CHICAGO EVENTS

Masters of Persian Music
Tuesday, February 23, at 7:30 p.m.
Symphony Center (220 South Michigan)

The program features two of the most influential composers and instrumentalists in Persian classical music today:
Kayhan Kalhor performing for the first time on a five-string version of his traditional kamancheh (spike fiddle), the fifth strand bringing the sound of the instrument closer to the Western viola, and
Hossein Alizadeh on shour angiz, his own expanded version of a Persian ud;
plus the best of a new generation of Persian musicians:
Hamid Reza Nourbakhsh, a student of legendary Iranian singer Mohammad Reza Shajarian and one of the finest Iranian vocalists today;
Siamak Jahangiry on ney (flute); Fariborz Azizi on bass tar (lute); Pezhham Akhavass on tombak (hand drum); and Hamid Reza Maleki on santur (hammered dulcimer).

The program opens with an extended improvisational duet by Kalhor and Alizadeh, followed by the full ensemble. The featured songs range from the works of ancient Sufi writers to Iran's most important living poet, Shafi'I Kadkani.

Kayhan Kalhor's career—half spent in the West and half in Iran—has included recordings and performances with Persian classical music's greatest names, including Mohammed Reza Shajarian, with whom he recorded two Masters of Persian Music CD's for the U.S.-based World Village label. Both recordings, "Faryad" and "Without You", also featured Hossein Alizadeh and both were nominated for a Grammy Award. Kalhor's projects have included Ghazal, a long-running collaboration with Indian sitarist Shujaat Khan; Yo-Yo Ma's Silk Road Ensemble, a group he has recorded and performed with and composed for since its inception (he was featured in the Chicago Symphony Orchestra's Silk Road Chicago celebration in 2006/07); and classical composer Osvaldo Golijov (one of the CSO's Mead Composers-in-Residence), with whom he collaborated on the soundtrack to Francis Ford Coppola's film "Youth Without Youth". His most recent recording is "Silent City", a 2009 project with the innovative New York string quartet Brooklyn Rider.

Hossein Alizadeh is one of Iran's most celebrated composers and instrumentalists. His first performances in the West were in the orchestra of the famed Béjart Ballet Company. North American audiences first heard his work in the film scores to a number of award-winning Iranian films, including "Gabbeh", "A Time for Drunken Horses", and "Turtles Can Fly". Alizadeh has recorded the entire body of the Persian radif, an immense undertaking to preserve a tradition that has until only recently been handed down directly from master to student. His CD collaboration with Armenia's Djivan Gasparyan, "Endless Vision", also featured his innovation choral group the Hamavayan Ensemble and was nominated for a 2006 Grammy Award. Additional recordings include the 2007 release "Ode to Flowers". The shour angiz that he debuts on this current tour is only one of a number of musical instruments Alizadeh has developed to expand and update the Persian classical tradition.

Tickets: $20-$70 TICKETS for all 2009-2010 Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Symphony Center Presents and Civic Orchestra of Chicago concerts can be purchased by calling CSO ticketing services at 312-294-3000 or 800-223-7114, online at www.cso.org, or by visiting the Symphony Center box office at 220 S. Michigan Ave., Chicago, IL 60604. Discounted student tickets can be purchased, subject to availability, online in advance or at the box office on the day of the concert. For group rates, please call 312-294-3040. Artists, programs and ticket prices are subject to change.

Passport to Persia 2010 March 11, 13, 14 Chicago Children's Museum Located at Navy Pier (312) 527 -1000 www.chicagochildrensmuseum.org **************************************************

NoRouz 1389 - With Dj SULTAN FRIDAY, MARCH 12, 2010 AlHAMBRA PALACE 1240 w. Randolph Chicago, IL 60607 Doors Open 9:30pm Open to ALL! Contact: DJSULTANPMI@YAHOO.COM ****************************************************

NoRouz at the Federal Plaza -Chicago Friday 19 & 20 March 2010 12:00 noon to 6:00pm more info: www.ChicagoPersianEvents.com ************************************

NoRouz, Festival of Life Come celebrate Naw-Ruz the Festival of Life with the descendent of Cyrus the grate in Chicago land NoRouz Party @ Hanging Gardens Friday, March 19 7:00pm - 2:00am Traditional Persian dinner , Live music by Carlo Venti www.facebook.com/carlo.venti , Shervin & Tanin Band, Music is the poetry of the air By: Santoor: Koorosh Jamalpur Violin: Roya Zandi & Honeyeh Riahi Amoo NoRouz passing out gifts to kids , Tickets dinner & concert $50 adults, $25 kids (10 and under), under 3 free only concert $30 Holiday Inn $79 (with full breakfast) Free transportation to & from O'Hare - Hotel Hotel - Hanging Gardens (312) 437- 4726 www.ChicagoPersianEvents.com ****************************************

Chicago Persian School NoRouz Celebration Sunday March 21, 2010, 12:00 – 5:00 pm Avalon Banquets 1905 East Higgins Road Elk Grove Village, IL 60007-2502 Persian Lunch, Amoo Nowruz, Eidi, Haft Seen Table, Student Performances, D.J. Amir, and much more!