Fifty years after it opened Oshakan Music School celebrated. Its recent anniversary concert, during which students performed the works of Aram Khachaturian, Arno Babajanyan, Alexander Spendiaryan, Lordansky, and Chopin, delighted its audiences.
Founded in 1971, the music school had fallen into disrepair until 2012 when we decided to help fully renovate and refurbish it.
“We underwent crucial changes in 2012 when FAR jumped in to rejuvenate our school, which was falling apart at the time,” said Principal Ashot Matosyan. “Since then, our students have flourished because they have been able to learn in a nice, clean, and enriching environment.”
Oshakan serves around 70 students between the ages of 6 and 17 from throughout Armenia's Aragatsotn Province. They include students like 12-year-old twins Levon and Alen Mkhitaryan and their older brother Hovhannes, 13.
“My father and grandfather used to play the piano when we were kids. So we started playing instruments from early ages. Now, I’m in my sixth year, while Alen and Levon are in their fourth year of piano,” said Hovhannes, who hopes to one day become a professional duduk plater.