Haig Yazdjian is one of the great figures in world music. His super-charged -traditional meets modern- band, unites the two sides of his remarkable musical personality - the virtuosic traditionalist and the restless innovator.
Born in Syria of Armenian parents Yazdjian emigrated to Greece in the early '80s and as a young man, the electric guitar was on his mind rather than the oud. In the resonance of the instrument though, he did discover, the undiscovered lands of his expressive pursuits. In just a few years he established himself as a leading soloist in Greece, a reputation that brought him next to the prominent composers and leading singers.
In 2005, the Canadian world music diva, Loreenna McKennitt, after auditioning numerous musicians from around the world, chose Haig Yazdjian to be one of the «voices» of her latest project. After extensive rehearsals and recording sessions in Real World studios, England, Haig's oud playing found its way to the songs of An Ancient Muse, McKennitt's solo album that hit the stores late 2005. A European mini-tour followed, as well as the filming for a soon-to-be-released live DVD of Two Nights at the Alhambra.
Haig has also worked with numerous artists and composers, including : Ara Dinkjian, Theodosii Spasov, Eleftheria Arvanitaki, Eleni Vitali and others.
Haig is currently touring with 3 different projects :
Haig Yazdjian Group : with Nikos Sidirokastritis (drums), Petros Varthakouris (bass), Yiannis Kirimkiridis (keyboards), Jannis Anastasakis (guitars, sounds fx)
Haig Yazdjian Trio: with Yiotis Kiourtsoglou (bass) and Vangelis Karipis (percussion)
Haig Yazdjian Duet with Jannis Anastasakis (guitars, sounds fx)