 | |
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Musical Instruments |
| Founded | 1623; 403 years ago (1623) inConstantinople,Ottoman Empire |
| Founder | Avedis Zildjian |
| Headquarters | , United States |
Key people | List
|
| Products | Cymbals,drumsticks,gongs,crotales,zills |
| Brands | List
|
| Website | zildjian.com |
TheAvedis Zildjian Company, simply known asZildjian (/ˈzɪldʒən,-dʒiən/),[2] is amusical instrument manufacturer specializing incymbals and other percussion instruments. Founded by the ethnicArmenian Zildjian family in the 17th-centuryOttoman Empire, the company relocated to theUnited States in the 20th century. Today, it is the largest cymbal and drumstick maker in the world.
The company was founded inIstanbul in 1623 by Avedis Zildjian, an Armenian. Zildjian is now based inNorwell, Massachusetts. Zildjian is the oldest manufacturer of musical instruments in the world as well as one of theoldest continuously operating companies in the world. Zildjian sells cymbals, drumsticks, percussion mallets and other drum accessories under the Zildjian,Vic Firth and Balter Mallet brands.[3][4][5][6][7][8]
The first Zildjian cymbals were created in 1618 by Avedis Zildjian, anArmenianmetalsmith andalchemist.[9] Like his father, who was also a metalsmith, he worked for the court of theSultan of the Ottoman Empire in Istanbul.[10] He made an alloy oftin,copper, andsilver into a sheet of metal, which could make musical sounds without shattering.[11] SultanMustafa I gave Avedis eighty gold pieces as a bequest, in addition to officially recognizing the surname Zilciyan or Zildjian, meaning "Son of a Cymbal Maker" or "Family of Cymbalsmiths" in Armenian (withzil being Turkish for "cymbal",ci meaning "maker", andian being the Armenian suffix meaning "son of").[12] In 1623 the Sultan granted him permission to leave the palace to start his own business in the Armenian sector of Istanbul, calledPsamatia.[13][14]
Zildjian's shop manufactured cymbals for themehter, Ottoman military bands consisting of wind and percussion instruments, which belonged to theJanissaries. Mehter ensembles, which were known in the West primarily for playing in battle, also performed courtly music for Ottoman rulers.[9][15][16] The Zildjians also produced instruments for Greek and Armenian churches, Sufidervishes, and belly dancers of theOttoman harem, who wore finger cymbals.[9]
After the death of Avedis, the business, and the secret for producing the metal, was handed down to several generations of male heirs. In the early 19th century, Haroutune Zildjian passed it on to his son Avedis II.[10] In 1850, Avedis II built a 25-foot schooner, in order to sail cymbals produced in Istanbul to trade exhibitions such as theGreat Exhibition in London,[9] and to supply musicians in Europe.[17][18] He died in 1865, and since his sons were too young, his brother Kerope II took over the company.[19] He introduced a line of instruments called K Zildjian, which are used by classical musicians to this day.[9][20] Kerope II died in 1909 in Istanbul.[19]
Following Kerope’s death, the business returned to Avedis’s side of the family. The eldest, Haroutune II, had become a lawyer and held a high position in the Ottoman government, thus he was not interested, and being a bachelor, he passed it to Aram. He was involved in the Armenian nationalist movement and resistance to theatrocities of the ruling Sultan,Abdul Hamid II. This was a time of political upheaval when the Ottoman Empire was in decline.[21][22][23][13]
During Aram's exile, Kerope II's daughter Victoria oversaw the Istanbul factory. There are conflicting accounts, but it is thought that Aram returned there in 1926.[10]
Haroutune II's son Avedis III had left Armenia for the United States in 1909, and settled inBoston, where he established a family and a confectionary business.[18][24] In 1927, he received a letter from his uncle Aram, informing him that he was to become heir to the family business, and Aram came to the US.[18] In 1928, Avedis III, his brother Puzant, and his uncle Aram Zildjian began manufacturing cymbals inQuincy, Massachusetts,[25][26] and the Avedis Zildjian Co. was formed the following year in 1929.[27]
Avedis III sought out jazz drummers likeGene Krupa to understand their needs.[28] The new cymbals he developed were widely adopted byswing and laterbebop musicians, laying the foundations of the modern drum kit and playing technique.[9]
Sales of Zildjian cymbals dramatically increased afterRingo Starr used the product inthe Beatles'appearance onThe Ed Sullivan Show in 1964.[29] This created an enormous backorder situation. In 1968, in order to address this backlog, a second plant, the Azco factory, was opened inMeductic,New Brunswick, Canada.[30]
In 1975, Zildjian began making K. Zildjian cymbals at the Azco plant.[31] These were made until 1979. Within four years (1980), all K Cymbals were being made in the Norwell US plant, because the Ks demanded far more oversight. Armand worked with friends, the drummersElvin Jones andTony Williams to relaunch the K Series.
In early 1977, Armand Zildjian was appointed President of the Avedis Zildjian Company by his father.[32] Soon after,Robert Zildjian split from the company amidst conflict with his brother, Armand. In 1981, Robert started makingSabian cymbals in the Canadian Azco factory.[33]
In 2002, Armand died at age 81. The Zildjian alloy recipe passed to his daughters, Craigie and Debbie (14th generation), both of whom continue to run the family business from the current headquarters inNorwell, Massachusetts.[32][34]
In 2010, Zildjian acquired theVic Firth Company and in 2018 acquired the Mike Balter Mallet company.[35]
Company, based in Norwell, Massachusetts, is the largest cymbal maker in the world and the oldest continuously family-run business in the United States.
Avedis Zildjian of Norwell, Massachusetts, can trace its history back to 1623 in Istanbul. It is the world's largest maker of cymbals for drummers and musicians.
When it came time to hand down the secret, Kerope had no sons, which resulted in his returning the secret to the sons of Avedis II who by then were old enough to carry on the tradition. Haroutian, who had since become a lawyer, was holding a high post equivalent to Attorney General for Turkey, consequently uninterested. The privilege was then passed to Aram, also a colorful figure in government but for different reasons. Aram was involved with the Armenian underground implicated with attempts to assassinate a powerful and dreaded sultan. The attempt failed and resulted in his fleeing to Bucharest, Rumania.
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42°9′42.30″N70°53′11.15″W / 42.1617500°N 70.8864306°W /42.1617500; -70.8864306
