TEHRAN – Eiichi Naito, the coordinator of Japanese musician Kitaro’s concerts, has sued his Iranian counterpart Ali Cheraghali over the cancelation of his concerts in Tehran.

Speaking to the Persian service of MNA, Cheraghali said that in his lawsuit, Naito has claimed compensation.

Kitaro and six American members of his group were scheduled to perform concerts in Tehran during May 2018, but two days before the first performance, Cheraghali announced that the concerts would not be held as the American musicians had failed to obtain visas for Iran.

He also said that he, along with his colleagues, spent two years arranging the concerts, but in the current situation he preferred to remain silent and to wish for better days.

The concerts were originally scheduled to be held from May 6 to 8, 2018, but the organizer postponed the concerts until May 12, 13 and 17 and said that the American musicians faced problems in obtaining their visas on time. And, as a final point, the concert program was canceled completely. 

Naito is the founder and manager the Domo Music Group located in Los Angeles. The record label has said that Naito’s initial success with the company came through the signing of Grammy and Golden Globe-winning Kitaro.

Cheraghali has asked Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Judiciary to help him regarding the legal case.

He said that he will soon publish some documents concerning the issue.

Earlier in October 2014, Kitaro performed several concerts in Tehran, which were warmly received by concertgoers.

Photo: Japanese musician Kitaro performs a concert at the Grand Hall of the Interior Ministry in Tehran on October 19, 2014. (Saeid Khalili/Jamejamonline)

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