Along with performing and pedagogical activities, Anahit Tsitsikyan has been actively engaged in scientific research since a young age. As a result of her many years of work with archival materials, she was able to discover an unknown page in the history of Armenian culture, restoring from oblivion many names of famous Armenian musicians of the past, she revealed the rich history of Armenian performing arts. The first major work in this field belongs to her pen. Her research in the field of instrumentation is also of great value. Materials discovered allow for a new approach to the formation and development of bow (string) instruments. The study of unique archeological finds testifies to the rather early spread of various bow instruments and violin ancestors in the territory of Armenian highlands.

Thus, during the excavations of the ancient capital of Armenia, Dvin, in the 1960s, a vessel with a violin playing was found. This was a clear indication of the spread of the violin family instrument in Armenia in the 10th century, which caused a real session in the field of instrumentation, completely upsetting the existing ideas about the emergence of instruments. “The work of A. Tsitsikian is a genuine discovery, the mere fact of discovery and description of such early musical instruments is an exceptional phenomenon, that makes essential changes in the history of the evolution of bow instruments both in the East and in the overall Eurasian region”, – this is the high praise from Leningrad Institute of Theater and Music towards Anahit’s scientific studies and research.

In 1969, Tsitsikian successfully defended her dissertation, being awarded the PhD degree in Arts. Later on, until the end of her life she continued her research in the field of ancient musicology; wrote articles and books, participated in international conferences. In fact, as a prodigious researcher, she was the founder of a new science branch in Armenia - Musical Archeology.

• More details about Tsitsikian's works can be found in the "Articles" section.