Sahbai, I :: 14 Persian Folk Songs

Publisher: ALRY Publications 

Editor: Gholami, Mehrdad

ALRY Publications presents '14 Persian Folk Songs' by Iradj Sahbai, arranged for flute duet by Mehrdad Gholami. 

Gholami writes about this piece, 'There is a saying that playing Mozart is difficult because it is so well-known and deceptively simple. What about melodies that not only musicians but a whole country has lived on with? The idea of 'interpreting' a folksong to me is as daunting as it can be. However, wrestling with a set of folksongs seems to be a rite of passage for composers and performers alike. 

'The first time I heard Iradj Sahbai's folksongs for piano, performed by Peyman Yazdanian, I was immediately yearning to hear more of Sahbai's clever use of dissonance and his masterful rhythmic displacement of the melodies. I started thinking what if we could really feel the crunch of these dissonances? I started arranging the collection in form of duets for two flutes and realized, in addition to the dissonances, I can add a third dimension, which is flute's ability to hold a note and create a difference tone. Eventually, each movement became an etude on the extended techniques of the flute.'

Contents

• 1. Doxtare Boyerahmadi
• 2. Rashid xan
• 3. Asemun be in gapi
• 4. To Biya
• 5. Mastom Mastom
• 6. Homay Juon
• 7. Zard Malije
• 8. Darene Jan
• 9. Gasem Abadi
• 10. Hey yar Hey yar
• 11. Pache Leili
• 12. Majnun nabudom
• 13. Yar Mobarak bad
• 14. Girma Bostan Ichina