YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 11, ARMENPRESS. The new album by Istanbul-Armenian singer Sibil Pektorosoglu titled “Love” (“Ser” in Armenian) appeared in the markets from February 11. In a conversation with “Armenpress” Sibil stated that “Love” is her second album, which is introduced to the public after a break, which lasted almost 3 years. There are 12 songs in the album. 11 of them are Armenian-language songs and 1 is represented in English. The Armenian singer decided to release the album under the title “Love” as she is confident that love is the best and strongest feeling.

Sibil Pektorosoglu is an Istanbul (Constantinople) born singer of Armenian descent and heritage. Her family changed Torosyan surname into Pektorosoglu. She started singing with St. Vardanants choir.

The first music notes that Sibil was exposed to were the prayers and hymns of the Armenian Church, since her father would take her to church every Sunday morning as a child. Her talent and love for music were discovered by her parents when Sibil would come home and sing and recite the prayers she had just heard during the church services. However, the opportunities were not there for young Sibil to develop a strong foundation in music.

Sibil attended Mihitaryan elementary school in Istanbul and then studied finance. Currently, she works in a financial institution. But her passion for music never faded. Since1991 she has been a member and lead soloist of St. Vartanantz Choir in Istanbul. Her break came in 1999 when she appeared on stage in the production of Dikran Chookhajian’s musical comedy “Leblebiji,” which was sponsored at the time by the Istanbul Esayan Alumni. It was in that production that she met one of Istanbul’s most respected modern-day composers and musicians, Majak Tosikyan. Tosikyan composed several songs and Sibil sang these songs in such inspiring ways that she became his best Armenian music interpreter.

In 2010, Sibil realized her lifelong dream — her CD was released with 11 songs, produced with the help of Armenian, Greek and Turkish artists. The songs Namag, Desnem Ani’n oo Nor Mernem, Giligya, Im Anoush Davigh, Oror, Hisus, Der Voghormia, Tzarav Seri, Gyanki mi Hamar,Siro Tzayni and Nayem were echoed through the streets of Istanbul. People liked what they heard.

Sibil’s voice continued to ring on the Armenian stage in Istanbul, in the Armenian churches as well as in the Holy Cross Armenian Church on the Island of Akhtamar. Some of Sibil’s songs were released as videos and attracted thousands of Turkish and Armenian fans. Turkey’s leading private TV channels as well as the country’s state-run broadcaster have broken new ground in airing Armenian music videos on popular stations for the first time in Turkey’s history. Sibil’s videos appeared also on YouTube exposing her unique voice and style to a larger audience all over the world.

In summer 2011, Sibil was invited to Armenia to sing at the opening and closing ceremonies of the Pan Armenian Games. That performance was carried live on Armenian TV and was watched throughout the communities of the Armenian Diaspora.

"Letter" is a poem by renowned Armenian writer Hovhannes Shiraz. It was also released as a video and attracted thousands of Turkish and Armenian fans, Turkey’s leading private music TV channels as well as the country’s state-run TRT broadcaster have broken new ground in airing an Armenian music video on popular stations for the first time in Turkey’s modern history. “Namag” (Letter) by Pektorosoglu, has been gaining mainstream popularity and can now be heard echoing from shops along Istanbul's iconic Istiklal Avenue. The music video was produced by one of Turkey’s most famous directors in the field, Ozkan Aksular.