USC Thornton Friends of Armenian Music Announces Scholarship Award Recipients

LOS ANGELES, Calif. – The USC Thornton Friends of Armenian Music has announced the recipients for the Fall 2019 and Spring 2020 scholarships. Scholarship awards are presented each year to students of Armenian descent enrolled in the USC Thornton School of Music.

Irene Sassounian, president of the USC Thornton Friends of Armenian Music, explained that in 1984 the organization established the USC Friends of Armenian Music Scholarship Fund, thanks to the generous donation of the late Mrs. Arhag Dickranian. The scholarship endowments have been augmented with the Daughters of Vartan, Helen Mardigian, Audrey Babakhanian Gregor, Anne Mills, Seda Marootian and Rose Ketchoyan Scholarship Award Endowments.

The Board of Directors for the USC Thornton Friends of Armenian Music

The Board of Directors is proud to recognize the following recipients of the scholarship awards. The amounts of the scholarships vary.

Sara Babikian (classical guitar) received the USC Friends of Armenian Music Scholarship; the USC Friends of Armenian Music Rose Ketchoyan Endowed Scholarship and the USC Friends of Armenian Music Seda Marootian Endowed Scholarship.

Bardy Minassian (classical guitar) received the USC Friends of Armenian Music Audrey Babakhanian Gregor Endowed Music Scholarship; and the USC Friends of Armenian Music Daughters of Vartan Endowed Scholarship.

Liza Monasebian (vocal arts) received the USC Friends of Armenian Music Helen Mardigian Endowed Scholarship.

In past years, these talented Armenian musicians and singers would be showcased and presented at major concerts, music lectures, seminars, symposiums and other ongoing projects. During these difficult and uncertain times due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Board of Directors has postponed events featuring these talented artists until there are operational changes and fewer restrictions.