Cover art by Nasser Azizi Joshan - A. L.
OUC048: Vafa Vaghefi - Kasra Faridi - Houman Dehlavi / Seven Skies Vol.II
Second volume (see Vol.I here) with the new compositions from Iranian composer Houman Dehlavi. 10 tunes played by Vafa Vaghefi and 2 by Kasra Faridi.
Houman Dehlavi says:
"Volume 2 of the collection Seven Skies consists of mostly short pieces, prepared by means of various types of musical forms.
The pieces in this volume progress from simple to complex, each incorporating at least one specific technical focus and carefully presented in a distinct form.
The first five Theme -and -variation pieces focus on clarity and simplicity, laying a foundation of musicality and expressive articulation. The five short pieces that follow, enrich the collection with captivating themes and harmonies, adding depth and variety to the musical experience. They evolve in style and structure, reflecting a journey from the classical era through to impressionism.
The collection culminates in Sonata and Waltz, demonstrating well-defined forms from the classical and romantic periods, while bridging toward the neo-romantic and impressionistic elements featured in Volume I. This progression offers a thoughtfully curated and diverse repertoire.
This collection has been made available to music lovers through the kind collaboration of esteemed pianists Vafa Vaghefi and Kasra Faridi, to whom I would like to express my gratitude."
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.
Throughout his career, he has composed and arranged a variety of music for piano solos, duets, quaDrtets, string orchestras, symphonic orchestras, and other ensembles that include Persian instruments and vocals. His works have been performed in Europe, Canada, and the USA. Additionally, he has composed music for several theatrical plays and documentary movies. Houman has published two music books for piano and has released two CD albums.
Vafa Vaghefi, born in 1960, started his first piano lessons when he was a child at Mazandaran Center for Art and Culture where later in 1979, he started teaching piano. He entered the university in 1993 and he has received his bachelor's degree in piano performance.
Over the years, he has had a great number of collaborations with many musicians and on recordings of hundreds of projects as a piano soloist. He has also trained many piano students most of whom are now professionally active in artistic activities in different parts of the world.
His passion in teaching has driven him to record several collections of piano works for educational purposes, among which to be mentioned is the complete recording of the Burgmüller Etudes.
"Fantasy for Piano and String Orchestra" is his most recent work as a piano soloist, which was released by Hezardastan Publishing in a collection titled “Days of Not Being” composed by Houman Dehlavi.
Kasra Faridi is a professional Classical Pianist and Composer, born in 1992, Tehran, Iran. He began receiving piano lessons at a young age under the supervision of world-renowned instructors such as Houman Dehlavi, Tamara Dolitzeh, Arpineh Israelian and Gagik Babayan. Notably, Kasra performed his very first piano solo when he was only six years old.Over the years, Kasra has become a sought-after performer at numerous piano soloist festivals, including the prestigious Tehran Soloist Festival, Biennial Festival, Schubert International Music Festival, Youth Festival, Classic to Contemporary Festival and many others.In addition to his love for music, Kasra is also an accomplished theoretical physicist, having graduated with a master of science in theoretical particle physics from Tehran University. His mathematical background has come in handy in his passion for electronic composition and programming, which he received instructions from and taught by Joachim Heintz. Apart from that, he studied general and classical composition under the supervision of Houman Dehlavi and contemporary composition by Kiawasch Sahebnassagh. Kasra's ability to combine both art and science has allowed him to create a unique sound that is unparalleled in the world of classical contemporary music.
Vafa Vaghefi: piano 1-10
Kasra Faridi: piano 11-12
Houman Dehlavi: all compositions
Digital release on the 20th of December 2024.
Track listing:
1: Childhood Dreams Thema
2: Variation.1
3: Variation.2
4: Variation.3
5: Variation.4
6: Sound of Angels No. 1
7: Sound of Angels No. 2
8: Sound of Angels No. 3
9: Sound of Angels No. 4
10: Sound of Angels No. 5
11: Like a Waltz
12: Classical Sonata
Itunes, Spotify, etc.:
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