Quick Facts
Biography
Leo Sarkisian (born January 4, 1921) is an ethnomusicologist and a retired broadcaster for Voice of America radio. He is known for his work to showcase African music through the Music Time in Africa radio program.
Sarkisian was offered a job with Voice of America by broadcaster Edward R. Murrow in 1961, while in Conakry. At the time, Murrow was the head of the United States Information Agency (USIA) and he heard about Sarkisian through his West African recording trips. Sarkisian accepted the offer and started working for Voice of America in Monrovia, Liberia. Two years later, in 1965, Leo launched Music Time in Africa, a "weekly program that features traditional and contemporary music from all of Africa."
Sarkisian retired from VoA in 2012, at age 91. In 2014, Sarkisian donated his extensive collection of African music to the University of Michigan.