From August 9 to 10, Director of the State Orchestra of Folk Instruments of Gyumri, Merited Cultural Figure of the Republic of Armenia and folk singer Murad Malkhasyan gave concerts in Sydney, Australia. In an interview with Hayern Aysor, Murad said he had received the invitation from the AGBU Australia Chapter. “When I participated in the concerts with singers Forsh and Masha Mnjoyan on the sidelines of the Support to Education and Culture in the Armenian Communities of Australia Program of the RA Ministry of Diaspora in 2014, the Armenian community liked my performances and wished to listen to me again. As a matter of fact, I performed with Canada’s Ani Dance Ensemble, which was also invited to perform in Sydney,” the singer said.

On the first day of the concert tour, Murad performed eight songs in front of nearly 500 Australian-Armenians and received their warm rounds of applause. He performed more songs during the farewell banquet held the next day.

The singer left the Armenian community of Sydney with great impressions. He says the Australian-Armenians love Armenian songs and music and notes that the community is well-organized and open-hearted.

Attaching importance to the organizing of such events, Murad Malkhasyan mentioned the following: “Such gatherings help Diaspora Armenians see the homeland that they long for and never forget about Armenian culture. If only you can see how excited everyone is as they sing along with me. When the concert ends, they ask me to sing again.”

Murad Malkhasyan also expressed gratitude to the RA Ministry of Diaspora, especially Minister Hranush Hakobyan for carrying out programs devoted to preservation of the Armenian identity and organizing important events and meetings for Armenians around the world.

Gevorg Chichyan