UCLA IRANIAN MUSIC CONFERENCE SERIES

The Legacy of Jalil Shahnaz

Research Presentation by Ghasem Rahimzadeh

Moderated by Dr. Shahab Paranj

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Lani Hall - UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music

445 Charles E. Young Dr. East
2520 Schoenberg Music Building
Los Angeles, CA 90095

The Legacy of Jalil Shahnaz honors one of the most distinguished masters of the tar and a towering figure in Iranian contemporary music. Shahnaz was not only a guardian of Persian classical tradition but also a visionary who expanded its expressive boundaries with unmatched creativity. This series of lectures, performances, and discussions explores his music, artistry, and enduring influence, offering young musicians and scholars new insights into his achievements and inspiring them to carry his legacy forward.

About Shahab Paranj

Winner of the 2024 Hoefer Prize, Composer, Conductor, Instrumentalist, and Educator Dr. Shahab Paranj, an Iranian-born composer, holds degrees in music composition from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, Manhattan School of Music, and the University of California, Los Angeles. He is considered one of the pioneers among his generation of Iranian composers whose composition style integrates Persian and Western composition techniques. Known as a tombak virtuoso, he has performed, recorded, and collaborated with some of the most celebrated artists worldwide. Acclaimed by the San Francisco Examiner as “impressive” and by composer John Adams as “unique voice,” Paranj blends Persian rhythmic and melodic influences with Western texture and form in his composition. Recent commissions include works for ensembles such as the Russian String Orchestra, Intersection Contemporary Music Ensemble, Long Beach Opera, Jâca Duo, Aleron Trio, San Francisco New Music Ensemble, One Great City Duo, MSM Symphony Orchestra, and international Low Brass Trio. Additionally, he has composed an original score for the movie “Dressage,” which won the 2018 feature film (generation category) at the Berlin Film Festival. As a scholar, his main research focus lies in the Iranian Āva Style, and he has presented on this topic in various seminars, including the SEM, AMS, and SMT 2022 joint annual meeting. He has received formal recognition from the Mehr Humanitarian Society (2010) and the City and County of San Francisco (2011). Paranj is a founder and music director of The Iranshahr Orchestra and the artistic director of “du vert à l’infini,” a contemporary music festival in the Franche-Comte region of France. He currently serves as a lecturer and postdoctoral fellow at The UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music.

About Ghasem Rahimzadeh

Ghasem Rahimzadeh Ilkhchi is a distinguished performer, educator, and scholar of Iranian classical music. He began his musical training in 1990 with the tanbur under his father’s guidance and later studied the tar with Arvin. In 2002, he entered the College of Fine Arts at the University of Tehran, where he refined his artistry under masters such as Dariush Pirniakan, Hooshang Zarif, Dariush Talai, Majid Kiani, and Mohammad-Reza Lotfi. His studies encompassed instrumental and vocal Radif traditions, as well as Iranian and Western music theory.

Rahimzadeh has been recognized with numerous honors, including first prize in tar performance at the Fajr Music Festival (2003) and the Barbad Award for Avaz-e Roud (2017). He has collaborated with leading ensembles and artists including Mohammad-Ali Kiani-Nejad, Dariush Pirniakan, and Ardeshir Kamkar, and has performed widely in Iran and abroad.

As a faculty member at the University of Tehran, he teaches tar, setar, ensemble performance, Iranian classical music theory, and improvisation, and regularly leads workshops across the country. His publications include Daily Exercises for Tar and Collection of Pieces (Volume 1).

This program is made possible by generous support from the Gramian-Emrani Center for Iranian Music.

Ticketing
This event is FREE! No RSVP required. Early arrival is recommended.

PARKING
Self-service parking is available at UCLA’s Parking Structure #2 for events in Schoenberg Music Building and the Evelyn and Mo Ostin Music Center. Visitor parking is marked by a green circle and the letter “P” and is on the lower levels (do not go up the ramp to levels 3-7). Costs range from $5 for 1 hour to $17 for all day. Evening rates (after 4 p.m.) are $3-$6 for 1 to 2 hours and $12 for all night. Please verify all rates with campus parking, as they are subject to change.

ACCESSIBILITY
The UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music is eager to provide a variety of accommodations and services for access and communications. If you would like to request accommodations, please do so 10 days in advance of the event by emailing ADA@schoolofmusic.ucla.edu or calling (310) 825-0174.