Tuesday 29 April, 8:30 pm Castelliotissa Medieval Hall Wednesday 30 April ,8:30pm Charity Performance Presidential Palace Friday2 May, 8:30 pm Kolossi Castle " Through the purest and most elevated sound it is possible to bring harmony into the soul of man and in all nature" Garo Keheyan Under the patronage of the First Lady of the Republic of Cyprus Mrs Lilla Irene Clerides

The Moscow Armenian Cappella Choir was formed in 1989 with the support of the composer Edvard Mirzoyan and is one of many fine choral groups based in the Russian capital. The choir has participated in many Sacred Music Festivals and performed for the victims of the Armenian earthquake and the Chernobyl nuclear accident. Their repertoire consists of over 250 works mainly comprised of early sacred music from the Armenian and Russian canon as well as folk music from these countries, in addition to works by Orlando de Lasso, Pergolesi, Bach, Vivaldi, Mozart, and Handel. It is hoped that these performances will extend exposure to the sacred music of the Orthodox churches to Western audiences. Members of the Moscow Armenian Cappella Choir. Ninel Andriassova, Archak Gadzian, Irina Alimvskaia, Naira Asriian, Karine Bagdassarian, Parguev Grigorian, Elena Karapetian, Seda Khatchatrian, Valeri Khramov, Armen Pogossian, Elena Popova, Roupen Stepanian, Anna Titova, Edgar Minassian Nelli Antreassian Musical director and conductor of the Moscow Armenian Cappella Choir, was born in Rostov on the Don in 1926. She graduated in conducting from the Moscow Conservatoire and studied with Shvelnikov and Stepanov. During her long career she has established four choral groups, three of which are still active. These include the University Choir of Tula, the Ural Cappella Choir, and the Conductors' Choir of Moscow. In addition to conducting she has taught several generations of Russian musicians at prestigious conservatoires throughout Russia. The conductor Alexander Yurlov has said of her "This woman has a superior conducting skill, a deep and delicate way of thinking, and thoroughly feels the music of every single culture". Parguev Grigorian Tenor, was born in Gumri, Armenia in 1946 and graduated in vocal music and cello from the Gorky Conservatoire, studying with Dickran Atamian. He has performed with the Moscow State Choir as a soloist in Russian and Armenian operatic roles and is a leading interpreter of the music of Komitas. Seda Khatchatrian Soprano, was born in Gumri, Armenia in 1952 and studied vocal music at the Yerevan Music Conservatoire under Amalia Aznavourian, (the niece of the singer Charles Aznavour), as well as drama and singing with Tatul Altounian. Roupen Stepanian Tenor, was born in Yerevan, Armenia in 1959 and moved to Moscow in 1964. In 1982 he graduated from the Moscow Eneked Institute and has sang as a soloist in many choral groups. PROGRAMME