The Music of Armenia, Volume 1: Sacred Choral Music
The choir performing onThe Music of Armenia, Volume One:  Sacred Choral Musicis the Haissmavourk of Gtoutiun, A.B.U., or, in  English, Haissmavourk of Charity. The A.B.U. designation refers to the  American Benevolent Union, a private American trust at work in Armenia. The  choir, which performs, and is famous throughout Armenia, was created in  1990 and only sings sacred music.The choir's musical director, Mihran  Ghazelian was born in Beirut, but had his musical education in Armenia. He  is also the musical director and conductor of the Echmiadzin Cathedral. He  is both a conductor and musicologist and has toured as conductor of  Armenian choirs in Canada and England.Ghazelian is also a graduate of  the Komitas State Conservatory, Yerevan. The conservatory's namesake,  Komitas Vardapet (1869-1935), was the arranger of many of the tracks onThe Music of Armenia, Volume One: Sacred Choral Musicas well as  many tracks on the other five volumes. Armenian music has it roots in  Eastern traditions and is not bound by the rules of Western music. Komitas  had the idea of making this music polyphonic and subsequently arranged  hundreds of folk songs that he collected from the villages.