Maria Kizirian

Maria was born in Finland’s Arctic region and raised in the USA while her parents attended University. From her earliest days, she was raised in a musical household. At four years old she learned to play the violin, and by ten years old she was performing with her local Symphony. She met her husband, Paul for the first time after walking off an airplane at Los Angeles International Airport. They only knew each other from chatting online – and were introduced there by a pen friend of Paul's who also knew Maria's family. Love at first sight changed Maria's life forever. She also joined the Fast forward this story and you'll find an artist and a new member of the Armenian tradition. Maria Kizirian was pre-selected to compete in Armenia's 2010 Eurovision national finals. Her entry represents the first time Armenia has opened its doors to having an International artist participate. The jury was very impressed with the song she will sing, called "Little Red Riding Hood". It is not the story of old, there's no red cape. It is a modern story of a girl who falls for the wolf in sheep's clothing. Maria grew up in a musical family, and continued those rich bonds when making this song. It would otherwise be unusual for a solo music project to reach such heights; however, Maria is not new to Pop music. Before moving to the USA, she had a successful career in Finland where she made a solo Pop record for EMI Music. She has since managed to find hit songwriting mentors, been taught by industry leading producers and engineers, paid her dues performing, and is now becoming a force in her own right. For example, in the fiercely competitive world of radio Maria has nearly 100 stations that support her music, also often interview her on-air. Her first real gig - while still in her teens - was singing on the opening band for Deep Purple and Bad Religion at a large festival in Europe (1996). She started this journey humbly as an intern in Oakland, California's Studio 880 (Green Day). When she wasn't grocery shopping for Chris Isaak's canned sardines, answering phones and serving coffee to various other artists, she observed how legendary producers and engineers such as Mark Needham (Fleetwood Mac, Michelle Branch, The Killers) and John Shanks (Sheryl Crow, Ashlee Simpson), and noteworthy Tone (Carlos Santana) created new musical masterpieces. One other notable credit on her "On The Rocks" record includes Michael C. Ross for mixing "Mr. X". Michael's engineering and mixing tenure include Grammy winning and nominated records for artists such as Eric Clapton, Pink, Christina Aguilera, and Vanessa Carlton. Also on "Little Red Riding Hood" is Gene Grimaldi, who mastered records for artists such as Lady Gaga, JoJo, etc. Please get the latest on Maria at http://www.myspace.com/mariakizirian