Bourgie Hall presents

Iranian Women: A Wind of Freedom

Soprano Bahar Harandi has brought together an exceptional group of performers from Iran to pay tribute to Iranian women and to reveal the rich musical universe of this Middle Eastern country.

Artists
Bahar Harandi, soprano

Bahar Harandi is an Iranian Canadian soprano coloratura with a repertoire ranging from baroque to contemporary music. She started her musical journey at the age of seven with playing violin, since singing is forbidden for women in Iran. After finishing her bachelor’s degree as a violinist, Bahar took a leap of faith and moved to Canada to follow her path as a singer. She has since completed a master’s degree in voice from the University of Victoria under supervision of Benjamin Butterfield and a master’s degree “with distinction” from the Conservatoire de Musique de Montréal in Donna Brown’s studio. She is now living in Vienna and doing her Postgraduate Diploma in Die Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst Wien in Angelika Kirchschlager’s studio.

Bahar’s experience as a singer in Canada includes many performances with renowned conductors such as Jacques Lacombe, Alain Trudel, Rosemary Thomson, Peter Butterfield, and Timothy Vernon. She appeared as the first solo soprano with Massawippi Vocal Ensemble in Beethoven à l’Abbaye concert, The Great Mass in C Minor and Vesperae solennes de confessore with Victoria Symphony Orchestra and Philharmonic Choir, La fée (Cendrillon) and Dr. Blind (Die Fledermaus) in Conservatoire de Musique de Montréal, Despina (Così fan tutte) with Long Reach Opera, Cricket and Frantík (The Cunning Little Vixen) with Opera NUOVA, and Belinda (Dido and Aeneas) with Opera Studio of Victoria Conservatory as well as other recitals and concerts.

Amir Eslami, ney

Amir Eslami was born in Esfahan, Iran, in 1971, and started his music career by playing Ney (Persian traditional flute) since 1987. He received his BA in music in 1997 and an MA in music composition in 2003. Amir has been a faculty member in the Music Faculty of the Art University of Tehran from 2005 to 2018. He has won 3 national prizes and 3 international prizes (Italy, Australia, and Netherlands) in music composition. He has released 6 music albums as a composer and 18 music albums as a Ney player. His album, “All of You”, was released in 2011 which received a 4 out of 5-star rating in Song Lines Magazine, volume 75, in London in 2011. Amir presented a lecture recital titled “A New Approach to Improvisation in Persian Music” based on this album at the University of London in 2010 and at Cambridge University in 2011. He received the “Best Lecturer” award from the Music Faculty of the Art University of Tehran in 2008 and the “Best Researcher” award in 2009. He was a jury member in the “2 Agosto International Composition Competition” in Bologna in 2012. Amir’s pieces have been performed in Iran, Italy, Australia, USA, Netherlands, and Canada.

Hooshyar Khayam, piano

Hooshyar Khayam is an Iranian-British musician. He is active as a composer, conductor, pianist, producer, and educator. Khayam’s music blends influences of styles and music of extreme sources into a new merged musical composition. Khayam is the son of the Iranian writer Masoud Khayam, and painter Pariyoush Ganji. Khayam has studied at Université de Montreal, University of Cincinnati, Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler Berlin, Trinity College London, and Arts University Tehran. He moved to Canada in 2020 and is currently working as an Artist in Residence at Carleton University in Ottawa, Canada.

Saba Yousefi, violin

Saba Yousefi is an Iranian-Canadian violinist, educator, administrator, and co-founder of LyreIran. This collaborative organization promotes free and accessible educational content for music students worldwide, focusing on the Middle East. Saba holds a Master of Violin Performance and a Bachelor of Violin Performance with a minor in Philosophy from the University of Toronto. She is a former member of the University of Toronto Pedagogy School. She has dedicated her research to exploring new methods for professional musicians to overcome physical injuries and develop innovative mental health techniques.

With a deep commitment to contemporary music, Saba actively engages with new music written by contemporary composers from around the world. Her passion for modern repertoire is reflected in her upcoming performance at Salle Bourgie Hall in Montreal, where she will be spotlighting contemporary pieces by Iranian women composers. This concert is a testament to her dedication to bringing fresh, innovative sounds to the stage and showcasing the richness of contemporary music.

Program
Hooshyar KHAYAM et Amir ESLAMI All of You
Parisa SABET Works from the Cup of Sin Album
Aida SHIRAZI Soliloquy of the Unnamed
Mina ARISSIAN
Omar qui chante l’amour
Femme dans le miroir No.3 (Violin Solo)

Tuesday, April 2, 2024 at 7:30pm
To purchase your tickets visit: www.mbam.qc.ca/en/bourgie-hall/

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