Roupen Altiparmakian ( ''Rubēn Altëparmakean'', in ''Roupén Altiparmakián''; ''b.'' in

Adana Adana is a large city in southern Turkey. The city is situated on the Seyhan River, inland from the northeastern shores of the Mediterranean Sea. It is the administrative seat of the Adana Province, Adana province, and has a population of 1 81 ...

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

on May 28, 1919 - ''d.'' in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, USA on March 13, 1999) was an Armenian master of the

violin The violin, sometimes referred to as a fiddle, is a wooden chordophone, and is the smallest, and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in regular use in the violin family. Smaller violin-type instruments exist, including the violino picc ...

and oud.

Career

When he was a child, Altiparmakian's family moved to

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

. ireference.ca He got his first violin from his father when he was eight years old. His studies of music at the Conservatory of Athens were interrupted by

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. He escaped to the mountain villages of Greece, and earned his living by the playing violin. His fame grew, and he got an opportunity to collaborate with other Greek musicians, and even appeared in a number of films with his violin. In 1962, he moved to

, where his career really took off. He performed with many of the Armenian, Greek and Turkish singers of the day, and recorded his first album, "Armenian Love Songs", in 1965. Famed French-born Armenian-American singer Onnik Dinkjian appeared as the lead vocalist on the album, with Roupen playing oud and providing occasional backup vocals, playing violin on a few numbers, as well as writing and/or arranging all the pieces. Altiparmakian has a unique musical style and rhythm that has earned him a respected reputation. His song "Hey Valla" originally released on the album "Armenian Love Songs" became a standard in the repertoire of Armenian-American kef bands (dance bands which play for weddings and other ethnic functions). It was covered on recordings by Richie Berberian with Mal Barsamian, John Bilezikjian, Robert Takoushian, Robert Chilingirian, Ara Topouzian, and Mike Gostanian among others. His song "Lucy" was covered by

Adiss Harmandian Adiss Harmandian (; 14 January 1945 – 1 September 2019) was a Lebanese-Armenian pop singer. Early life Harmandian was born Avedis Harmandian on 14 January 1945 in Beirut, Lebanon from both parents being Armenian genocide survivors. His stag ...

without however, giving Roupen songwriting credit. The albums "Armenian Kef Songs" and "Oud Taxims" were released after his death by his family. They were compiled from unreleased, studio, but mostly homemade recordings, that Roupen recorded at home.

Albums

*Armenian Love Songs *Oud Taxims – The Lost Treasures *Roupen's Armenian Kef Songs

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Altiparmakian, Roupen People from Adana Armenian oud players Armenian violinists Armenian musicians American people of Armenian descent Armenian emigrants to Greece Greek emigrants to the United States 1919 births 1999 deaths 20th-century violinists