Concerto for Solo Actress: The Legend Of Yush's Poet
Written on 2018-03-04 by ehsan-saboohi The structure of this
"concerto" is a
combination of contemporary
Naghali (recounting stories),
spoken word, and contemporary
performance art. The actress
here creates musical events
with voice, body, and
movement; a bit like a piano
concerto that does not have an
orchestra. For me, the
Mise-en-scène functions
like the orchestration of a
piece.
Naqqāli (or Naghali)
is the oldest form of dramatic
performance in Iran.
Historically, it has adapted
itself to socio-political
circumstances. Before the
Sassanid (651 AD),
Naqqāls were poets
and musicians simultaneously:
they recited stories while
playing instruments.
Bārbad was the most
renowned Naqqāl of
the Sassanid. During
Ghaznavids (10th-12th AD), the
Court banned musical
Naqqāli, but the
tradition survived in remote
areas.
The performer – the
Naqqāl – recounts
stories in verse or prose
accompanied by gestures and
movements, and sometimes
instrumental music and painted
scrolls. Naqqāls
function both as entertainers
and as bearers of Persian
literature and culture, and
need to be acquainted with
local cultural expressions,
languages and dialects, and
traditional music.
The Concerto for Solo Actress
is a faithful narration based
on the poem “Afsaneh” (The
Legend) by Nima Yushij. I left
Tehran for two years in order
to write “The Legend of
Yush’s Poet”. For this
purpose, what place could be
better than the homeland of
Nima, the father of modern
Iranian poetry and whose poem
“The Legend” poem charmed
me?
I took up residence in the
village of Khesht Sar, in the
Central District of Mahmudabad
County, Mazan- daran Province,
Iran, and in close proximity
to the birthplace of Nima –
Yush. Whenever I was going to
the city, I saw a large board
at the entrance of the city
that had been written on it:
“Welcome to Nima Yushij’s
Birthplace”. Indeed, Yush
and Mazandaran are Nima, and
Nima is the pristine nature of
the North of Iran. My new home
was near the Caspian Sea,
which Nima describes it like
this: “Your lips were
smiling in that wave”. The
only music that filled my mind
in those two years were the
sounds of nature and silence.
In this silence, I had the
opportunity to think about one
thing every day and every
hour! Who is the legend? What
shape is she? How is her
singing? How bitter is her
bitterness? And how long is
her way?
The performance of this work
certainly has the result of
cooperating with a sympathetic
and committed group that I
should be very grateful to all
of them. Those who were with
me at eleven nights’ live
perfor- mance of this work and
then at all stages of
recording, producing, and
preparing the audio and video
version.
As far as I know, The Legend
of Yush’s Poet is the first
concerto that written for an
actress. However, I am
responsible for all the errors
ahead. But at the same time, I
present the premiere of this
work to all members of the
group and Ghazal Naeemi, who
practiced hardly and
tirelessly for almost seven
months. I am grateful to my
sophisticated and kind-hearted
friend, Ramin Dargahi, who
translated all the texts into
English. I am grateful to my
dear wife, Lena Koocheri, who
has strongly supported me all
this time. Also, I thank
Mohammad Mousavi and Bruce
Hamilton, who helped me to
produce this work.
My greatest hope and desire
during the making of this
project and upon the release
of its audio and video albums
is that Nima Yushij, a
well-known poet of Iran, is
watching our work and smiling
on what we have done – like
a wave that smiles on the sea
and caresses us slowly! -
Ehsan Saboohi Tehran 2017
HAIKUS (Iran-Netherlands Electro Acoustic Music Project)
Written on 2016-11-05 by ehsan-saboohi available on iTunes:
HAIKUS (Iran-Netherlands
Electro Acoustic Music
Project)
about project:
The Album 'Haikus'
is a joint product of Ehsan
Saboohi (Iranian Contemporary
Composer) and Gerda Geertens
(Dutch Contemporary Composer
and philosopher). The idea was
a proposal from Foekjen
Verhoef (Piano instructor).
The piano department of the
SKVR cultural centre in
Rotterdam organised three
concerts and recording. Piano
students were practising the
pieces and familiarising
themselves with the
contemporary Iranian and world
music. In the meantime, Gerda
made electronic versions of
the the original compositions
of Ehsan. Secondly, she
created seventeen different
projections, using photografic
material of Jenny Westenbrink.
And at the heart of each of
these projections she animated
seventeen Haiku, inspired by
the titles given by Ehsan.
Three poets: Peter Swanborn,
Astrid Terbrack, and Gerda
Geertens wrote these Haiku.
The seventeen Haiku pieces
featuring the album
'Haikus', were
performed on 12, 19 and 26
June 2015 at one of the
locations of the SKVR cultural
centre, along with various
other compositions for Harp
and Saxophone Quartet, from
Ehsan or Gerda.)
The album 'Haikus'
was recorded by SOFIESOUND on
June 26, 2015, at the
auditorium of the SKVR.
Because of their great
appreciation for this
initiative in Rotterdam,
Mahoor Institute of Culture
and Art has decided to publish
this music for all friends of
contemporary classical and
electronic music.
Haikus by Ehsân Saboohi
& Gerda Geertens
https://itun.es/us/QFp7fb
really great