Ara Malikian pays homage to Radiohead and “La cucaracha”

Playing the same violin his grandfather, who he describes as a nearly inexpressive man, gave to him, Ara Malikian brought life to Paganini , paid homage to the traditional Mexican song “La Cucaracha” , and re-envisioned Radiohead .

Often called the rock star of this string instrument, the Lebanese musician dressed up for his recital at the Auditorio Nacional (National Auditorium) , on Wednesday night . He wore a black tailcoat from which hung an orange neckerchief, matching the shoelaces on his shoes that glowed in the dark.

“I’m very happy and glad to be standing in this wonderful place, this is awesome, thank you very much,” expressed Ara Malikian, his face covered in sweat, when first interacting with his audience. The day after the concert, he tweeted: "Thank you, Mexico, last night at the Auditorium, we were received with so much love and care. Mexico is such a beautiful place with exceptional people. Thank you, Mexico, for inspiring me so much with all your beauty, art, and music."

Shortly before, he had jumped around the stage like a rock star and “faced” his fellow musicians on stage, staring attentively into their eyes as they played. The charismatic showman had seven musicians playing the viola, drums, guitar, double bass, cello, Indian tabla, and a second violin.

An initial remix which included “Voodoo Child” by Jimmy Hendrix , and Mozart’s “Requiem” set the tone for the night. People in the audience rarely ever stood up to clap, but while they sat, they didn’t stop clapping and moving their legs to the beat. Ara played some of his original compositions: “Kach nazar ,” “Con mucha nata ,” and “Broken eggs,” as well as “Paranoid Android,” by Radiohead , and “La Campanella,” by Nicolo Paganini.

“My grandfather gave the violin to me, he was a very peculiar man, he was very serious and rarely talked. He was so serious that my family thought he had some kind of facial paralysis,” he told laughing. “The funny thing is that everyone knew him as a dancer and we just couldn’t picture him dancing anything, or if he even knew how.”

Outside the auditorium, numerous peddlers sold hats and t-shirts with the artist’s name. Ara Malikian is currently living in Spain , where he has learned the Spanish language.

dm