Naghash Ensemble of Armenia to Perform in Southern California Tickets for Concerts at The Wallis Annenberg Center in Beverly Hills on November 18 And The Conrad in La Jolla on November 22 

“The sounds of Ancient Armenia reinvented for the 21st century.” — Tigran Mansurian

“A moment of grace and meditation.” — Rolling Stone

“East meets West and antiquity meets modernity.” — NPR

LOS ANGELES, CA— With their genre-defying new music, Armenia’s internationally acclaimed Naghash Ensemble will embark on a North American tour in November 2026, performing in eleven cities across the U.S. and Canada. Tickets are available now for two California appearances: The Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts in Beverly Hills on Wednesday, November 18 at 7:30 p.m., and The Conrad Prebys Performing Arts Center in La Jolla on Sunday, November 22 at 3 p.m.

Based in Yerevan and led by Armenian-American composer John Hodian, the ensemble combines the earthy spirituality of Armenian folk song, new classical music, and contemporary post-minimalism with the energy of rock and jazz. Featuring three brilliant female vocalists and some of Armenia’s finest instrumentalists on duduk, oud, dhol, and piano, their performances bring new life to the sacred texts of medieval Armenian mystic poets Mkrtich Naghash and Kostandin Erznkatsi. For their upcoming American tour, The Naghash Ensemble will present several brand-new compositions along with signature pieces, drawn from every stage of their career.

Sacred Sounds Inspire Some of Armenia’s Most Intriguing New Music:
The Story of The Naghash Ensemble

In 2005, American-Armenian composer John Hodian had just started exploring many of the ancient monasteries and sacred spaces in the country of his ancestors. He was alone at Garni temple, a Greco-Roman structure dating back to pagan times, when he was suddenly struck by what he describes as “the most beautiful sound I’ve ever heard.” It turned out to be the voice of Hasmik Baghdasaryan, Armenia’s leading performer of medieval spiritual music, who was rehearsing at the temple.

“The sound of that voice in that temple was mesmerizing, and it remained in my mind for days after,” says Hodian. “I was determined to write something that would use this sound in a new way.”

Though he knew what the music would sound like, Hodian spent several years looking for just the right text to set to music until he finally came across a short fragment of a poem by a little-known Armenian medieval priest named Mkrtich Naghash. This haunting text described the terrifying plight of people forced to live in exile. “The words leapt off the page and into my soul. I knew I had found my text.” The original manuscripts were lost, but Hodian was able to track down versions by later copyists. With the help of several Armenian scholars and a group of monks living on a small island off the coast of Italy (the Mekhitarists of San Lazzaro degli Armeni), he was able to unearth all the remaining 16 poems.

In setting these texts to music, Hodian followed his intuition. “The music is the natural outcome of someone who was raised listening to Armenian Music in the home, but studied European classical music in his youth, particularly medieval polyphonic vocal music, and certain contemporary minimalist composers. Plus, I was constantly surrounded by popular music in all its forms.” Subconsciously combining all these influences, his compositions have been described as “Armenia’s most intriguing new music” by German radio WDR, and “a moment of meditation and grace” by Rolling Stone magazine.

To perform these works, Hodian gathered some of Armenia’s most virtuosic instrumentalists on oud, duduk and dhol, along with three stunning female vocalists, including his original inspiration, Hasmik Baghdasaryan. The group launched their first European tour in 2014 and has been touring internationally ever since. The Wallis presents the Beverly Hills concert, billed as Songs of Exile, at its Bram Goldsmith Theater. Four days later, La Jolla Music Society presents the closing concert of the tour at the Baker-Baum Concert Hall as part of its Global Roots series, with a prelude at 2 p.m. in The JAI.

The Naghash Ensemble consists of Hasmik Baghdasaryan (soprano), Tatevik Movsesyan (soprano), Shahane Zalyan (alto), Andranik Gasparyan (duduk), Aramayis Nikoghosyan (oud), Tigran Hovhannisyan (dhol), John Hodian (piano/composer).

“Part folk music, part classical, and profoundly moving. Unmistakably Armenian, but out of this world” — Armenisch-Deutsche Korrespondenz

“An enchanting elixir of sounds based on new Armenian folk and centuries-old poetry” — KEXP

The Naghash Ensemble’s full 2026 North American tour comprises:

Nov 4, 2026 • Salisbury University • Salisbury, MD, USA

Nov 5, 2026 • Universal Preservation Hall • Saratoga Springs, NY, USA

Nov 6, 2026 • The Colonial Theatre • Keene, NH, USA

Nov 8, 2026 • Stable Hall • San Antonio, TX, USA

Nov 10, 2026 • Goodson Chapel, Shenandoah University • Winchester, VA, USA

Nov 13, 2026 • Camp Concert Hall, Modlin Center • Richmond, VA, USA

Nov 15, 2026 • Stetson Chapel, Kalamazoo College • Kalamazoo, MI, USA

Nov 17, 2026 • Town Hall Seattle • Seattle, WA, USA

Nov 18, 2026 • The Wallis Annenberg Center • Beverly Hills, CA, USA

Nov 20, 2026 • Koerner Hall • Toronto, Canada

Nov 22, 2026 • The Conrad • La Jolla,