ARMENIAN NAVY BAND

Arto Tuncboyaciyan – percussionist, vocals, sazabo
Anahit Artushyan – kanun
Armen Ayvazyan – kemance
Armen Husnounts – tenor and soprano sax
David Minasyan – trombone
David Nalchajyan – alto sax
Tigran Suchyan – trumpet
Norair Kartashyan – blul (flute)
Vartan Grigoryan – duduk, zurna, clarinet
Arman Jalalyan – drums
Vahagn Hayrapetyan – piano
Vartan Arakelian – bass

The founder of the Armenian Navy Band, Arto Tuncboyaciyan, a percussionist of Armenian origins, considers music a basic means of communication. Arto claims that music is his selected instrument through which he expresses his highest aspirations: love, respect and truth. Armenian Navy Band consists of best twelve Armenian contemporary musicians aged twenty to forty five. Their instruments include traditional ones as well, like duduk, zurna and kanun, but modern ones like trombone, alto sax, tenor sax, trumpet, bass, drums, keyboards and piano. All these instruments, combined with unique Art’s vocals and percussions make the sound of the band a kind of an audio trip from the past to the present.

The first European tour of this band in March and February 2000 in Italy, Germany, Austria and Spain, was very successful. Later that year, the band embarked on another tour in Sardinia, France, Brussels, Holland, to end in Istanbul where they recorded “New Apricot” album for the Turkish publisher Imay Music. This was followed by a brief tour in March 2001 and a long European spring/summer tour to last up to November 2001.