On February 27th, my film documentary Guardians of Music: A History of Armenian Music in Detroit re-aired as part of Armenian night on Detroit Public Television. My film followed the world premiere of Armenia, My Home produced by Emmy award winning producer, Andrew Goldberg.

I feel super fortunate to have had the opportunity to be part of Andrew’s documentary (some of my recorded music was included in his latest film) as I have been in the past. All of his work is top-notch and I feel it is important to have our story told by a non-Armenian as it provides a greater impact to the viewers. If you haven’t seen his latest documentary, click here to find a local listing. You will definitely enjoy it!

Jerry Gerjekian and myself performing music in between the film breaks for the re-airing of my documentary (Feb., 2024)

Guardians of Music first premiered worldwide on Detroit Public Television in 2015, almost ten years ago. 2015 was an important year for the Armenians as we commemorated the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. There were several commemorations and videos that were released that year throughout the world and I wanted my documentary to be released specifically in time to commemorate the Genocide.

While I sat watching my film again (which I hadn’t done in a long time), several thoughts and memories reemerged conjuring up emotions such as:

• So many of the individuals I interviewed are no longer with us. I am thankful I documented their voices.
• The story hasn’t aged and has more meaning now than ever. Our past is so important to us as Armenians and this documentary is an important part of our history. My children, who were small children at the time of the initial release watched it for the first time.
• There was such an enjoyment discovering and educating myself on the background on so many musicians. The detective work in seeking out photos and rare home movies was exhilarating!
• My blog, HYE Times, started because of the production of this documentary and here we are 11 years later and over 125+ posts to date!
• My wife was an integral part in hoping me shape the final script that was narrated. I am very proud of the context she helped edit for me. I owe much to her!
• On a more humorous note…. holy cow I had more hair and was heavier!

As Armenians, we continue to experience a plethora of documentaries that ‘tell our story’. All of them have their place and all are important in preserving history and educating the non-Armenian communities about who we are as a people.