TEHRAN – The 12th edition of the National Festival of Youth Music, which will showcase classical and regional performances by musicians aged between 15 and 29, will be held at several halls in Tehran from August 13 to September 9.

About 600 solo and group performances will be staged and over 90 master musicians will judge the performances during the event, the director of the festival, Hooman As’adi, said at the press conference held at the Music Office on Monday.

“As far as I know, this festival is not only one of its kind in Iran but also unique in the world,” he added.

The virtuoso of the Persian stringed instruments, Hossein Alizadeh who collaborates with the organizers as a jury member, said that he believes it is the young musicians who can make the cultural future of the country.
 
He said that despite an official disagreement with music in the country, the families get more interested in encouraging their children to learn music.

“The word ‘young’ bears a feeling of hope and energy in itself,” he added.

Addressing the reporters, Alizadeh continued, “I would like to say this obviously that in the current time the number of female musicians who are able to perform Iranian music is much more than the men, but since they cannot find ways on stage, the men have more public appearances.

“The art of music is one of my sacred things and I will never attend a festival if it enforces sex segregation,” he asserted.

“If you say we have 10 good male singers I would introduce 100 good female singers to you. I know that many female singers have never accepted to attend the concerts arranged exclusively for females. We have not issued these laws and will never obey them,” he concluded.

The Iran Music Association is the main organizer of the festival.

Photo: Jury member Hossein Alizadeh attends a press conference in Tehran on August 6, 2018 to brief the media about the 12th National Festival of Youth Music. (Fars/Mohsen Atai) 

RM/MMS