Right now, the need to visit Armenia again is pretty strong. Since Lilit Pipoyan performed here in Boston, I have once again turned my attention to new artist development in Armenia. I am happy to say that Lilit and I have tenatively agreed to release her 3rd CD on Pomegranate. While she is an established musician, there are others that have immense talent in Armenia without an outlet. I hope to visit Armenia in March for about 7 days to sign a new artist. If you know of any unique talent in Hayastan, please email me. I can tell you that kemancha players, female folk/pop vocalists, avant garde classical music, and traditional folk ensembles are on my hit list this time around.

Getting our products into distribution can sometimes be a headache. Right now, I am soliciting this UK company called PROPER to get our stuff in all of the UK stores. If you have a big catalog, your chances increase. If you have a small catalog, the stuff better be good and sell. Here in the States, there is a crisis in the recording industry. Selling CD's for $18.99 won't fly anymore and there is a major backlash. Some ways labels try to get around this boycott is to offer the music online at iTunes or MusicMatch for around $9.99. Downloads are the way to go. Or, simply selling CD's for around $13 does the trick as well if you want the booklet. Either way, the industry is tanking and major changes need to take place.

Bootlegging in Armenia. I have finally submitted to the reality that we will have to offer our products in Armenia for about $4. No way around it. That should start in the summer...

Peace.