Tigran Hamasyan - Mockroot (2015)

Tigran Hamasyan’s Nonesuch Records debut album, Mockroot, features music draws from a wide range of sources—from jazz and Armenian folk music; Bach and French fin de siècle composers; dubstep, thrash metal, and contemporary electronica. His live performances and six studio albums have received enthusiastic approval from the likes of Herbie Hancock, Chick Corea, and Brad Mehldau.

Reviews: Nonesuch Records will release the label debut from pianist Tigran Hamasyan, Mockroot, in early 2015. Hamasyan is currently on tour in Europe, with shows in France, Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, and Switzerland, amongst others. Further details about the forthcoming album and its release will be announced shortly, along with additional international tour dates. For all the tour details, visit nonesuch.com/on-tour. Although trained as a classical and jazz musician, Tigran Hamasyan draws on a wide range of influences, including Armenian folk music, electronica, poetry, and more. In the past decade, with the release of four critically acclaimed albums and an unceasing touring schedule, he has built up a dedicated international following, as well as accolades from the likes of Chick Corea, Herbie Hancock, and Brad Mehldau. In the words of the Guardian, Hamasyan "is guided by one of [mentor and fan Herbie Hancock’s] most enduring lessons: it's possible to be a multi-stylistic jazz virtuoso and a groove-powered hitmaker simultaneously and hugely enjoy all of it." The Times of London said of his most recent release, 2013’s Shadow Theater, "Armenian folk, electronic loops, heavenly voices and indie rock energy vie with Hamasyan’s rippling piano to create a dramatic, deeply melodic music unlike anything else you’ll hear this year." In a review of a Los Angeles concert earlier this year, LA Weekly proclaimed, "Shadow Theater’s intricate blend of timbres, rhythmic complexity, and melodic references to his Armenian heritage were clearly a hit for this crowd. At the same time, the playful deployment of electronics, loops, and unstoppable dance grooves would have fit in perfectly at Coachella." Hamasyan was born in Armenia in 1987, before relocating with his family to Los Angeles in 2003. He currently resides in Erevan, Armenia. He began playing piano at the age of three, and started performing in festivals and competitions when he was 11 years old, winning the Montreux Jazz Festival’s piano competition in 2003. He released his debut album, World Passion, at the age of 18 in 2006. That same year he won the prestigious Thelonious Monk International Jazz Piano Competition. Subsequent albums include New Era (2008), Red Hail (2009), and A Fable (2011), for which he was awarded a Victoires de la Musique (the equivalent of a Grammy Award in France). Most recently he won the Vilcek Prize for Creative Promise in Contemporary Music in 2013.

Tracklisting:

01 - To Love
02 - Song for Melan and Rafik
03 - Kars 1
04 - Double-Faced
05 - The Roads That Bring Me Closer to You
06 - Lilac
07 - Entertain Me
08 - The Apple Orchard in Saghmosavanq
09 - Kars 2 (Wounds of the Centuries)
10 - To Negate
11 - The Grid
12 - Out of The Grid

Recorded May 2014 at Studio de Meudon in Meudon, France.
Mastering engineer: Nate Wood.

Musicians:
Tigran Hamasyan - piano, voice, keyboards, synths, sound effects
Sam Minaie - electric bass
Arthur Hnatek - drums & live electronics
Gayanée Movsisyan - voice on track "5"