OUC047 : Kasra Faridi - Houman Dehlavi / Seven Skies Vol.I
Kasra Faridi (see his beautiful album here), the performer of the album, has noted:
“I decided to record this valuable collection, firstly because these pieces are rich in compositional value and quality, beautiful in melody, and consistent in form and harmony. Moreover, the collection is deeply pianistic and intimately familiar with common and standard classical piano techniques, which I believe is a distinctive aspect. The pianistic nature of these works is significant—a quality often overlooked by composers in works by living composers.
And secondly, over the years of performing and teaching, I have seen the need for such balanced and refined works among serious audiences and students. Pieces that maintain their identity without merely repeating old traditions without understanding them, but rather offer a perspective born from years of study and research, developed into a mature artistic vision.”
The pieces are classical for solo Piano, not too long, and easy to listen to. I've recorded over half of them myself, and the rest have been captured by another pianist which will be on the Vol. 2. Their scores have been around for a while and have been published in Iran, and we teach the pieces in our teaching methods.
I hope you will enjoy his music and my rendering of those pieces.".
About Seven Skies Vol.I Houman Dehlavi says:
“The pieces in this collection reflect my personal narratives and musical experiences developed over the years. Drawing inspiration from small melodic ideas, many of which are influenced by the music of Iran and its regions, I have aimed to create harmonic textures that emerge organically from the melodic lines themselves. Rather than following conventional formulas, each piece's harmonic structure is tailored to its individual needs. These compositions feature structures with consciously crafted dissonant chords, intricately designed forms inspired by classical music traditions.
Despite the fact that the sheet music was released years ago, no audio recordings of these pieces existed due to various reasons. It was only through the suggestion and efforts of two talented pianists that this collection was recorded over a span of two years. Recording these performances in different studios with various pianos posed a significant challenge in achieving consistent and suitable audio standards that would match each piano's unique sound qualities. However, thanks to the expertise of the esteemed sound engineer, Sadegh Nouri, this challenge was largely overcome during the final mixing and mastering process.
Ultimately, I opted to release this collection in two parts to ensure that the stylistic and structural coherence of each part complements that of the others more effectively. The first part, showcasing the artistry of the distinguished pianist Kasra Faridi, comprises seven pieces recorded in Toronto and Istanbul during the summer and fall of 2023”
Houman Dehlavi was born in 1971. He learned music from early childhood under the supervision of his father, a famous composer and conductor, and his mother, who is a renowned Persian musician. He studied piano and violin under well-known masters, and learned the fundamentals of music composition from his father, Hossein Dehlavi, and later from Ahmad Pejman, an acclaimed Persian composer. Houman holds a bachelor's degree in piano and a master's degree in music composition from the University of Art. During his education, he benefited from training under masters such as Rafael Minaskanian, Emanuel Melik-Aslanian, and Thomas Christian David, an Austrian musician, by participating in master courses in music composition and conducting. He began his teaching career at various music institutes and privately, but shortly thereafter started teaching at the University of Arts.
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