Rafik Hakobyan has been singing in the Maratuk Ensemble for many years. Since childhood, he has always listened to Armenian music since his parents also had great experience in singing Armenian songs. Rafik Hakobyan is from Sasun.

Talking about the Maratuk Ensemble, Mr. Hakobyan said the creation of the ensemble coincided with the era of Communism. The ensemble faced many difficulties and was prohibited from performing, but that didn’t stop the members from performing and continuing to sing with honor. Of course, that was all due to their patriotism and determination to keep singing Armenian songs.

Currently, Rafik Hakobyan is sharing the knowledge and skills that he gained and acquired from his teachers Tatul Krpeyan, Mkrtich Sargsyan and dance instructor Artyusha Karapetyan with the young generation in several villages of Armenia. He teaches youth Armenian folk songs, the songs of troubadours and Armenian dances at the clubs that he has created.

The concert tours in different communities of the Armenian Diaspora form an inseparable part of the activities of Maratuk Ensemble. The ensemble has performed in almost all communities and has been well received with rounds of applause from the local Armenians. There have been cases when people have approached the members and asked them to donate their costumes. Seeing how emotional they got, they weren’t able to reject them. Hakobyan is especially impressed by the reception of the Armenian communities in Aynchar, Aleppo, Damascus, Kessab and Latakia. “We gave great concerts in these communities, and my impressions were unforgettable,” Mr. Hakobyan mentioned.

Since 2009, the Hakobyans have been hosting Diaspora Armenian children participating in the “Ari Tun” Program organized by the RA Ministry of Diaspora, and Rafik Hakobyan said the following about that: “My daughter-in-law told me about the program, and it interested me a lot. When I was told about the terms and conditions, I decided to host the Diaspora Armenian children since I consider it my duty to the homeland. To this day, I have already hosted eight children from Cyprus, Rostov-na-Don, Georgia and other countries and have taught all the children Armenian songs and dances. I must say that they learned with pleasure and excitement. They would always ask me to teach them new songs and dances. I didn’t let them speak in foreign languages and made them speak only in Armenian with me. On my free time, I would talk to them, take them out for walks and show them historic buildings and monuments. Basically, I did everything I could to instill in them the love for Armenia. I’m always ready to host the Diaspora Armenian children and urge all Armenian families to do the same, if they can.”

Gevorg Chichyan