Hayk Gyolchanyan
Hayk Gyolchanyan | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Hayk Gyolchanyan |
| Born | November 22, 1982 Leninakan (now Gyumri), Armenian SSR, USSR |
| Occupation(s) | Record producer, musician, singer, songwriter |
| Years active | 1993–present |
| Website | gyolchanyan |
Hayk Gyolchanyan (born November 22, 1982) is an Armenian-American record producer, musician, singer, and songwriter. He is best known as the founder of the Armenian prog-rock band IF as well as a record producer and the founder of RedPoint Records. During his career, he worked with many representatives of Armenian and Russian show business as a composer, session musician, and record producer. After moving to New York City, Gyolchanyan started his solo career in the United States with his first single Melon Fields released on February 20, 2020.
Early life
Hayk Gyolchanyan was born in Soviet Armenia, in Leninakan on November 22, 1982, to process engineers Fyodor and Gayane Gyolchanyan. At the age of five, Hayk started to develop an interest in music, spending most of his time listening to old vinyl records. After the 1988 earthquake, his family moved to Yerevan. After graduating from the College of Mathematics and Physics at high school number 114, he went to the State Engineering University of Armenia (former Polytechnic Institute), faculty of applied sociology and psychology, however, soon dropped out and joined the army. Between 2001 and 2003, he was the head of the Mardakert military band during military service in the Nagorno-Karabakh Defense Army. In December 2003, he moved to Moscow, where he built his sound engineering and television career and founded his record label RedPoint Records. In December 2014, he moved to New York City.
Career
1993–2003: Armenia
When Gyolchanyan was 8 years old, he heard the song Love Me Do by The Beatles for the first time. This was a turning point in Gyolchanyan's life. Obsessed by the "Fab Four," he started taking guitar lessons and shortly after, along with his cousin Henry Karagyozyan and friends Koryun Bobikyan and Suren Sargsyan, formed a Beatles cover band named "The Beetles". At the age of 9, Hayk wrote his first song, "Love at First Sight," which was performed live on one of the regular gigs the band had on the stage of the Union of Architects. By the end of 1996, the band decided to reorganize and focus more on original content written primarily by Hayk Gyolchanyan and Henry Karagyozyan. In 1997, the new band takes the name "IF" and starts working on new material; however, due to creative differences, the band splits in two with "IF" led by Gyolchanyan and "The Kings’ Cross" led by Karagyozyan. In 1998, both bands played their debut performances at the Armenian Center for Contemporary Experimental Art (NPAK), thus forming the so-called 5th wave of Armenian Rock. The show's success led to NPAK management later that year organizing the biggest rock festival of that time, "ROCK’NPAK". In September 1998, Gyolchanyan joins Edgar Barseghyan's newly formed band "Alter Ego" as a drummer, guitarist, and keyboardist. In 1999, the band recorded their first self-titled single at the "Brevis Studio" which debuted on local radios in February 2000. With the support of Armenian rock pioneers Vostan Hayots, the band was playing regular sets in the first rock club in Yerevan. Until late 2001, IF, Alter Ego, and The Kings’ Cross were actively performing shows in local rock clubs, concert halls, and festivals. Hitting a dead end in his music career, Gyolchanyan decided to move to Moscow for a bigger market. Not willing to wait another 5 years, he drops out of the college and joins the army, which was only a 2-year setback. In the Nagorno-Karabakh Defense Army, he masters the trumpet and soon becomes the head of the Mardakert military orchestra. During his military service, Gyolchanyan participates in multiple local and international music festivals, taking only first places in the "best popular music performance" nomination and received the rank of sergeant.
2004–2014: Russia
In December 2003, Gyolchanyan moves to Moscow and within a month puts together a new lineup for "IF" which debuted live in February. Gyolchanyan starts working as a sound engineer and manager in one of the local rehearsal bases, where he founds his first production studio, producing young musicians and bands, helping with arrangements and recordings, and organizing shows and events. In 2004, IF recorded the debut concept album "Coming Back To Life," primarily containing the early songs written in the 90s. During the two years in the army, a significant number of new songs were written which became the foundation for the new album "Easy Mode" with a softer, more pop-rock and folk-oriented sound. The album was recorded in late 2004 and was credited to Hayk Gyolchanyan as a solo artist as stylistically it didn't match IF's much heavier prog-rock sound. In 2005, Gyolchanyan starts experimenting with electronic music and releases a comedy mash-up EP "Usta Valod – Armenian Girl". In late 2005, a robbery takes place in Gyolchanyan's studio; the master records of all original recorded albums were lost, and the studio shuts down. For the next several years, Gyolchanyan is primarily focused on post-production and sound design projects. In 2007, he joins Vostan Hayots as a keyboardist for their 20th anniversary reunion show in Moscow and produces several young bands. In 2008, Gyolchanyan founds "RedPoint Records Studio" and until 2014 works as a composer, sound designer, session musician, producer, TV host, and writer on various projects including musical acts, pop stars, movies, and TV shows.
2015–present United States
After moving to New York, Gyolchanyan starts restoring the lost material from previous albums, re-recording the songs based on the small number of demos that survived. His first single Melon Fields (originally recorded in 2004) was released in February 2020 with "Abandoned Hero", "A Sunny Day", "The Sleeplessness", "Take It Easy", and "Me (Part Two)" scheduled to be released by April–July.
Discography
Albums
- IF – Coming Back To Life (2004)
- Hayk Gyolchanyan – Easy Mode (Unplugged) (2004)
- Alter Ego – In Conflict (2006)
EP's
- Usta Valod – Armenian Girl (2005)
Singles
- AlterEgo – Alter Ego (1999)
- Hayk Gyolchanyan – Melon Fields (2020)
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Director | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | On Her Finger Tips | Anario Mamedov | Composer | Short film |
| 2005 | Sex Bomb | Nikolay Bogdanov | Composer, sound engineer | Short film |
| 2012 | Nerses Hovhannisyan: The Mosaic Portrait | Eduard Hambartsumyan | Sound engineer | Documentary |
| 2012 | The Last Meeting with Yavuryan | Eduard Hambartsumyan | Sound engineer, composer | Documentary |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Network / Studio | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010–2012 | Interactive TV | Producer, co-host, sound director | TVARMRU | Comedy show |
| 2010–2012 | Unplugged | Producer, sound director | TVARMRU | Live music show |
| 2012–2013 | Poker Boom | Host, director | Bingo TV | Game show |
| 2011–2014 | Bingo Boom | Director | Bingo TV | Game show |
| 2012–2013 | Territory of Misconceptions | Music supervisor, composer | REN TV | Documentary series |
| 2012–2013 | Closed School | Composer | Mosfilm | Drama series |
| 2014 | Loud and Clear | Host, creator, writer | TV Tsentr | Talk show |
External links
This article "Hayk Gyolchanyan" is from Wikipedia. The list of its authors can be seen in its historical and/or the page Edithistory:Hayk Gyolchanyan. Articles copied from Draft Namespace on Wikipedia could be seen on the Draft Namespace of Wikipedia and not main one.
