Global Thursdays is now Global FRIDAYS! 

Hye Harmony: Creating Dreams for Armenian Children

7:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 7

Lower Level Auditorium, AANM
13624 Michigan Ave., Dearborn, MI 

SPECIAL BENEFIT CONCERT TICKETS $20

Southeast Michigan’s leading Armenian musicians – charismatic guitarist Sean Blackman (above left) and kanun virtuoso Ara Topouzian (above middle)– unite with New York-based vocalist Hooshere Bezdikian (above right) for this benefit concert for the children of Armenia, who have suffered for generations in the wake of early-20^th century genocide there. Hye (which translates as Armenian) Harmony takes place on the anniversary of the deadly 1988 earthquake in northern Armenia.

Blackman is a master of the acoustic nylon-string guitar, a composer and a visionary who has drawn top musicians from around the world to the Motor City. 2012 Kresge Artist Fellow Topouzian plays the kanun – a 76-stringed laptop Middle Eastern harp – in solo turns and with Armenian and Middle Eastern artists throughout the U.S. They performed together in Blackman’s In Transit, a 19-piece world music extravaganza that drew a capacity crowd to Detroit’s Orchestra Hall in 2010. 

Hooshere Bezdikian is a first-generation Armenian American who creates an inventive, balanced fusion of contemporary and traditional music - a unique electronica/trip-hop/rock sound, infused with her signature Armenian/Middle Eastern vibe. She performs regularly on the east and west coasts; her song Williow won first prize in the 2006 Billboard Song Contest. 

Watch videos: Ara Topouzian HERE, Sean Blackman HERE and Hooshere Bedzikian HERE. 

“One could say the world is Blackman’s oyster.”
-HOUR Detroit Magazine

“If you are a fan of Armenian kef (party) music, or most any kind of party music for that matter, you & yours will enjoy this…”
-www.amazon.com 

“Curtis Mayfield would agree…Hooshere has soul.”
-Peter Balakian, poet

Tickets for this benefit concert are $20 (no Museum Member discount), with half of all proceeds going to the Armenian Relief Society and its youth initiatives.