Behind the duduk — a living story
The DUDUKIST project was created by devotees of this extraordinary instrument. We promote the duduk in Russia and around the world.
Suren and Marina
“I'm proud of our project and of the duduk! I'm sure there are millions like me!”— Suren Baghdasaryan
“I realised that through my love for the duduk I'm doing good for the Armenian people!”— Marina Selivanova
Our mission
The duduk deserves to be known not only by Armenians. With this music we want to unite the peoples of the world.
Our philosophy
Legends tell of a mysterious music of the spheres at the foundation of the world. We are convinced the duduk is among them.
World recognition
In 2005, UNESCO proclaimed the Armenian duduk and its music a masterpiece of the intangible heritage of humanity.
What we strive for
- 01The duduk should bring people joy.
- 02To hold a duduk festival in every country in the world.
- 03To give everyone who wishes the chance to learn to play the duduk.
- 04High-quality, talentedly performed duduk music.
- 05The music of the duduk should sound in space.
The duduk
The duduk is an ancient Armenian reed wind instrument that can only be made from apricot wood. The sound is produced by the vibration of two reed plates driven by the blown air.
The tube is 36 cm long, with 8 holes on top and 2 on the back. The duduk is in the key of A, with a range from F# of the small octave to B of the first octave.
2014 — 2019
- 2014
The 1st Moscow International Duduk Festival. Opening of the duduk school in Moscow.
- 2015
The 2nd festival at the Moscow State Variety Theatre. The 'Music of the Soul' show on YouTube. Creation of the 'Dudukist' ensemble.
- 2016
International duduk festival in Spain. The 3rd Moscow International Duduk Festival.
- 2017
The 4th Moscow International Duduk Festival at the State Kremlin Palace.
- 2018
The 5th festival at the Moscow Planetarium. The 'Duduk in Space' project.
- 2019
The project celebrated its fifth anniversary on 24 January. The first Duduk by Candlelight concert, featuring Aram Avedikyan, took place on 21 February. In autumn, DUDUKIST and the Armenian Museum of Moscow organised the Armenian Culture Season, which included the 6th Duduk Festival in a new chamber concert format.
The duduk in the Kremlin
On 1 October 2017 the festival took place at the State Kremlin Palace. The world's best duduk players on one stage, with more than 1,500 spectators. Accompanied by the Boyan orchestra, conducted by Nikolai Stepanov.
Duduk in space
On 6 and 7 October, the anniversary 5th festival was held in the Great Star Hall of the Moscow Planetarium — a show with full immersion in a full-dome video projection. Over two days, 800 spectators.
Armenian Culture Season
Together with the Armenian Museum of Moscow, we organised the Autumn Armenian Culture Season. The 6th Duduk Festival was part of its programme, with a series of chamber concerts at the Sergei Prokofiev Museum. The photograph shows the Continuity of Generations concert on 9 October: the Tsirani duduk ensemble led by Armen Hovhannisyan and the Zatik kanon ensemble led by Iskuhi Karapetyan.
Want to know more about us?
Read our book, “What Does an Event Organiser Think About?”. Suren Baghdasaryan and Marina Selivanova share the story of Dudukist: how a love of the duduk became their life’s work, how the festivals came together and what the experience taught them.
Certificates and letters of thanks
As featured in the media
We'll help you pick your duduk
Leave your contacts and a few words about what you need — we'll tell you about keys and masters and help you choose.
