iranian music
A land of music lovers! Music is central to Iranian culture and social life and linked to a deeply engrained national love of poetry, dance and cheerful social gatherings. Traditional Iranian music varies in sound according to the region it’s from, but normally includes solo vocals (often reciting verses of famous Persian poets like Rumi) accompanied by traditional Iranian instruments such as the Santur, Nay, Dombak and Daaf. Modern Iranian music may sound surprisingly familiar, as it includes all the genres we are familiar with in ‘the west’": from pop and dance to classical, rock, heavy metal, jazz, indie, rap and trap…
Golestan Shopping Center, Tehran, Iran. Photo by Soroush Karimi on Unsplash
‘Dombak’ - traditional Iranian drum. Photo by Sam Moghadam
Shervin Hajipour sings his song "Baraye" which has been described as the anthem of the 2022 Mahsa Amini protests. He was arrested on 29 September 2022, two days after the song was published and was released on bail on 4 October 2022.
Modern: Indie/Folk
Marjan Farzad (based outside of Iran), Khooneye Ma. Source: Youtube, 2014
King Ram (Iran based until recently), Closing Credits. Source: Youtube, 2015
Modern: Pop
Mohsen Yeganeh, (based in Iran) Behet Ghol Midam. Source: Youtube, 2016
Faramarz Aslani & Dariush (based in USA) : Age Ye Rooz. Source: Youtube, 2016
Modern: Rock/Metal
Bitab by Mehrad Hidden (fusing Iranian rock with rap) Source: YouTube, 2020
Maar by Mehrad Hidden (based in Iran), Maar. Source: YoTube, 2019
Iranian metal band Aliaj (based in Iran) , Paper Moon. Source: Youtube, 2011
Modern: Classical
2010 Live performance of Tehran Symphonic Orchestra (based in Iran) conducted by Shardad Rohani in Tehran’s Milad. Source, Youtube
Felix Mendelssohn-Symphony No.3 in A minor, Op.56 performed in Tehran, Iran by the Tehran Symphonic Orchestra in 2019. Conductor: Nassir Heidarian-Rasty. Source: Youtube, 2019
2018 Radio Farda report on the trip of The Tehran Symphony Orchestra, to St. Petersburg ahead of the 2018 football world cup match between Iran and Morocco. Source: Youtube, 2018
Shahkar Bineshpajooh (based in USA) performs medley of classic Iranian songs for Iranian diaspora at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. Source: Youtube, 2017
Modern: Rap / RnB
Hamid Sefat (based in Iran), Ajayeb Shahr. Source: Youtube, 2019
Zed Bazi (based in Iran), Az Ghazal ta Khalije Fars. Source: Youtube, 2009
Hamid Sefat’s Iranian take on Drake’s ‘Hotline Bling’. Source: Youtube, 2016
Reza Pishro & Ho3ein Eblis (based in Iran), Miri Tu Lak. Source: Youtube, 2016
Modern: A Cappella
Tehran Vocal Ensemble, founded by Milad Omranloo perform Persian a cappella at a Tedx Tehran event in Tehran, Iran. Source: Youtube, 2019
Iranian A Capella group perform a song, entitled ‘Nowruzi Waltz’ in honor of the Persian New year. Source: Youtube, 2019
Modern: Trap
Daniel Asadi (US based), Goldie. Source: Youtube, 2018
Daniel Asadi, Caspian. Source: Youtube, 2018
Traditional: Folklore
Homayoun Shajarian (based in in Iran) - Poetry of Rumi . Source: Youtube, 2018
Salar Aghili (based in Iran). Source: Youtube, 2017
Simorq Traditional Persian Music Concert (UK) on BBC Persian TV. Source: Youtube, 2013
Sima Bina (based in Iran and Germany). Source: Youtube, 2013