Skip to main content Skip to footer site map

​​​​​​​UCLA's Center for the Art of Performance Presents Armenian Jazz Ensemble MVF Band

MVF Band has spent the last decade exploring new directions in Armenian music and perfecting their on-stage connection.

​​​​​​​UCLA's Center for the Art of Performance Presents Armenian Jazz Ensemble MVF Band

UCLA's Center for the Art of Performance (CAP UCLA) presents Armenia's leading folk jazz and ethno-fusion ensemble MVF Band performing songs from their latest album, Nightology, along with other repertory on Thursday, February 23 at 8 pm in Royce Hall. Tickets are $38 and are available now at cap.ucla.edu, 310-825-2101 and the UCLA Central Ticket Office.

Carved from a single block of mulberry wood, the long-necked tar has been the faithful string instrument companion of generations of Armenian bards. It's found a new life as a front-and-center jazz voice, thanks to the innovators of MVF Band (short for Miqayel Voskanyan and Friends). Sometimes as sharp and percussive as a banjo, sometimes subtle and soft-spoken, in the capable hands of band leader and singer Voskanyan, the tar speaks powerfully of contemporary life's struggles and joys.

Centering the eleven-string tar, Miqayel Voskanyan's quintet draws on polyphonic roots, global rhythms, funk and jazz's tight grooves and improvisational play. MVF Band has spent the last decade exploring new directions in Armenian music and perfecting their on-stage connection. Moving across genres, they have played major jazz festivals around eastern Europe and central Asia, represented Armenia at music industry events like MIDEM in France, and performed at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival and the Ford Theatre in Los Angeles, CA. Known for intertwining ancient folk idioms with progressive arrangements and original compositions, MVF Band challenges conventional thinking about the cross pollination of eastern and western sounds and genres.

MVF Band is part of Center Stage, a public diplomacy initiative of the US Department of State's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs with funding provided by the US government, administered by the New England Foundation for the Arts in cooperation with the US Regional Arts Organizations. General management is provided by Lisa Booth Management Inc.

The CAP UCLA 2023 spring programs continue on March 3-4 with Shamel Pitts' Touch of RED.

ARTISTS:
Miqayel Voskanyan: Tar and Vocals
Davit Melkonyan: Alto/Soprano Saxophones
Arman Peshtmaljyan: Keyboards
Gurgen Ghazaryan: Bass
Movses Ghazaryan: Drums



Gay Mens Chorus of Los Angeles Presents Disney PRIDE In Concert At Walt Disney Concert Hal Photo
Gay Men's Chorus of Los Angeles will celebrate LGBT Pride Month with the Los Angeles premiere of Disney PRIDE in Concert, a show that features 200 Chorus members performing nearly 50 classic Disney songs with a 25-piece orchestra and stunning video projections.

Fine Arts Theatre Beverly Hills Celebrates 86th Anniversary With 1937 Ticket Prices Photo
The Fine Arts Theatre Beverly Hills with celebrate the 86th Anniversary of the historic theatre with retro 1937 ticket prices of twenty-five cents per movie ticket and fifty cents for Double Features during a month-long celebration screening of 11 classic films from April 2 – 30, 2023.

Interview: Fight Choreographer Jen Albert Absolutely Up For The BATTLESONG OF BOUDICA Photo
Originally premiering at last year’s Hollywood Fringe, The School of Night reprises their award-winning production of Battlesong of Boudica April 9, 2023 at The Hudson Backstage. Co-founder and writer Christopher William Johnson directs the cast of Jen Albert, Daniel Adomian, Tom Block, Colin A Borden, Payton Cella, Sara Gorsky, Brad C. Light, Chloe Madriaga, Christopher Neiman, Tristan Rewald, Lacey  Rosewall, Lucy  Schmidt, Allegra  Rodriguez Shivers, Jack TenBarge, Jesse James Thomas, Frank Tirimacco and Dan Wingard. I got to throw out some questions to Jen, who’s playing the titular role of Boudica. And she punched back her answers directly on target.

Homegrown Collective to Play Hotel Cafe This Month Photo
On Thursday, March 30th from 8-10pm, Homegrown Collective will perform at Hotel Cafe Second Stage. The Homegrown Collective artists featured at this perormance are Alena Bernardi, Mina Bloom, Carl Biehn, Ty Mauro, Danny Fitch, Catriona Fray, Gage Getz, Isaac Mailach, Danny Pravder, Bella Hicks, Jason Masoud, Richard Miller, Vanessa Falabella, Manoela Wunder, David Ghesser. The concert will be hosted by Daniel Segura. 


More Hot Stories For You


Gay Men's Chorus of Los Angeles Presents Disney PRIDE In Concert At Walt Disney Concert HallGay Men's Chorus of Los Angeles Presents Disney PRIDE In Concert At Walt Disney Concert Hall
March 27, 2023

Gay Men's Chorus of Los Angeles will celebrate LGBT Pride Month with the Los Angeles premiere of Disney PRIDE in Concert, a show that features 200 Chorus members performing nearly 50 classic Disney songs with a 25-piece orchestra and stunning video projections.

Fine Arts Theatre Beverly Hills Celebrates 86th Anniversary With 1937 Ticket PricesFine Arts Theatre Beverly Hills Celebrates 86th Anniversary With 1937 Ticket Prices
March 27, 2023

The Fine Arts Theatre Beverly Hills with celebrate the 86th Anniversary of the historic theatre with retro 1937 ticket prices of twenty-five cents per movie ticket and fifty cents for Double Features during a month-long celebration screening of 11 classic films from April 2 – 30, 2023.

Mount Wilson Observatory to Present Events Featuring Art, Film, Music, Talks and Telescopes, and More in 2023Mount Wilson Observatory to Present Events Featuring Art, Film, Music, Talks and Telescopes, and More in 2023
March 26, 2023

Mount Wilson Observatory, Southern California's esteemed home to over 100 years of groundbreaking astronomical discovery, has announced its 2023 season of public events and sky-viewings with a wide range of activities.

Ophelia's Jump to Present NATIVE GARDENS in AprilOphelia's Jump to Present NATIVE GARDENS in April
March 26, 2023

Ophelia's Jump Productions (OJP) will continue their 10th Season with Native Gardens by Karen Zacarías. The production will be performed at the Ophelia's Jump Studio Theater, located at 2009 Porterfield Way, Suite H, in Upland, from April 7, 2023 through May 7, 2023.

Jem And The Holograms Parody Musical TRULY OUTRAGEOUS To Debut In Hollywood This SummerJem And The Holograms Parody Musical TRULY OUTRAGEOUS To Debut In Hollywood This Summer
March 26, 2023

Author and playwright Brandie June and award-winning musical theater writer Rebecca McGlynn will present the debut of their show TOTALLY OUTRAGEOUS - an unofficial parody musical based on the popular 80's cartoon show Jem And The Holograms.