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Hossein Alizadeh

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Hossein Alizadeh is an Iranian musician, composer and researcher, and a leading player of the tar, the shurangiz and the setar. He was born in Tehran in 1951. As a teenager he went to a conservatoire, then studied composition and performance at the University of Tehran. After the Iranian revolution he continued his studies in composition and musicology in Berlin.

Music and breakthrough

Alizadeh performed with national orchestras of Iran and with ensembles such as the Aref Ensemble, the Shayda Ensemble and Masters of Persian Music. His first professional performance in Europe was with the orchestra of the Béjart Ballet, in the ballet Golestan. He worked with singers and players such as Shahram Nazeri, Mohammad-Reza Shajarian and Jivan Gasparyan. With Gasparyan he made the album Endless Vision, which received a Grammy nomination in 2007. Other albums include Faryad, Sallaneh, Half Moon and Ode To Flowers. He also developed new instruments, such as the sallaneh and the shoor-angiz, derived from the ancient Persian lute barbat.

Influence

His music stands in the tradition of the radif, the body of melodic models of classical Persian music, but gives it a contemporary form. He is regarded as an important innovator who has brought Persian music to a large international audience. In 2014 he refused the French Légion d'honneur.

Listening

Listening tip. Listen to Setar Improvisation and notice how soft and precise the strings sound. Try to hear how a short melodic figure is repeated and extended again and again, without a fixed rhythm.

Discography

Studio albums

See also

Categories: ArtistsPersian classical music