
in uniforms sang “our army is the best army” with evident pride. At
least we ate heartily on the day they celebrated. The rest of the time
Transdniestrian cafes were the slowest on earth, and I regularly
waited hours for food to be served. Sadly, that gave time for repeated
karaoke rehearsals of the uplifting Transdniestrian anthem.
As the EU expands, the country will soon be on the eastern edge of
Europe. It is a haven for smuggling and has a wild west feel. Rumours
suggest that it is a major producer of illegal arms, and guns from
Transdniestria have turned up in conflicts around the
world. International investigators claim they are unsure what is going
on in Transdniestria. Hardly surprising when there are no foreign
embassies and few foreigners visit this extraordinary little nation.
Taiwan
Lack of international recognition is not limited to poor
countries. Taiwan has one of the most powerful economies in the world,
but it has no seat at the UN and no major state recognises it as a
proper country. When Mao’s communists defeated their nationalist
rivals, they fled to Taiwan and took over. Taiwan has since become a
stable democracy, but Beijing views it as a renegade province and
wants it back.
Taiwanese cities feel like locations in Blade Runner. Neon signs light
skyscrapers and night- markets, where stalls serve snake blood and
girls from the Chinese mainland sit outside obvious brothels. We went
to see a Taiwanese boy band, who sang of their pride at being
Taiwanese, not ethnic Chinese like their parents. The Taiwanese
president flew us to see a firework concert, but refused to speak to
us, and then dumped us in a muddy field.
Guides took us to a Taiwanese island just off the Chinese coast, from
where the Taiwanese bombarded the mainland with propaganda from the
world’s loudest and largest loudspeakers. Taiwanese soldiers on the
island also fought a 20-year artillery duel with the Chinese, but
eventually both sides came to a gentleman’s agreement to bombard each
other on alternate days. Times have changed and local shops now melt
old artillery shells into kitchen knives for Chinese tourists.
South Ossetia, Ajaria and Abkhazia
Three parts of Georgia all declared their own independence when the
Soviet Union collapsed. In the ensuing conflicts thousands were killed
and the whole region has suffered ever since.
In South Ossetia – which has had its own government and army for 12
years, Ossetes told me they speak a different language to
Georgians. Tensions were high and the Ossetes were suspicious of
foreigners, partly because my government guide kept telling people I
was from London, America. After explaining I had nothing to do with
George Bush locals warmed up, and young soldiers shared drunken
birthday toasts. They all vowed to fight again rather than rejoin
Georgia.
Ajaria and Abkhazia are on Georgia’s western Black Sea coast. The
former is a Soviet-era holiday destination which has now rejoined
Georgia. The new governor kindly took us to a restaurant which was
cleared of other customers as we arrived by extras from the
Sopranos. Abkhazia may well be a lovely place to visit, but the
government kicked us out before we could explore.
Elsewhere in Georgia we found a former secret Soviet military base
containing thousands of tonnes of unguarded high explosives, and
scores of powerful missiles capable of destroying skyscrapers. A local
scientist trying to dismantle the explosives had rung the US embassy
to warn them, but nobody returned his call.
Nagorno-Karabakh
Historically this breakaway mountainous area of Azerbaijan was mainly
Armenian Christian. War erupted when it wanted independence after the
Soviet collapse, and Armenian troops helped the Karabakh army push out
the local Muslim Azeris.
Azerbaijan is still officially at war with Armenia over Karabakh, and
our journey started in Azerbaijan on the frontline. It may be 2005 in
the rest of the world, but on the border between Karabakh and
Azerbaijan young soldiers still man trenches. We had to sprint across
open ground to avoid sniper fire. Thousands of Azeri refugees live in
appalling conditions. Children and the elderly survive in rusty train
carriages. Everyone mentions the war, even the country’s top pop star
– a crackshot with an AK-47.
The border between Azerbaijan and Karabakh is closed, so we took a
massive detour into Georgia, over snowy mountains into Armenia, then
over icy passes into Karabakh. We were welcomed with organic mulberry
vodka, but found bombed-out Azeri villages. Mine-clearance charity The
Halo Trust is trying to improve lives, but locals shrugged and walked
through a minefield in front of me. Despite the war, the people of
Karabakh claim they would have the world’s highest rate of longevity,
if they were recognised as an independent country. *

Pan Armenian News
ERDOGAN: NO CHINESE WALL BETWEEN ARMENIA AND TURKEY
30.04.2005 03:39
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ There is no Chinese wall between Armenia and Turkey,
stated Prime Minister of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan, reported RFE/RL. In
his words, Turkey is ready to establish diplomatic relations with Armenia if
Yerevan agrees to form a joint historical commission on research of the
Armenian Genocide. «On the one hand, political relations could be
established. On the other hand, the work (on the archives) could continue,’
the Turkish Premier stated. As reported by Reuters, Erdogan did not speak of
restoring full diplomatic relations, however his statement evidences Turkey
wishes to normalize relations with Armenia.

Boston Globe
April 28 2005
OBITUARIES
Vasken Gostanian, 85, baseball leader
April 28, 2005
Vasken Gostanian of Haverhill, who started a Babe Ruth Baseball
League in Haverhill, died April 20 at Hannah Duston Healthcare Center
in Haverhill. He was 85.

Mr. ”Gus” Gostanian was born in Haverhill on March 17, 1920. He
graduated from Haverhill High School, class of 1938. He served in the
Army during World War II and received the European African Middle
Eastern Service Medal with five Bronze Stars, the Good Conduct
Ribbon, and three Overseas Service Bars.
He worked as a salesman for many years. Mr. Gostanian also played
semi-pro baseball and was president of Haverhill Little League and
Haverhill Pony League. He was instrumental in bringing a Babe Ruth
League to Haverhill.
Mr. Gostanian was a member of St. Gregory the Illuminator Armenian
Church in Haverhill. He was also a member of the Haverhill Elks Lodge
and the VFW Lorraine Post 29.
He was the husband of the late Mary (Johnson) Gostanian, who died in
2000. He leaves a son, Gary Gostanian of Bradford; a daughter, Sandra
Arakelian of Fowler, Calif.; a brother, Vaughn Gostanian of
Arlington; a sister, Shirley Mikaelian of Maryland; four
grandchildren; and several nieces and nephews.

The News Anatolian, Turkey
April 28 2005
Bush’s Armenian message was clear: US could not risk losing Turkey
By SENEM CAGLAYAN
The message given by the statement of U.S. President George W. Bush
on April 24 was clear: The U.S. cannot risk losing Turkey right now.
Although the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) started a
campaign months before April 24, the date they claim for the 90th
anniversary of the so-called Armenian genocide, a campaign pushing
President Bush to recognize their claims in his annual statement, and
even won the support of over 200 U.S. congressmen, Bush did not use
the word “genocide,” since Washington is in no hurry to alienate or
even lose Turkey.
The lack of recognition of the Armenian claims by Bush doesn’t mean
that the U.S. President does not believe in the “genocide”
allegations. The truth is that he could not risk increasing the
tension between Turkey and the U.S., in a relationship that has been
rocky of late.
Moreover, Bush’s avoidance of the “g” word does nothing to prevent
the Armenian lobby from bringing the controversial claims to a vote
in the U.S. Congress. If a recognition proposal ever comes to a vote,
it stands a good chance of approval by the Congress since 210
congressmen – 178 representatives and 32 senators – are on record
backing the claims.
The U.S. House of Representatives has 435 members, and the Senate
100.
Also, 30 of the 50 U.S. states have previously recognized the
Armenian claims, and on Sunday former actor and California Governor
Arnold Schwarzenegger declared April 24 a “Day of Remembrance of the
Armenian Genocide” in his state, which has a large population of
ethnic Armenians.
The campaign of the Armenian lobby started months before April 24
with messages and letters to Washington urging Bush to explicitly
recognize the so-called Armenian genocide claims. While the lobby
called for U.S. recognition of the so-called Armenian genocide
claims, Armenian Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanyan rejected an Ankara
proposal for a joint commission of Turkish and Armenian historians to
investigate the controversial problem.
The Armenians claimed in their letters that during the 2000
presidential election campaign, President Bush promised that he would
recognize the so-called Armenian genocide.
U.S. presidents on April 24 traditionally issue some sort of
statement to commemorate the pain and sorrow that Armenians faced at
the end of World War I, but no president to date – Bush included –
has explicitly called the disputed events a “genocide.” But in their
letter bombardment this year, the Armenian lobby made an all-out
effort for Bush to recognize the “genocide” claims.
They were successful in winning the support of 210 members of the
U.S. Congress who signed a letter to Bush asking him to recognize the
Armenian claims.
In a last-minute push, Armenians were bussed into Washington en masse
on last Thursday for a memorial ceremony of the 90th anniversary of
the so-called genocide at the U.S. Congress.
Despite this steady barrage of propagandizing from the Armenian
lobby, they were not successful in urging Bush to recognize their
claims, since Bush did not use the “g” word in his annual statement.
It is clear that Washington is not ready to lose one of its closest
allies in the Middle East region – Turkey. There are three factors
behind this:
First of all, the U.S. needs to continue its presence at the Incirlik
Military Airbase to carry out its agenda in the Middle East and
specifically to continue its operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Turkey could be considered the starting point of Washington’s Greater
Middle East Initiative (GME), which shapes the U.S.’ policy towards
the Middle East. Thus, the U.S. needs friendly relations with Turkey
to properly use the Incirlik base in its actions in the Middle East.
Although Turkey is a Muslim country, its secular, democratic
governing system is also an important asset for U.S. promotion of the
GME. The U.S. frequently cites Turkey as an example proving that
Muslim countries can lead a democratic way of life.
The second factor behind Bush’s statement is Washington’s ongoing aim
of making Turkey unilaterally dependant on the U.S. The aim of this
policy is to make Turkey economically dependant on the U.S., since
Turkey is a big market for the U.S. goods and services and a cheap
place for U.S. firms to make investments. In line with this policy,
the U.S. both supports Turkey’s membership in the European Union and
tries to leave Turkey economically dependant on it.
Thirdly, Washington does not want to exacerbate tensions between the
U.S. and Turkey during this critical period, since the U.S. is sure
that it needs the support of Turkey, especially in its operations in
Iraq and Afghanistan and in attaining peace and stability in the
Middle East. It is also aware of the growing anti-American sentiment
within Turkey which threatens to spoil all its plans in the region.

CTS’ 2005 INTERNATIONAL EXHIBITION OPENED IN YEREVAN
YEREVAN, April 28. /ARKA/. The 5th international tourism exhibition
CTS’ 2005 has been opened in Yerevan. RA Deputy Minister of Trade
and Economic Development Ara Petrosyan pointed out that this
exhibition is traditional in the tourist sphere and is aimed to
present elite travel agencies to the public. Thirty-three companies
from Armenia, Belarus, Iran and Turkey, including two air carriers,
seven hotel complexes, one transport agency, 13 travel agents, one
insurance company, five NGOs, three publishing houses and one news
agency are to take part in the exhibition. Special halls deal with the
Shirak and Vaiots Dzor regions of Armenia. A number of seminars will
be held to discuss the role of regional and international cooperation.
The exhibition was organized by the ASTA office with the assistance of
the RA Ministry of Trade and Economic Development. The exhibition is
sponsored by the Yerevan Brandy Company, `Golden Tulip Yerevan’ hotel,
Chech Airlines, `Visa Concord’ company and `Congress’
hotel. P.T. –0–

PROVISIONS OF AGREEMENT ON JOINT USE OF MILITARY OBJECTIVES WITHIN CST
FRAMEWORK CORRESPONDS TO ARMENIAN CONSTITUTION
YEREVAN, APRIL 27. ARMINFO. Provisions of an Agreement on joint use of
both military objectives and strategical equipment of territories
within the framework of Collective Security Treaty (CST) correspond to
Armenian Constitution, Armenian Constitutional Court made this
decision after a short closed meeting.
Armenian Defence Minister Serzh Sargsyan, represented the interests of
President Robert Kocharyan, informed that the Treaty was signed on
June 18, 2004 in Astana. The document aims to settle relations arisen
during the joint exploitation of military objectives by CST
member-states – Byelorussia, Armenia, Tajikistan, Kirghizia,
Kazakhstan and Russia. -r-

TOURS OF “RUSSIAN ICE-CIRCUS” TO TAKE PLACE IN YEREVAN
YEREVAN, APRIL 25. ARMINFO. Tours of “Russian ice-circus” will take
place in Yerevan from May 20 to June 20.
Program director of Russian circus Tatyana Lukyanova informed ARMINFO
that an ice-plant will be brought from Moscow for artists’ performance
on Yerevan circus-arena. Clowns, acrobats, as well as bears and
monkeys on skates will perform in Yerevan. Tickets will cost
2.000-4.500 AMD. Circus artists will give a benevolent performance for
invalid and orphan children, and children of needy families.
To note, Russian ice-circus planned to arrive in Yerevan earlier,
however, the tours have delayed because of animals’ death in
India. Lukyanova said that artists arrive in Yerevan being in hard
financial crisis.
At the request to comment on the situation with that incident in India
Lukyanova stated that all responsibility for animals’ death was made
on Indian impresario. “He had to pay $60 mln for transportation of
animals to Yerevan, however, he run away at night and then wrote an
e-mail with apologies”, she informed and added the Russian State
circus has appealed to the International organization on animals
protection for justice.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Washington Times, DC
April 26 2005
World Scene
Combined dispatches and staff reports.
ARMENIA
Huge crowds gather for memorial rites
YEREVAN — Hundreds of thousands of people clutching tulips,
carnations and daffodils climbed a hill in Armenia’s capital
yesterday to lay wreaths and remember the 1.5 million they say were
killed 90 years ago in Ottoman Turkey.
Local families mixed with members of Armenia’s diaspora, who had
flown from Europe and the United States to remember friends and
relatives who had died between 1915 and 1923.
[parts omitted]
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

Israel Hasbara Committee , NY
April 26 2005
24 April Marks Armenian Genocide
Hebrew University to Commemorate Event on 2 May
By Mayaan Jaffe
Sunday 24 April marked the anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, the
massacre of about 1.5 million Armenians by the Ottoman Turks. The
Armenian government held an international conference in the capital
of Yerevan dedicated to the day.
Although the Armenians suffered the first genocide of the twentieth
century and although their situation is closely connected to that of
the Jews, who were systematically tortured and killed during the Nazi
Holocaust, the State of Israel has yet to recognize the Armenian
massacre. According to Professor Israel Charney, Executive Director
of the Institute on the Holocaust and Genocide in Jerusalem, this is
solely due to political considerations. However, he says, Jews
denying the Armenian Genocide is the same as Christians (or anyone
else) denying the Jewish Holocaust.
`Jews run around legitimately angry about denials of the Holocaust,’
he says. `We therefore have an absolute moral responsibility to
recognize the Armenian Genocide.’
Charney, a certified psychiatrist originally from the U.S., has
dedicated his life in Israel to studying the how and why of genocide,
sparked by confusion about the cause of the Holocaust and the ability
of human beings to carry out such atrocities.
At the university level, there are plenty of academics who would
place their vote with Charney’s; those professors are led by
Professor Michael E. Stone, director of the Hebrew University
Armenian Studies Program. His department will host a memorial event
on 2 May at Beit Belgia on the Givat Ram University Campus. Though
the event will center on memorializing the massacre, it will also be
about building bridges between Israelis and Armenians, many living in
Jerusalem. Prominent leaders from both parties will attend, including
His Beatitude Patriarch Torkom Manoogian and His Excellency Mr.
Tsolag Momjian, Honorary Consul of the Republic of Armenia.
The event will feature an insightful lecture by Charney, as well as a
celebration of Armenian culture, highlighted by the tunes of Armenian
music.
With only around 100,000 survivors of the Armenian Genocide alive
today, Mr. Momjian expressed hopes that such an evening would `open
the minds of young people’ to the concept of the Armenian Genocide.
This is not the first year Stone has planned such an event. In past
years he has brought such intellectuals as Senior Lecturer at the
Open University of Israel and the Kibbutzim College of Education,
Professor Yair Auron. Like Charney, Auron has dedicated himself to
bringing to light the connection between Armenians and Jews, their
trials and tribulations. His book, The Banality of Indifference:
Zionism and the Armenian Genocide (Transaction Books, 2000), will be
published in Hebrew this month. It is an eye-opening book, whose
English edition has already been highly praised.
Former Minster of Education Yossi Sarid has been one of few
government officials to encourage the State to recognize the Armenian
Genocide. In a speech marking the 85th anniversary of the genocide at
the Armenian Church in the Old City of Jerusalem, Sarid said, `We
Jews, the main victims of murderous hatred, must be doubly sensitive
and identify with other victims. Those who stand aside, turn away,
cast a blind eye, make their calculations of gains and losses and are
silent always help the murderers and never those who are being
murdered…’
Sarid encourages teaching Israeli students about the atrocity as part
of the general history curriculum, if not for the educational value,
then for the humanistic one.
As Mr. Momjian put it, `For 90 years the Armenians have been living
with the tragic memory of the family they lost. To deny the genocide
is to deny a very important part of Armenian culture, history and
life.’
Charney and Momjian made their comments in exclusive interviews with
the Israel Hasbara Committee.