On June 17, RA Minister of Diaspora Hranush Hakobyan received artistic director of Djanbazian Dance Academy of Los Angeles Anna Djanbazian and the director of the dance group Aram Ananian. The guests were accompanied by President of the National Dance Art Union of Armenia, Merited Cultural Figure of the Republic of Armenia Karen Gevorgyan.

Greeting the guests, Minister Hranush Hakobyan attached great importance to Djanbazian Dance Academy’s activities that help many young Armenian Americans learn about that unique type of art and become aware of their national identity and the spirit of the nation. “I thank you for showing love and putting in your time and effort to advocate culture, which is the major foundation for preservation of the Armenian identity in the Diaspora,” the minister said. Hranush Hakobyan also welcomed Anna Djanbazian’s and Aram Ananian’s idea of giving a concert in Armenia and considered it a special way of giving an account to Armenians in the Homeland.

Expressing her words of gratitude, Anna Djanbazian mentioned that even though she was visiting Armenia for the third time, she always leaves her mind and soul in Armenia whenever she leaves. “I’m happy that I can convey my feelings to my students through dance and through the language of dance,” she said, adding that the Djanbazian Dance Academy will be dedicating the performance of the “Karahunj” dance to the Centennial of the Armenian Genocide during the upcoming concert.

At the end, Minister Hranush Hakobyan granted the Komitas Medal of the RA Ministry of Diaspora to dance instructor and artistic director of the Djanbazian Dance Academy Anna Djanbazian for her great contributions to the preservation and development of Armenian cultural heritage in the Diaspora.