The Los Angeles Philharmonic Association and KCRW present Spirit of Armenia! on Sunday, July 29, at the Hollywood Bowl. This performance is one of six Sunday evening performances that comprise the 2007 KCRW World Festival at the Hollywood Bowl. This first-ever night completely dedicated to Armenian music and culture features renowned Armenian artists, and the colorful costumes and dancing that symbolize the spirit Armenian. This evening's host is Tom Schnabel, KCRW personality and the Philharmonic's Program Advisor for World Music.
 
 Spirit of Armenia! brings together a large group of distinguished local and international Armenian artists. Acclaimed leaders of modern Armenian pop music, Adiss, Andy, Silva Hakobyan and Sako, make their Hollywood Bowl debuts. Musician and composer Jivan Gasparyan performs Armenian folk music playing the duduk, the traditional woodwind instrument of Armenia. Gasparyan is a master of the duduk, having dedicated over 50 years of his life to studying the instrument.

Winds of Passion, comprised of some of the most accomplished duduk players in the world today, performs as a duduk quartet, the first of its kind. Young tenor Hovhannes Shahbazyan sings Armenian traditional folk and gousan music, and classical pianist and composer Vatché Mankerian also performs a specially arranged composition of Armenian folk and classical repertoire.

Los Angeles-based ensemble, Element Band, draws inspiration from widespread and multicultural sources, resulting in a unique Armenian "folk-fusion" sound. In the second half, conductor Roma Kanyan leads a special band created for this Spirit of Armenia! program.

Zvartnots Dance Ensemble and Vartan & Siranoush Gevorkian Dance Ensemble, dressed in rich, colorful costumes, perform high-energy choreography to both traditional and contemporary Armenian music.

Other 2007 KCRW World Festival performances include DJ Shadow & Cut Chemist perform Brain Placement: 7 Inches Of Fury, Carlinhos Brown and Sierra Leone's Refugee All Stars on June 24;

Café Tacuba and Groove Armada on July 15; Reggae Night VI with Burning Spear, Sly & Robbie and The Taxi Gang with Horace Andy and Cherine Anderson on Aug. 12; Macy Gray, Zap Mama, and the Brazilian Girls on Aug. 26; and Underworld on Sept. 9.

The Hollywood Bowl is located at 2301 N. Highland Ave. in Hollywood. Tickets ($7 - $95) are on sale now at the Hollywood Bowl Box Office, by calling Ticketmaster at 213.480.3232, at all Ticketmaster outlets (Tower Records and Ritmo Latino locations), or online at HollywoodBowl.com. Groups of 12 or more may be eligible for a 20% discount, subject to availability; call 323.850.2050 for further details. For general information or to request a brochure, call 323.850.2000.