Ashugh Ashot (Ashot Dadalyan) was born in the city of Goris. He was a shepherd. In 1921 he moved to Baku to live with his elder brother. Here he replaced his “shepherd” flute with kamancha. He studied at the Banerit School in Baku. In 1928 he returned to Zangezur and practiced ashugh music. In 1948 he settled in Yerevan. He created a new and original music language. In 1958 he became a member of Union of Soviet Writers. In 1967 he was awarded the title of People's Artist of Armenia. He died in Yerevan.