Ashoura Opera

Ashura Opera was composed by Behzad Abdi, the Iranian composer, in 2008 based on librettos compiled by Behrouz Gharib. The main source for the libretto is poems by Mohtasham Kashani, a sixteenth century Iranian poet.

In the Iranian culture, the first ten days of Muharram (the first month of the Hijri calendar) marks the anniversary of the martyrdom of the third Shia Imam, Imam Hossein, and is observed by mourning ceremonies all through the country.

This year, the Vahdat Hall in Tehran, experienced its first musical performance during the first ten days of Muharram at least in the past three decades after the Islamic Revolution of the 1979 as the Roudaki Foundation decided to have the opera on stage in the form of a concertante for five nights. Nassir Heidarian, the Austrian-based Iranian conductor, was invited to as the guest conductor to lead Tehran Symphony Orchestra for this unique performance at such a special time of the year.

The composition is the first Iranian national opera. Behzad Abdi explains that Iranian Opera should not be compared to the Wagnerian and Italian Opera as they stem from different cultural backgrounds. In a brief article published in the Farsi Etemaad Newspaper, in January 2013, Abdi states that in the Iranian opera, the singing (avaaz) plays a crucial role as the protagonists sing in the Iranian style (avaaz) and the antagonists draw on the recitative in creating their roles.

In a series of articles entitled “A Review of Ashura Opera” by Sadjad Pourghanad which was published on the Farsi HarmonyTalk Journal, the critic argues that Behrouz Gharibpour has carried out a great job in structuring his opera based on traditions practiced in the Iranian Ta’zieh which is considered a genuinely Iranian art also well-known for preserving the dastgah frame work of the classical Iranian music.

The Opera is originally a marionette, designed and directed by Behrouz Gharibpour, and enjoyed many performances worldwide and was very well received by its audience.

The work is recorded by the Ukraine National Orchestra under the baton of Vladimir Sirenko in Ukraine.

The Opera is written in the following acts:

Part 1: Prelude
Part 2: Yazeed’s Court
Part 3: Angels
Part 4: Shimr’s Residence
Part 5: Farewell
Part 6: Horr
Part 7: Ibn Zyad’s Court
Part 8: Horr’s Martyrdom
Part 9: Festivity at Ibn Zyad’s Court
Part 10: Final


Behrouz Gharibpour, born in 1957, is a writer, cinema and theatre director and a master of marionette opera. He is very prolific and has directed 6 marionette operas so far. Ashoura Marionette Opera is Gharibpour’s first experience as librettist.

Behzad Abdi, born in 1973, is a composer and an actor. He studied the basic music theory with Maestro Masoud Sha’ari (Masoud Shaari) and Maestro Farhad Fakhreddini. He gained his Masters in composing from Kotlyarevsky University of Arts in Ukraine and studied with Maestros such as Vadim Jurzvitsjyi, Liudmila Yurina, Vladimir Zolotukhin, ‏Lev Kolodub. Behzad Abdi’s recorded symphonic works exceed those of any other Iranian composer. He has been awarded the Crystal Simorgh of Fajr Film Festival for the best score several times.

Nassir Heidarian, born in 1957, studied trumpet and trombone in the Higher Conservatory of Music in Tehran. Having graduated from the Conservatory, he started working at Tehran Symphony Orchestra. He then furthered his musical education in trombone and conducting in University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna. Teaching at University of Music and Performing Arts in Graz, as well as conducting several operas in Graz Opera are among his achievements.


Singers:
Ali Yaripour (Mohtasham), Mahdi Javar (Yazid), Soheyl Matin (Shemr), Ramin Bahiraie (jebreil), Hanieh Gholibeykian (Shemr’s Wife), Kimia Khanzadi (Sakineh), Razan Tirna (Roghaieh), Hadi Feyzabadi (emam Hosein), Alireza Mahdizadeh (Hor), Mahdi Emami (Abas), Sadjad Pourghanad (Omar), Mohamad Vaziri (Mosab), Amer Shadman (Ziad)

Post a Comment

Required fields are marked *
*
*
Your email is never shared.

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.

Five Major Myths About Mozart’s Life

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, the renowned Austrian composer, is undoubtedly one of the greatest geniuses in the history of classical music. However, his life is surrounded by numerous myths and legends, some of which are not based on facts. This article explores five of the most common misconceptions about Mozart’s life.

From Past Days…

Gholam Reza Khan Minbashian: a pioneer in Iranian music (II)

Gholamreza Khan Minbashian taught courses such as organology, orchestration of military music and harmony based on the books which were translated from French into Persian with the help of Aliakbar Mozayyan-o-Dolleh (1846-1932).

Banan: the Artist of the Age

Gholam Hossein Banan was born in 1911 in Tehran. He was born in an affluent art-loving family who were Naser al-Din Shah Qajar (1848-1896)’s relative. The Qajar King was his mother’s uncle on her father’s side. He learnt his first lessons in music while his father sang Iranian avaz (improvised rhythmic-free singing), he then attended classes by the renowned Iranian composer, Morteza Neydavoud (1900-1990) along with his sisters; the composer is, therefore, considered as his first teacher. He then learnt Iranian avaz under the supervision of Mirza Taher Zia Resaee (Zia-o Zakerin) and Naser Seif in an oral manner.

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.

Parviz Meshkatian’s Heart Beat for People (II)

As such, the young Meshkatian reached the position of a great maestro in the Iranian music. Up until 1997, Meshkatian remained prolific and composed many pieces which were characterized by progressiveness while drawing on the music of the past Iranian musicians. In some of Meshkatian’s works, one can trace the influence of maestros such as Faramarz Payvar; however, this influence is so balanced that one can neither say that Meshkatian is a progressive and deconstructionist composer nor does he use cliché forms in his compositions.

Quality Decline in Regional Music Festivals

Regional music festivals are organized to, firstly, introduce the music of different regions and, secondly, to support its performers. Regional music festivals are held in large cities for various reasons, including the availability of financial and executive facilities and the presence of an audience. However, the organization of these festivals has always been one of the challenging issues of ethnomusicology. The reason is that the presence of regional music performers in large cities places them in a context other than the context they would normally perform in their homes; consequently this change in situation leads to changes in the quality of their performance.

Principles of Violin Playing (X)

Creating sound continuity between two notes in the source and destination positions when left hand position changes and “two different finger numbers” are involved is called portamento. Portamento can be performed on single string or two neighboring strings and with hand moving on fingerboard either upward or downward.

Farhad Poupel (photo: Radafra)

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.

Homayoun Rahimian & Iran’s National Orchestra

The Roudaki Foundation presented the permanent conductor of the National Orchestra (Orchestr Melli), Homayoun Rahimian, in a ceremony, and finally, after four years, the national orchestra found a permanent conductor. Homayoun Rahimian is the fourth permanent conductor of this orchestra after Farhad Fakhreddini, Bardia Kiaras, and Fereidoun Shahbaziyan. He, who has previously had experience of conducting concerts besides being Meister’s concert of this orchestra, performed the concert “Autumns” on the 20th of Tir, performing works by Rouhollah Khaleqi, Javad Ma’roufi, and Hossein Dehlavi.

Layla Ramezan, Iranian Pianist

Iranian pianist Layla Ramezan has always sought to create a connection between her Persian origin and the contemporary music which she encounters daily. Sound, phrasing, a particular sense of rhythm and a refined understanding of the “time of musical development” are the foremost qualities of her interpretations. Her musical and pianistic education began in Tehran at the age of 8 with Mostafa-Kamal Poortorab. Having moved to Paris and received a scholarship from Albert Roussel Foundation, she integrated the classes of Jean Micault and Devi Erlih at the Ecole Normale de Musique de Paris Alfred Cortot, where she received a Diplôme de Virtuosité in piano performance and chamber music.

History’s Impact on Evaluating a Work of Art

With this description, we have automatically included a criterion called “History”, Until we know the time of the creation of a work of art, we cannot judge whether it has been easy to create or not. Suppose that, in a historical study, we find a musical work that is similar in compositional techniques (including form, melody, context, and orchestration) to a minor work of the nineteenth century; however, our research proves that, this work dates back to 200 years prior to that date. Can we still consider this work insignificant? Definitely not! So this is where the first use of history-based judgment comes into play.