Renowned Armenian folk singer Hasmik Harutyunyan continues to preserve the songs and traditions inherited from her ancestors through her music, connecting the past with the present.

Born in Yerevan in 1960, the singer’s family roots trace back to Mush in Western Armenia. Music and dance were a constant presence throughout her childhood. Harutyunyan’s artistic path later became closely connected with renowned folk musician Hayrik Muradyan and his daughter Maro. She joined the Akunk Ensemble, through which she studied Armenian traditional music in depth and contributed to its preservation.

In 1991, the Shoghaken Folk Ensemble was established in Yerevan, with Hasmik Harutyunyan among its founders. Her musical career later continued in the United States, where she participated in international tours and Yo-Yo Ma’s Silk Road Festival.

An important part of Harutyunyan’s artistic work has been the preservation of lullabies passed down from Western Armenia. In 2004, she released her album Armenian Lullabies, which also attracted the attention of The New York Times.

The singer places particular importance on passing traditional songs on to younger generations. During the First Artsakh War, she taught Armenian folk songs to children, and later established the Hayrik Muradyan Children’s Traditional Song and Dance Ensemble.

For Hasmik Harutyunyan, preserving these songs is not merely about continuing a musical heritage; it is a means of preserving memory, identity, and the connection with the ancestral homeland. In her words, her ancestors passed on to her a path that must be continued by carrying traditional songs forward to new generations.