Hard Rock Café Yerevan will open soon in the center of Yerevan. Back in December 2021, in an interview with Mediamax, Anibal Fernandez, Vice President for Franchise Operations at Hard Rock Café International, promised that Hard Rock Café Yerevan would please with novelties and surprises.
We will disclose one of these surprises today.
A source of pride for many Armenians is the Zildjian brand, which has been producing the legendary cymbals for already 400 years. And if before, Armenians were proud of Zildjian “at a distance”, now they can be proud of it directly in the capital of Armenia: the Zildjian family provided Hard Rock Café Yerevan with 80 hand-selected cymbals that will be used in an art installation of the cafe.
Photo: Mediamax
Cady Zildjian, Vice Chair of the Board of Directors of Zildjian, told Mediamax that the provided collection includes some larger cymbals that will be autographed by Zildjian family members and artists attending this year’s NAMM show in Anaheim, California. They will be displayed as Memorabilias - one of the hallmarks of the Hard Rock Café.
Cady Zildjian is the first from rightPhoto: Mediamax
Hard Rock Café Yerevan is the joint project of the Food Republic and Armenian National Interests Fund (ANIF).
Arsen Hovhannisyan, Anibal Fernandez and Bella ManukyanPhoto: Mediamax
Arsen Hovhannisyan, the Founding Director of the Food Republic, told Mediamax that it was important for them that Hard Rock Café Yerevan, being a member of a large international family, also had an Armenian identity. This is how the decision to come up with cooperation proposal to the legendary Zildjian brand was made.
“I think this is a good opportunity for Zildjian to reconnect with the homeland of their ancestors,” said Arsen Hovhannisyan.
He says the partnership with Zildjian can be expanded in the future in the form of support to young musicians and music schools. Cady Zildjian does not rule out this possibility either.
“We believe that the ability to express yourself through music is a gift that should be given to every child. Zildjian is involved in discussions with Hard Rock Café Yerevan about how we can help young musicians, and we are excited to support this initiative. At Zildjian we have the products and the learning tools available to help young percussionists in their musical education journey,” said she.
Arsen Hovhannisyan and Katerina DanekinaPhoto: Mediamax
Katerina Danekina, Hard Rock Café Yerevan Project Manager, says that Cady Zildjian “was involved in the discussions from the very beginning and thanks to her personal involvement we have achieved such significant results.”
“It is amazing to see that Hard Rock Café Yerevan is becoming a point of attraction for international brands with such a phenomenal history and heritage as Zildjian,” said Katerina.
Photo: Mediamax
Cady Zildjian told Mediamax that in honor of 400th anniversary of the Zildjian family, which will be celebrated in 2023, they have also set up a scholarship to Berklee College of Music for an Armenian student.
Members of the Zildjian family are planning to visit Armenia – this will be their first visit to the homeland of their ancestors.
Photo: Mediamax
“My great grandfather emigrated to the United States in 1909. He would be very proud of his family returning on the 400th anniversary of his beloved cymbal company. This is a very symbolic trip for our family and our business,” Cady confesses in the interview with Mediamax.
Photo: Mediamax
She says that the events on the occasion of 400th anniversary of the Zildjian brand are still under preparation but “we will have several significant celebrations throughout 2023.”
Ara Tadevosyan
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