BOSTON — The Armenian International Women’s Association (AIWA) will host the internationally acclaimed Armenian singer from Istanbul, Sibil, in her first New England appearance on Saturday, September 30, at 7 p.m. at the Ellsworth Theatre in Pine Manor College, Newton.
“We are thrilled that Sibil could come to help support AIWA and our mission of empowering women,” said AIWA Vice President and Chair of the Planning Committee Carolyn Atinizian. “She is a call to the past and the future for strong, talented and determined Armenian women. We know that both Armenians and non-Armenians will be moved by her performance and the special guests she has invited for the evening.”
Tickets for “An Evening with Sibil” are $100, $75 and $50 (with discounts for AIWA members), and are available at www.aiwainternational.org/sibil. Music lovers are urged to reserve tickets soon, as a sold-out audience is expected. Seats are grouped on a first-come, first-served basis.
“An Evening with Sibil” provides a unique opportunity for the community to become acquainted with the Istanbul singer’s lovely renditions of traditional Armenian and other Middle Eastern melodies, along with her striking presentation of new music. Sibil’s appearances have inspired Armenian and non-Armenian audiences alike throughout the Middle East as well as in Europe and America. The winner of several international awards, she has twice performed at the opening ceremonies of the Pan-Armenian Games, where Armenia’s President Serzh Sargsyan awarded her the “Medal of Gratitude” for her contribution to the games.
Sibil’s first CD released in 2011 quickly became a popular hit, with songs such as Namag (Letter, with lyrics by the Armenian poet Hovanes Shiraz), Giligya (Cilicia), and Oror (Lullaby). It was followed shortly thereafter by her second album “Ser” (Love), which was widely applauded. Her music videos have been widely played in Turkey and they include the first Armenian-language songs to be aired on Turkish state and leading television channels there.
A native of Istanbul, Sibil was named after the well-known Armenian writer Zabel Assadur, whose pen name was Sibil. Her father, Garbis, was born in Istanbul, and her mother, Mari, comes from a Sebastia/Tocat family that fled from home during the Armenian Genocide.