About the Musicians:
Alireza Shahmohammadi (Composer, singer, classic Persian music)
Alireza Shahmohammadi is an Iranian composer, vocalist, educator, and Rumi scholar whose work is deeply grounded in the Persian classical tradition. A student of Hatam Asgari Farahani, Mohammad Reza Shajarian, and Mohammad Reza Lotfi, Shahmohammadi has released Navazheh, Sug-e-Bahar, and Majnoon, and has appeared in distinguished international performances and collaborations with artists including tabla virtuoso Pandit Swapan Chaudhuri and Theodore Bikel.
Pejman Hadadi (Percussionists)
Pejman Hadadi is a Tehran-born Iranian percussionist renowned for innovative work in Persian rhythm, beginning tombak studies at age 10 and later expanding to the daf to develop a versatile command of Persian percussion traditions. After immigrating to the United States in 1989, Hadadi built an international career through major collaborations and touring, including joining the acclaimed Dastan Ensemble in 1995 and performing and recording widely in leading concert halls. Hadadi has also played a central role in large-scale projects like ZARBANG and cross-cultural collaborations, and is known for research-driven rhythmic exploration (including study of Indian tabla), influencing generations through signature techniques, instrument innovations, teaching, and work as a UCLA ethnomusicology lecturer.
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Behfar Bahadoran (Tar, Setar, multi instrumentalist)
Born in Tehran in 1987, Behfar Bahadoran is a multi-instrumentalist and interdisciplinary artist rooted in Persian classical, regional, and Kurdish mystic traditions. Trained in Iranian-style violin, daf, tar, and setar, Bahadoran has studied with major masters, earned a BFA from the Maryland Institute College of Art, founded Pejvâk Ensemble (2006), co-founded Sorvâd (2020), toured across North America, and performed at the Palace of Fine Arts, Lincoln Center, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Kennedy Center, and the Freer Sackler Gallery.
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