Sounds From An Armenian Childhood

 Sounds From an Armenian Childhood has been commissioned by BBC Radio 3 and will be created with Audio Always, through the Multitrack fellowship.

I’d like to invite you into the 42nd house of my Nene (grandmother) Haiganoush, in a rediscovery of the home that I grew up in. As a child this space always felt magical, but as I grow older and revisit nostalgia, I’m starting to question what it really took to create that space, and what was sacrificed to make it so safe and special to me.

As we move around my Nene’s home, I question what is it that enables one to build their 42nd home to such a level of comfort, belonging and love, and does it only feel this way to me? On a discovery of self through my sonic upbringing as we venture from room to room, I question moments that I took for granted growing up that had a lot more meaning than initially observed.

Reminiscing from stereo to mono, we replace traditional songs for lullabies from our own voices, and local village drama for Turkish soap operas.

In this 14 minute programme for BBC Radio 3 we will evaluate the delusions of nostalgia through sounds of generational upbringings, and how they dissolve as we come of age and learn the truths behind our family histories.