The opera “Parvana” by Nikol Galanderyan: the Forgotten Echo of Armenian Romanticism

In the history of Armenian music, certain names endure forever. One of them is the Iranian-Armenian composer, pedagogue, and musical-public figure Nikol Galanderyan (1881–1944). His opera “Parvana”, whose libretto is written to Hovhannes Tumanyan’s legend of the same name, is a unique fusion of folk mysticism. Oriental lyricism and traditions of European classical opera. Galanderyan created the said opera in a historically complicated period (the first half of the XX century), while living and creating in Tehran. “Parvana” is the first and, perhaps, for now the only attempt to bring to the opera stage Tumanyan’s profound national, almost mystical text. “Parvana” became one of Galanderyan’s large-scale pieces, as he is better known for his songs, many of which have become folk songs. With this work, the composer created his own model of chamber opera.