[Oberlist] AM* call: Sound Lab of Utopiana is inviting for " International Women’s Sound", October 18 – 25, 2009

[Arpi Adamian]

Part 1: INTRODUCTION 
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Women in the Caucasus have begun resisting and we can see a spark in the new development in women seeking their rights and freedoms within Armenia. In comparison to developed nations, women in Armenia have little possibility to externalize their inner-activity especially through art and music. Women seem to be shocked by taboos that come from far past which don’t let women project loudly their voice in arts and music. For very long time women were considered as object for sex, children production and home works. And now there is a will to persevere, resist so for women not to be seen that way.
In more developed countries this problem seemed to be solved already. But in developing countries like Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia this problem is still keen and it still have a need to aloud. Anyway in this country we already can be witnesses of women standing up for their rights in different spheres. And the aim of the project is to support it and  help it to grow more and more. 
Through this project we will try women to be more involved in music, to show that there is radicalism in ideas. 
Talking about women of Caucasus such questions appear like why do women create less? Why are women more passive in arts? These are the questions for which we will try to find answers through this project and for which will try to suggest solutions.. The founding and most important reason for this meeting is for women to meet each other, and discuss about their issues and problems. We will try to comprehend the role of the woman in arts and music, woman’s abilities and interests.   
The project includes workshops, festival, seminars etc. Through this project women of the different countries of the Caucasus will have the opportunity to come into communication with each other, those women who create and those who want to create. During the project women will have the opportunity to find like-minded friends and co-partners and who knows maybe new bands will start. 

	 
Part 2: THE BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE PROJECT

Title: International Women’s Sound
Duration Of The Project: October 18 – 25, 2009

PROJECT INCLUDES:
Sound Workshops
During workshops participants will receive different knowledge about how to use different music computer programs to create music. Participants can offer their own suggestions how to do the workshop. 
Bands can also organize their own workshops.

Seminars
These meetings are formally called seminars, but they are going to be debates, where we all be trying to find solutions through debates and communications. 

Music Festival
The festival will include girl bands and independent musicians from different parts of the Caucasus (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia) Turkey, Greece, Palestine, Persia, a part of Africa, Syria, Arab Emirates and Kyrgyzstan. The festival aims to show how radical are the ideas that we have inside ourselves.   

AIMS:
1.To break the wall that comes from centuries brought by patriarchy, which has been depriving women of freedom, considered women as an object for sex and home works.  
2.Stir up women to stand up and fight for their rights and freedom. 
3.To create knowledge and exchange experience through workshops and seminars. 
4.To see the woman as a strong and creative member of society. 
5.Bring radicalism in ideas within the Caucasus Region


Part 3 : HISTORY – HOW I WAS INVOLVED IN MUSIC

The first wave of Rock Music entered Armenia from Europe along with the Hippy movement, but the movement as well as the Rock Music in Armenia were destroyed in 1990s. There were few single rock bands in Armenia until the end of 90s. 
In 1998 the first rock club opened in Armenia. Old bands were being united again, and new bands were being created. But all of these bands had none of their own songs; instead they covered the songs of well-known rock bands. The fanaticism concerning others, but not themselves grew and still keeps growing more and more. 

I was very active in attending the Rock Club. I had experience playing in different bands with boys, but that wasn’t what I really wanted. At that time there was no rock band consisted of only girls. And an idea was born in me to create an all-girls rock band. I always felt resistant and wanted to show what was inside me, but could not name it yet as feminism. I had a talk with the club director and he supported the idea. But creating a girl’s band was harder than I could imagine. Armenian girls were very far from Rock Music and its lifestyle. Girls were suffering with melancholy, depression and fanaticism. 
Anyway I managed to gather 4 girls (including myself). Two of the girls were riot (rebellious), but had no connection with Rock Music. But they decided to take a risk and entered the world of Rock. 
Each of us had completely different lifestyle and background. I, Tsomak (electro guitar) was an artist, who had education in music but I never used music notes and because of this always disputed with my teacher. Nata (vocal) had no musical education but was a singer in the pop music scene. Nara (bass guitar) also had no musical education but was a student in journalism (she was the most riot among us). Arminius (drummer) had musical education in piano that helped her play guitar, but she was a big fan of drums, and she played drums even without much experience. She had heard of our group, came to our studio, told us that enjoyed the drums but had no knowledge in playing. I taught her how. She was a very talented girl. The development of our band greatly benefited from the help and anticipation of other artist who were part of our scene, with whom we were friends and with whom we regularly created (videos, texts, etc). Our group’s creative process was greatly influenced by Sona Abgaryan who is a contemporary artist; she wrote the lyrics for INCEST. 
Our band was hardly apprehended among society, especially in Armenia because it included political and social ideas. It was considered very rude, not womanlike and really, just ‘too riot”. The criticism about the band was too much, both good and bad. During our concerts we presented performances that were about religion, incest and violence. That was the reason we called our band INCEST. It was an alternative punk band. 
The band had a lot of solo and joint concerts in Armenia as well as in various parts of the Caucasus. 
Unfortunately the band lived on for only 5 years. 
It is important to note, that our band was the reason behind many changes in society. I may even say, that we created a little revolution in Yerevan. Many girls were cutting their long hair short like us, were dressing like us and were having conflicts with their parents, wanting freedom and they began to care about Armenian rock culture and that was a real support for us because they were sharing their ideas and imaginations with us. 
After INCEST broke apart, of my own doing, I went into depression and began to create electro music in combination with live sound with the help of different computer programs, which had been a desire of mine from long ago. And as I am also an artist besides being a musician, I was also doing different performances, installations etc. I was organizing different alternative youth art exhibitions and rock festivals. 
In 2007 I was invited to be part of the rock band INAD, to be their drummer. The band consisted of a boy and 2 girls. Soon after, when the boy left and the band became a girls’ band, I began to play the bass-guitar. 

Being unsatisfied from INAD, I left the band and created a new band, which was consisted of only 2 girls. The most important aspect in the band was the creation process, keeping good relationship between the members and the exchange of ideas. I am an anarchist-feminist and Asya is an artist, ceramist, sculptor, photographer, video artist and drummer. 
A little while after, Jenya joined our band. Jenya studies in the music conservatory, specializing in piano. I got acquainted with her there was also an all-boys band called LSD, who invited me to play drums. Jenya came and played the keyboards. I decided to invite her to be part of our band because she had liked our ideas.  

Our creations are comprised of different experimentations. The band is called PINCET – another word for an eyebrow tweezer. By telling different short musical stories we show the woman in various political and social situations. 
All of these ideas including this project have been circulating in my head for 10 years, and at last I have decided to realize these ideas guiding my life in the form of this project. This project is very important for me, and might be as important for many others. And I really hope that we can bring changes and open people’s eyes in the sphere of culture, life and freedom.
 
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