“I Will Never Perform Just for Women!”: Golnoush Khaleghi Passes Away in Exile

1 March 2021 – 1:59 pm Posted in Articles' List, Contemporary Music, General Information, Iranian Classical Music

Golnoush Khaleghi, first Persian woman conductor and daughter of legendary composer Rouhollah Khaleghi, passed away on February 14. She was 80.

Golnoush Khaleghi was the conductor of the NIRT (National Iranian Radio & Television) Choir in the 1970s. Shortly after the 1979 Islamic Revolution Ms. Khaleghi moved to the United States and founded the Rouhollah Khaleghi Orchestra in Washington DC to preserve Persian music. BBC’s Pejman Akbarzadeh has reviewed her career.
The year 1974 was the beginning of Golnoush Khaleghi’s professional career. She was invited to Persia to establish the National Radio and Television’s choir, known as ‘Hamavazan’. This choral group performed various concerts focused on Western classical music.
“The Television at that time had a quite successful chamber orchestra which was formed some years earlier. They were going to expand the activities of this orchestra and have a professional choral group to collaborate with it. Therefore, when I suggested to establish a choral group, the Television warmly received the idea.” Golnoush Khaleghi said in a 2016 interview.

The choral group’s career expanded a lot but the victory of the Islamic Revolution halted its activities. The last work of this choir was the secretive recording of Azadi [Freedom] anthem by Golnoush Khaleghi with lyrics by Fereydoun Moshiri.

Golnoush Khaleghi in the same interview said: “One day that I was heading to the Television the chief sound engineer said to me ” I’ve heard that you have written a beautiful anthem!” The choir members had told him. He asked me “Are you not willing to record this work?” I replied: “I would love to record it but don’t know if I am allowed to record that.” He said: “No, they will not allow you to record this piece but we will do it secretly!” – The chief sound engineer was Yousef Shahab. He said “I will provide you a studio but if the Revolutionary Guard finds out about that, they will not allow you to record. So, you can perform just twice, and you must perform well during this session!” Choir members had already rehearsed so we performed twice with the orchestra and recorded the piece…”

Golnoush Khaleghi, less than a year after the 1979 revolution, moved to the United States. After various activities, in 1985 she established Rouhollah Khaleghi Orchestra in Washington DC and performed new arrangements of works by Persian music masters. The orchestra’s activities were stopped after some years due to financial difficulties.

In 1990, for the 25th anniversary of Rouhollah Khaleghi’s death, Golnoush travelled to Iran to conduct in few concerts. The then authorities did not allow her to conduct on stage due to being a woman. In her 2016 interview with Pejman Akbarzadeh, Khaleghi says: “Although I was going to cover my hair during the performance and wear Islamic dress, they did not allow me to conduct on the stage. Later when they tried to be kind, they told me “You can perform only for women!” – I said “I will never do that. If I perform a concert it should be free for all to come and listen. Why should it be just for women?!”

Golnoush Khaleghi later established Rouhollah Khaleghi Artistic Center in the United States to preserve her father’s legacy. Such efforts caused publications of Rouhollah Khaleghi’s work in Persia and the United States. But many of her own compositions have not been released yet.
Golnoush Khaleghi is survived by her husband, American organist Stephan Ackert, and two sons, Ramin (David) and Julian.

Source: BBC Persian

This entry was written by Pejman Akbarzadeh
Tagged: Golnoush Khaleghi.

Nasser Masoudi: The Voice of Gilan and a Legacy of Iranian Music

In Iranian music, certain singers have become emblematic of their homelands through their distinctive voices. Historical figures such as Eghbal Sultan, who epitomized the grandeur of Azerbaijani music, and Taj Isfahani, who conveyed the authentic essence of Isfahan, serve as notable examples from the Qajar era. Nasser Masoudi occupies a similar position; his voice emerged as a symbol of Gilan while also achieving national acclaim. Before him, Master Ahmad Ashurpur represented Gilan’s musical landscape, but his extended residence outside Iran limited his continuous engagement in the music scene. In contrast, Masoudi’s consistent presence allowed him to introduce the voice of Gilan to audiences across Iran.

Farhad Poupel: The Voice of the Shahnameh in the Orchestras Around the World

In an era when almost no trace of contemporary Iranian music can be heard in international concert halls, except (so-called!) avant-garde works that owe their existence solely to the fashionable slogans of the “pseudo-intellectual” crowd who have seized the already meager resources for performing classical music from the true artists of the field, the numerous performances of Farhad Poupel’s works shine as a ray of hope for lovers of sincere musical art. Without resorting to trendy slogans, he has kept the flame of Iranian classical music alive purely through the power of his artistry.

Latest posts

From Past Days…

Principles of Violin Playing (IX)

4.3.1. To practice playing of doubles of notes involving two different fingers, each note is played at separate bows with slow tempo, each note is played perfectly regarding its bass and tenor sounds and then the considered double is played at another bow while considering the resulted sound of the double.

Principles of Playing Violin (IV)

Pattern No.3/1 Left hand finger Placement: 3/1/1: Landing Fingers on one String: In preliminary stages of training, an apprentice should pay attention to the principle of keeping fingers while placing them on the fingerboard. Professional violinists pay less attention to this principle. Novice player’s complying with this principle, in preliminary stages of training, has several…
Read More »

Iranian Fallacies – Composition and Arrangement

In the tradition of classical music, it is generally tried to use the same technical terms related to music in all countries. Even in the cultures in which native terms exist to refer to musical terms, usually the better known universal terms are employed.

Avaye Naerika Percussion Orchestra

Avaye Naerika Percussion Orchestra is an Iranian percussion orchestra featuring 40 lady percussionists. The Orchestra was established as Iran’s largest all-female percussion orchestra in 2008 by Ms. Minoo Rezaei under the title Naerika Percussion Orchestra and changed its name to Avaye Naerika in 2017.

Interview with the Makers of the New Qeychak (III)

In this project, my specialized responsibility was the basic drawings of the desired instrument with the help of engineering and mechanical software. I have also the carried out phases related to engineering designs, related variables, and volume and weight calculations under Mr. Ziaei’s direct supervision from the very beginning. Regarding the challenges of this work, suffice it to say that the set of designs for the instrument lasted more than 9 months in the final stage of the project only.

Principles of Playing Violin (VI)

B. applying force: the force needed for putting finger on finger board is applied through finger tips and using the rest of hand set especially wrist is not allowed. To practice this, it is possible to hold violin without the bow and throw the fingers on the finger board from 1-2cm distance; apply force only through finger tips.

The Structure of Kurdistan Daf (I)

Today, percussion instruments have such a high place in music that are an essential element of orchestras. This has attracted many people to this type of instrument with roots as old as the first humans. A historical study of music, shows that humans used the sound of these instruments to defend themselves against wild animals and, over time, for alerting each other, signaling their readiness and encouraging people for war, ritual ceremonies, dances, etc. in a manner that is still clearly visible in music and some ritual ceremonies.

Persian Music: “Mahour the Great” in Austria

In 1990 an Austria-based Persian musician Khosro Soltani, in cooperation with Hossein Alizadeh, put out an album entitled, Ancient Call A New (Nobang-e Kohan). After many years, a few ancient Persian instruments such as Sorna, Karna, Naghareh,etc. have been used, instruments which have been left out of the circle of Persian classical musical instruments for centuries.