JAZZICAL KOMITAS – PASSION OF FIRE presents to world audiences the beauty and music of Armenia, their folk songs and the music of iconic Armenian legend Komitas Vartapet and other well-known Armenian composers re-imagined in the signature Jazzical® style of pianist/composer Joel A. Martin.
Like fire, there are many layers to this music: red, hot, and painfully beautiful. JAZZICAL KOMITAS celebrates the heritage and art of the Armenian people – past, present and future – through music.
The recording features Armenian mezzo soprano Solange Merdinian, violinist Nune Melik, and 13-year-old Dhol percussionist Hamlet Exoyan from Yerevan, on several tracks along with American symphony players and jazz musicians including flutist Pamela Sklar, drummer Jon Berger, and the Andrew Smith Strings Orchestra.
