Diaspora Armenians have always shown that they do everything they can to help the homeland. Argentine Armenian dudukist Gagik Gasparian’s mission is to contribute to Armenia’s recognition and advancement by performing music.

He recently achieved a new victory and talked about it during a phone conversation with Hayern Aysor’s correspondent. “After 20 years of persistent and consistent efforts, I reached the desired outcome. The Ministry of Culture of Chile has officially recognized Armenian culture, particularly Armenian music as the major research topic for all public and cultural circles in Chile in 2015. The minister has even ratified a document and has granted me a certificate. To contribute to the development and recognition of Chile, every year, the Ministry of Culture of Chile allocates funds from the state budget to hold various programs and events aimed at presenting the cultural values of different countries in Chile, after which previously selected members of a jury examine and choose the country that will receive the funds. This year, the jury examined the projects submitted by various countries and gave preference to Armenian culture. My Chilean student, musician Randash Lederman helped me a lot to achieve this. It’s safe to say he was my envoy within the Chilean government.”

The dudukist said the Chilean government took this step, taking into consideration his unconditional dedication to advocating and preserving Armenian culture in Latin America. Gagik will be giving lectures and master classes at the University of Arts of Chile and will be meeting with the local composers, songwriters, as well as students and artists to share his longstanding experience and charm them with “Armenianness”.

The master classes will be composed of two parts, including a presentation of the duduk as a musical instrument and courses devoted to traditional Armenian music.

Gagik Gasparian is very moved by the fact that he managed to collaborate with Chile in the year marking the Centennial of the Armenian Genocide. “During the negotiations,  I had set the objective to dedicate all this to the Centennial of the Armenian Genocide. I considered it my duty to do something in memory of the innocent martyrs, and as you can see, I managed to keep the issue of the Armenian Genocide in the focus of foreigners. In general, my policy is to present Armenian culture to foreigners. I think it is the main target. Currently, I have more than 30 foreign students who are successful musicians, play for symphony orchestras and are recognized in their countries of residence. I feel at ease, knowing that I can use my contacts in Latin America to help preserve the Armenian identity and disseminate Armenian values. I’m more than happy that the breath and spirit of Armenian culture will be felt in Chile.”

Gevorg Chichyan