Recording Armenia's original arrangement and cover of "Mary, Did You Know?" at Desert Fish Studios
Armenia Sarkissian
is a singer, songwriter, composer, orchestrator, and vocal engineer, living in Toronto. Performing since the age of 10, and composing since the age of 8, Armenia has become a seasoned musician by the age of 24. Her performance styles and training range from classical and operatic, to middle eastern, metal, jazz, bossa-nova, and musical theatre. Categorized as a high spinto soprano, Armenia has a warm and dark timbre, which spans over 3 octaves, giving her ease in high registers but fullness in her lower range. Armenia has a BFA in composition from York University and operatic voice is her current field of focused vocal study, with Helga Tucker at the Royal Conservatory of Music. Armenia always strives to maintain a classical foundation while inserting influences from her eclectic training.
Armenia also studied song-writing at the age of 15 with former Canadian Idol Judge and president of Venus Records, Zack Werner.
Influenced by the sounds around her and the Western Asian music she grew up with, Armenia has always combined traditional Armenian folk and liturgical music with her passion for symphonic orchestrations; five years ago she realized those musical identities could easily fuse with her love for metal music, and there bloomed a romance Armenia could never return from. Armenia always seeks to make interesting and universal musical connections with her original material.
Musically, there is nothing more important to Armenia than collaborating - Armenia has worked with musicians Levon Ichkhanian, Henrik Karapetyan, Adam Batstone, Michael Berkovsky, Todd Yaniw, and Oscar Rangal of Operus; Film-composers Spencer Creaghan, Milen Petzelt-Sorace, and Isaias Garcia; Rap artist, R-Mean of Los Angelas, and many other fine artists. As a session vocalist, Armenia has written and recorded vocal parts for numerous projects, ranging from film scores, to albums, theatre projects, and even a metal opera. The vocal styles required for these diverse projects ranged from atmospheric vocal textures, to dramatic mid-century Italian opera, indie-pop, classical art-songs, and strong female metal leads.
When not training her operatic voice, recording as a session vocalist, or composing for herself and others, Armenia performs classical and Armenian repertoire in-and-out of the GTA (General Toronto Area), either as a solo soprano or with Horovel Armenian-Folk Ensemble. Over the years, Armenia has become the "go-to‐girl" for big and intimate events in the Toronto Armenian community; She performed at the welcoming ceremony for His Excellency, Levon Martirosyan, who was newly appointed Armenia's ambassador to Canada; the event was attended by multiple Members of Parliament and consisted of Armenian cultural performances.
Armenia also engineers and orchestrates for local bands and various clients in her home- studio. Specializing in vocal-engineering, she has coached several vocalists during their time in her studio while recording for their respective projects. Last year Armenia recorded her first symphonic metal album, “Lopsided Moon,” with co-orchestrator and fellow composer, Spencer Creaghan, and was honoured to be nominated for Metal Storm’s “Best Symphonic Metal Album of 2015” on her debut album.
"With fewer and fewer people making quality symphonic metal, I do hope Armenia and friends stay in the game and continue to grow in their songwriting and performance. This is a very solid introduction from an artist I hope to meet again and again.”
– METAL STORM
"My own self" opens with a subtle, dark piano melody that gradually incorporates symphonic arrangements...bordering on the progressive, and at times approaching the Gothic style of Within Temptation or Nightwish, but never coming into a full cloning (thank you, really)....Fantastic combination of these Canadians who hopefully will not stop here and have a proper continuation"
– Miguel Ramirez, MUNDO ROCK & HEAVY
...from the tragic orchestrations through to the propulsive metal passages and Armenia's angelic voice...Lopsided Moon is a stunner of a debut album and leaves the listener wanting more from Armenia. Where most bands achieve a good debut at best, Armenia has provided a masterpiece that can only be likened to albums from acts such as Leaves' Eyes and Within Temptation.
-NicoSolheim-Davidson, ENCHANTED STORM