ABSTRACT
In 2017, the last survivor of the Armenian genocide, Knar Yemenijyan, passed away at age 107. It is estimated that by 2030, there will only be 15,800 Nazi victims living in the US, a decrease of 76% in just one decade. Genocide survivors embody the reality of these atrocities, and the gaping wound left by those who have perished. In an era of denialism, highlighting historical realities and their impact on people is a form of activism that opposes the blatant erasure of truthful actualities. This paper explores the intersections of music, genocide/trauma, and artistic activism by examining four case studies of female musicians who directly engage with the Armenian and Holocaust genocides through their own solo piano works or the use of preexisting music. The study critically investigates the interplay between their biography, artistic intent, and the unique ways that trauma processing comes to the fore in the substance of the musicians’ work by synthesizing a trauma-informed lens with musical analysis. The musicians and works explored are: (1) Natalia Karp, a survivor of Auschwitz, and Chopin’s Nocturne No.20 in C-sharp Minor, Op. posth. (2) Agi Jambor, a survivor of the Holocaust, and her Piano Sonata “To the Victims of Auschwitz,” II. Epitaph, (3) Tatev Amiryan, an Armenian composer, and her solo piano piece, Tristesse and, (4) Mary Kouyoumdjian, an Armenian-American composer, and her solo piano piece Aghavni [Doves]. This paper positions the artist/musician and her work as a central force in promoting the reality of inherent human dignity and in confronting socio-political and cultural realities that threaten these.
