An Armenian-American Oud player who is regarded as one of the most renowned Armenian musicians preserving the folk and classical repertoire from the Ottoman Empire. At 13 he began his study of traditional Armenian music with displaced musicians from the ‘old country’ and quickly learned over 1500 folk songs and soon became an expert in the classical art music of the Ottoman Empire. For decades he has acted as one of the most important collectors of Armenian music, learning tunes and dances from his parents’ and grandparents’ generations and passing this musical heritage on to his children, the community, and audiences through-out the world. He was honored with a Meet the Composer Grant from the New York State Music Council of the Arts in 1990 and has instructed master classes at both the Manhattan School of Music and California State University, Fresno, where he served as Artist in Residence. The New York Times has referred to him as “one of America’s most accomplished folk musicians.”