Armenia
Boxhead Ensemble
2023 – DC022
In 2009, director Braden King filmed a road movie across Armenia, documenting the journey of an American engineer and an Armenian photographer. Toward the end of filming, a soundtrack was urgently needed to reflect the region’s atmosphere. An ensemble of musicians, including Shahzad Ismaily, Eyvind Kang, Jessika Kenney, and Laraine Kaizer-Viazovtsev, was quickly gathered to record fully improvised sessions.
Recording took place in two unique locations: a long-abandoned Soviet-era Melodiya studio and the former home of renowned filmmaker Sergei Paradjanov. The musicians were joined spontaneously by local artists, such as kamancha player Vartan Baghdasaryan and kanon player Karine Hovhannisyan, who contributed traditional Armenian sounds.
These recordings became inseparable from the film, capturing an organic, intuitive dialogue between music and landscape, infused with a timeless and deeply rooted cultural presence.
Credits
Vardan Baghdasaryan: kamancha
Karine Hovhannisyan: kanon
Shahzad Ismaily: banjo, guitar, percussion
Laraine Kaizer-Viazovtsev: violin
Eyvind Kang: viola
Jessika Kenney: voice
Braden Kin: percussion, direction
Michael Krassner: guitar, percussion, direction