Sound recordings of 11 sharakans: Mashtots. Sacred Pearls - Produced by the Naregatsi Art Institute

'Mashtots: Sacred Pearls' CD album is arranged by Vahan Artsruni and performed by soprano Hasmik Baghdasaryan, the album features both monophonic and sampler-arranged polyphonic recordings of sharakans (sacred songs) by Mesrop Mashtots. A rare artifact, the CD is the first ever published production in Armenia assembling all the 11 sharakans we definitely know belong to St. Mesrop Mashtots.

St. Mesrop Mashtots is commonly reputed for his invention of the Armenian Alphabet. He also stands in the roots of the origination and formation of the Armenian melos, since back in the 5th century he pioneered the creation of around 130 prose poetry pieces which were then transformed into music in collaboration with Catholicos St. Sahak Partev and incorporated into the Hymnal of the Armenian Church. This valuable musical heritage created by the Mashtots-Partev tandem is lost completely, with the exception of 11 of them which comprise the repertoire of the featured CD album.

Vahan Artsruni - composer, singer
Vahan Artsruni is an avant-garde Armenian artist. He creates in many different areas of music, (from chamber music to rock, from electronic music to symphonic and choral music), performs in various concert programs both in Armenia and abroad, as well as writes music for films, theater and actual art exhibitions. He is also known for his arrangements of sacred and liturgical music of the Assyrian Church of the East.

Hasmik Baghsasaryan has an exceptionally expressive voice, which enables her to convey the delicate nuances of Armenian sacred singing. She is the soloist of the National Chamber Choir of Armenia and Louys Vocal Quintet. With her idiosyncratic performance she is able to capture the haunting and revelatory spirit of the sacred music. She has performed Armenian sacred music in Armenia and other countries.