Café Duduk
Contemporary Duduk Band|www.cafeduduk.com
Café Duduk is a musical adventure that was inspired by a love for Armenian duduk music. Sar Kamler and pianist Viktor Kott combine their talents to present acoustic lounge and chill out jazz interpretations of Armenian and original music performed by duduk and piano.
The repertoire of Café Duduk includes Armenian spirituals and folk songs written as early as the 10th century, as well as contemporary jazz standards and original compositions for duduk and piano.
The duduk (/du:ˈdu:k/ doo-DOOK; or “tsiranapogh” in Armenian meaning “apricot-made wind instrument”), is an ancient Armenian double reed woodwind instrument made of apricot wood. It is indigenous to Armenia, however variations of the Armenian duduk appear throughout the Caucasus, Balkans and the Middle East. The duduk has been on UNESCO’s Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity since 2008.
Having existed for around 1,200 years, this double-reed wind instrument is characterized by a warm, soft, slightly nasal timbre, with a rawness that draws parallels to the human voice. It is a stunning, soulful, and emotionally powerful instrument that speaks to everyone in some way, no matter what their race, color, or religious beliefs are.
Viktor Kott is a professional musician who is always on the move and looking for new ideas. Professionally trained as a pianist in Kharkov, Ukraine, Victor immigrated to Canada in 2003 where he also mastered a variety of other instruments, such as the duduk, melodica, Irish flute, and jaw harp (khomus).
An accomplished pianist and composer Viktor recorded and produced two solo albums containing his original compositions, You & Me (2014) and Unconditional Love (2015).
In the course of his career, Viktor has performed extensively in Canada and the United States and was a part of many creative projects, such as the Russian Festival of Toronto (2013, 2014), Series Of Jewish Music (2017), and OMNI Television Project Armenian Sounds Of Canada (2019).
A true believer that music has the capacity to heal the mind, body, and soul, Sar Kamler is a Toronto-based Armenian musician whose sound pivots around the duduk, a 1,200 year old double-reeded woodwind instrument native to Armenia. It’s through a deep understanding of the duduk that Sar centres his music around the themes of love, believing that a lot of light can be brought into our world through his idyllic style of music.
Sar has performed across the Toronto area, beginning in early 2019 with the “Mystical Duduk in Toronto” concert in 2019, where he played in a trio alongside renowned duduk players Artak Asatryan and Georgy Minasyan . In February 2019 the “Armenia Meets Cuba” jazz project showcased Sar performing live alongside world-renowned jazz pianist Hilario Duran, combining the ancient, soulful music of Armenia with the dynamics and rhythms of Cuba.
In 2020, Sar performed his first solo concert in the Armenian episode of Sounds of Canada, a project that features music of all ethnicities and nationalities on Canadian soil, and released two music videos in collaboration with oud player Alexey Reznik.
