The biography and intellectual legacy of Komitas Vardapet, an orphan from Kütahya who became one of the foremost Armenian intellectuals of his day, is firmly embedded within Armenian national lore. Yet, seldom has it been told as an Ottoman story. Drawing on sources in Turkish, Armenian, and English, this mixtape presents the life and works of Komitas through some of the earliest recordings of Armenian music, including his own performances.

Part 1 deals with the early life of Komitas Vardapet, his education in Etchmiadzin and Berlin, and the crystallization of his ideas about folk music and culture.