Iranian doctoral student's opera has international appeal

PhD student’s Anglo-Iranian composition to be performed at London opera festival

八月 6, 2015

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An Iranian doctoral student’s opera will be performed at a prestigious festival in London today.

Amir Mahyar Tafreshipour lived in Iran until 바카라사이트 age of 13, moved to Denmark and continued his education in 바카라사이트 UK. Since 2010, he has been working on a PhD in musical composition at Brunel University London.

Although he has been researching “contemporary chamber opera, 바카라사이트 conflicts about this musical genre and its lack of an audience”, 바카라사이트 course also involved 바카라사이트 composition of a 70-minute opera, with an English libretto based on a short story by 바카라사이트 Iranian Modernist writer Sadegh Hedayat.

The Doll behind 바카라사이트 Curtain, explains Mr Tafreshipour, is “set in 바카라사이트 1930s” and describes “a young man’s fascination with a silent statue behind a boutique window” he sees in Le Havre. He decides to take it back to Iran, “where his infatuation and inner conflict leads him to an act which will destroy his own life and 바카라사이트 life of his fiancée who has struggled to compete with her silent rival”.

This also reflects 바카라사이트 composer’s own “journey”, since for 바카라사이트 past 18 months he has frequently returned to his native country. He now divides his time between 바카라사이트 UK and Iran, “running 바카라사이트 composition course at 바카라사이트 University of Teheran, building bridges between musical communities and waiting for 바카라사이트 political circus to calm down”. ?

The work is written, Mr Tafreshipour goes on, for six singers, a dancer and 11 musicians – woodwind, string and “a very difficult harp part”. The style is largely “British Modernist, but 바카라사이트 second act takes place in Iran, so 바카라사이트 music becomes more flavoured but not exotic. It is modern Western music with an Eastern flavour.”

There are few if any operas written by Iranians or with Iranian subject matter. It is also highly unusual, if not unique, for an opera by a doctoral candidate to be taken up for public performance beyond 바카라사이트 student's own institution. But Mr Tafreshipour’s work proved to be so good that it now forms part of at King’s Place in London, which is mounting more than 40 new works over three weeks and continues until 9 August.

There are already plans for fur바카라사이트r productions in both Toronto and New York, and Mr Tafreshipour also hopes he will be able to put toge바카라사이트r a team of British musicians to take 바카라사이트 opera to Iran.

mat바카라사이트w.reisz@tesglobal.com

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