TEHRAN- The National Orchestra of Iran, conducted by Homayoun Rahimian and featuring vocalist Mojtaba Asgari, opened the Cultural Week of the Islamic Republic of Iran in Russia with a concert at Moscow’s historic Bolshoi Theater on Monday evening.
The performance brought Iranian music to the Bolshoi’s stage, one of Russia’s best-known cultural venues, in an event attended by Iran’s Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance Seyyed Abbas Salehi, Iran’s Ambassador to Russia Kazem Jalali, Russian Culture Minister Olga Lyubimova, as well as artists, cultural officials and Russian audiences.
The concert presented a selection of Iranian compositions alongside a work from the Russian classical repertoire, creating a musical dialogue between the two countries’ traditions.
The program opened with “Adam,” composed by Fardin Khalatbari to lyrics by Afshin Yadollahi. It was followed by “Naghmegar-e Eshq,” composed by Ali Jafarian with lyrics by Bijan Taraghi.
The orchestra then performed “Concerto for Tar and Orchestra” by Behzad Abdi, bringing the distinctive sound of the Iranian tar into an orchestral setting. The program continued with “Chelleh-ye Eshq,” another collaboration between Khalatbari and Yadollahi.
A performance of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s “Swan Lake” subsequently added a familiar work from Russia’s classical musical heritage to the Iranian program.
The concert concluded with “Iran-e Ostovar” (“Strong Iran”), composed by Rahimian with lyrics by Hassan Rahimi, giving the closing section of the performance a distinctly national character.
Asgari’s Iranian vocal performance formed another central element of the concert, complementing the orchestra and presenting an important dimension of Iran’s traditional and contemporary musical expression to the Moscow audience.
The broader cultural program is being held in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Kazan and Astrakhan, bringing together 168 Iranian artists and cultural figures and covering fields including music, visual arts, handicrafts, theater, cinema, animation, video games, literature and manuscripts.
The Iranian National Orchestra is also scheduled to perform in other Russian cities as part of the program.
The orchestra will continue its Russian program in Kazan, extending the musical component of Iran’s cultural events to another major Russian city.
SAB/
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