Naghash Ensemble

About this event

The Naghash Ensemble brings together the earthy spirituality of Armenian folk song, contemporary classical music, and post-minimalism with the driving energy of rock and jazz. Named after the medieval Armenian mystic poet and priest Mkrtich Naghash, the ensemble reimagines his sacred texts in a strikingly modern musical language. Three extraordinary female vocalists join Armenia’s finest instrumentalists on duduk, oud, dhol, and piano to create a sound described that is at once ancient and urgent – “part folk music, part classical, and profoundly moving. Unmistakably Armenian, but out of this world.” Written by Armenian-American composer John Hodian, Songs of Exile is a profound meditation on humanity’s relationship to the divine, told through the voice of a monk cast into a long separation from his homeland.