David Ayriyan
Armenian, 1933 - 2019
BiographyDavid Ayriyan (1934-2019) was born in Baku, Azerbaijan. His father was a musician and an orchestra leader, and played the tar, a traditional Armenian instrument. David started playing the violin at the age of seven. At fifteen he picked up a kamancha and was taught by his father for two years. David then apprenticed with Nefton Gregorian, one of the great kamancha players. In 1988, troubles in Baku forced his family to evacuate their home and relocate to Yerevan, Armenia where he started playing with traditional singers and for traditional dancers. In 1991, following political turmoil and a catastrophic earthquake in Yerevan, his family took refuge in the U.S., settling near Providence, Rhode Island. David performed regularly for the Armenian community and occasionally with orchestras; he was featured in the “Homegrown” music series held at the Library of Congress in 2006. David had been searching for a student for a long time, and was pleased to be connected to Sarkis “Jimmy” Shahrigian, an Armenian musician from Connecticut, in the Southern New England Traditional Arts Apprenticeship Program.
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