About

Welcome! I’m Ilia Mazia, a musician based in Jerusalem. I play the Armenian duduk, a traditional woodwind instrument whose warm, expressive sound is often compared to the human voice and has become a symbol of Armenia.

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Born in St. Petersburg, Russia, I studied piano as a child, later playing brass instruments in a brass band and bass guitar in a rock band. After moving to Israel in 1991, I became fascinated by the mix of cultures and musical traditions around me and began exploring the traditional music of the Middle East.

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Hearing Djivan Gasparyan’s recordings sparked my love for the Armenian duduk. Since then, I have continued to deepen my knowledge of the instrument and Armenian culture, visiting Armenia several times to travel and take duduk lessons.

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Today, I perform from time to time with small ensembles of my own and with the Sirenot vocal ensemble. Previously, I played Armenian folk music with the Dilijan Ensemble and was a member of the rock band Shoom, with whom I performed at the Second Duduk Festival in Yerevan in 2016.

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I have performed and recorded with a diverse range of artists and ensembles, including the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra; Hasidic music legend Mordechai Ben David; acclaimed Spanish world music artist Ana Alcaide; Chinese pop star Dao Lang; celebrated Kurdish singers Ciwan Haco and Tara Mamedova; and Belgian producer and composer Timofey Reznikov, through his Red Avenue project.