Today marks the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. On 24th April 1915 the Young Turk regime of the Ottoman Empire began to eliminate the Armenian population.

To mark this solemn occasion, and to honour the memory of the victims, the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation is sponsoring three memorial concerts in cities with an significant Armenian population which were close to our Founder: Istanbul, Paris, and London.  The Gulbenkian Choir sang at the concert in Paris and the Trustee responsible for the Armenian Communities Department, Martin Essayan, and the Director, Dr Razmik Panossian, are attending all three events and are currently in Istanbul.

Martin Essayan, who is the great grandson of Calouste Gulbenkian, said: «the Foundation is committed to supporting the continuing process of reconciliation between Turks and Armenians, there are many encouraging signs: the concert in Istanbul was attended by 2500 people. As sensitive as this issue is we are inspired by our founder’s example of persistence in bringing people together».