Iannis Xenakis’ Persephassa

Shiraz Arts Festival which was held in Shiraz from 1967 to 1977 featured many contemporary renowned artists who were commissioned by the Iranian royalty to compose or create works of art for performance in the arts festival. Iannis Xenakis (1922-2001) participated in Shiraz Arts Festival three times in 1968, 1969 and 1971. The Greek-French composer, architect and music theorist, composed Persepolis a polytope to the historic site and named after the ancient capital of the Persian Empire.  Persephassa (Persepolis) which consists of “similarly epic proportions” is believed to be similar to La Légende D’Eer in sound and to Bohor in force. The music was “designed to play during a light show using multiple lasers and mirrors.”

We have borrowed the following review of the piece from www.nightoftheworld.com:

“Persepolis squeals into life amid a multitude of curious mechanical moans and groans that sound as if a scrap yard is slowly awakening out of hibernation. There is no information as to the methods which were used to produce the sounds but I feel this only adds to the mystery. Tinkling glissandi slide behind the omnipresent grind and drones of the concrete sounds, as layer upon layer of sound flow across the senses. Any preconception of concrete music or contemporary electronics are thrown out the window as structures collapse around your ears.

“Most people would just call it noise, and without knowing anything about the dense complex mathematical planning that went into this you might be right in thinking like that too. Persepolis sways and dips under its mammoth weight during the course of its journey, at times deafening with unrelenting bass and metallic drones, and at other times smoother allowing the pitched electronics to seep through the mass and delight the senses. It is very difficult to describe the exact sound of Persepolis it’s composition is so radical and it’s range of timbres and textures so rich that I am left to clutch at metaphor’s. This music really does take no prisoners.”

About Iannis Xenakis

Iannis Xenakis (29 May 1922 – 4 February 2001) was a Greek-French composer, music theorist, architect, and engineer. After 1947, he fled Greece, becoming a naturalized citizen of France. He is considered an important post-World War II composer whose works helped revolutionize 20th century classical music.

Xenakis pioneered the use of mathematical models in music such as applications of set theory, stochastic processes and game theory and was also an important influence on the development of electronic and computer music. He integrated music with architecture, designing music for pre-existing spaces, and designing spaces to be integrated with specific music compositions and performances.

References:

– http://www.nightoftheworld.com/reviews/persepolis.html

– https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iannis_Xenakis

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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.

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From Past Days…

Ennio Morricone’s music for Quentin Tarantino’s The Hateful Eight

After watching Quentin Tarantino’s latest movie, The Hateful Eight, everyone was excited by its novel music besides the beautiful scenes of blood and guts.
The Hateful Eight is the first collaboration between the world-famous film music composer, Ennio Morricone, and Quentin Tarantino as a famous director.

Polyphony in Iranian Music (IV)

Two choirs alternatively perform Veŝ Tavaré Na avaz (Transcription 5). The second group starts the avaz before the first group finishes it; consequently, two different voices coincide (Transcription 5, staves 2 and 5).

Parviz Meshkatian’s Heart Beat for People (II)

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Transition to Enlightenment: Six Lectures on Mozart’s String Quartets (2)

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The Structure of Kurdistan Daf (V)

ehrouz Mohammadi, “Daf and its feasts in Ghaderieh’s Tekyeh” mentions that the outer thickness of arch where studs are located, [is] between one to one and a half centimeters (Mohammadi, 2001: 12). The thickness of arch should be gradually reduced from the installation place of rings to skin (Avazeh of Daf) to create a high volume, clear sound from Daf; also, the connection of arch to skin should not be less than one millimeter, because in this case the skin will be torn due to the sharpness of the wood (Mogharab Samadi, 2009: 79-78). The thickness of wood on the skin side is about two to three millimeters (Tohidi, 2002: 79).

Qanun, a feminized instrument?

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The Structure of Kurdistan Daf (VII)

Conclusion

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