ABOUT THE ARTISTS:

Behfar Bahadoran, born in Tehran / Iranian 1987, studied under Iranian classical and folklore music masters including Homayoun Khorram, Ramin Rahimi, Ali-Akbar Moradi, Darioush Talaei, and Hamid Motebassem. A Visual Arts graduate from Maryland Institute College of Art, he is a composer, multi instrumentalist and a multidisciplinary visual artist who founded P e z h a k Ensemble in 2008, and is also the band leader and cofounder of Sorvad Ensemble. Throughout his career, he has worked and performed alongside notorious international musicians and artists such as Shahram Nazeri, Majid Derakhshani, Alireza Shahmohammadi, Pejman Hadadi, Pezhham Akhavass, Dawn Avery, John Wubbenhorst, Larry Mitchel, Kazem Davoudian, Susan Deyhim and Mojgan Shajarian. He performs regularly at many prestigious venues in the United States including the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco; Lincoln Center and Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York; Kennedy Center and Freer Shackler Gallery in Washington D.C.

Nariman Assadi is an Iranian musician. Raised in Tehran, he always felt drawn to percussion instruments, and at the age of thirteen, he began studying Tombak under Master Amir Mogharab Samadi. From 2008 to 2013, Nariman performed at Vahdat Hall as a soloist and with the Persian Percussion Ensemble at Pars Academy, the premier music academy for children. After mastering Tombak, he then began learning Daf under the great Master Bijan Kamkar, and with a strong understanding of the Daf and Tombak, Nariman started learning Barbat (Oud) under Master Mohammad Firouzi. In 2015, Nariman immigrated to the United States, where he immediately began his professional music career by performing and attending festivals. Along with being a member of various ensembles, Nariman is a certified-Orff teacher and teaches Daf, Tombak, and Music for children.

In 2022, he toured all over the United States with Afra Ensemble, led by Master Hossein Behrouzina, and additionally, Nariman relaeasd his first album Larzanah, Improvisation of Iranian Folk Music, with Master Faraj Alipour on vocals and Kamancheh. Currently, he teaches Iranian Music at Farsi Schools in Sacramento and the Bay Area. He also teaches music at more than seven elemantary schools in Sacramento.