Birth of Nicol Kalanderian (September 7, 1881)

Nicol Kalanderian was a noted composer of Armenian lyrical songs and others grounded in folk music and urban folksong. 

He was born on September 7, 1881, in Akn (Western Armenia) and lost most of his family during the Hamidian massacres of 1895-1896. Kalanderian, his mother, and a brother survived and settled in Eastern Armenia. 

In 1900, he began studies at the Gevorgian Seminary with Gomidas Vartabed for two years, becoming acquainted with Armenian church music and the Armenian notational system. Afterwards, he studied the violin and guitar on his own and continued exploring musical theory. He taught in Tiflis in 1910-1911 and started his composition career. He was invited to teach at the Haigazian, now Davtian School in Tehran, where he lived and created the rest of his life. In 1925, he organized and conducted the Goghtan choir (renamed after him in 1942), which performed many of his works. 

Kalanderian wrote a children’s opera in 1913 and many other compositions for children after 1924. Many of his works drew upon Armenian poetry, especially the works of Vahan Terian, Hovhannes Tumanian, Avetik Isahakian, and others. His works included the operas Parvana, Breeze, and Lalvar’s Prey.   

The composer passed away on March 2, 1944, in Tehran.