TEHRAN – The 13th edition of Iran’s Regional Music Festival will be held online in the southern Iranian city of Kerman from October 31 to November 2, the director of the Kerman branch of Iran Music Association Suraj Yasai said on Monday.

The participating artists will be giving their performances every night mainly at the Ganjali Khan Caravanserai, a 17th-century monument in Kerman, and the performances will stream online on the Instagram page of the association, he added.

“The performances will also be available on Aparat, an Iranian video sharing service,” he said, adding that besides the performances of the regional musicians from across the country, a special section has also been dedicated to folk performances by a number of Kerman’s musicians.

In addition, the organizers plan to produce a series of documentaries on veterans of Iranian regional music to be preserved after the festival ends. 

The organizers also had planned to arrange some public performances during the festival, but the plan was canceled due to a spike in coronavirus cases in the country.

The 12th edition of the festival hosted three ensembles from Turkey and Afghanistan, in addition to several groups from different Iranian provinces.

An Afghan group led by musician Mohammad-Nasim Khoshnavaz and two Turkish ensembles led by artists Ubeydullah Sezikli and Yavuz Selim Kafkasyali gave performances during the festival last year.

Ganjali Khan Square and several other historical sites were the main venues for outdoor performances, while halls in universities and hotels in Kerman hosted several other performances. 

An exhibition of musical instruments, photos and music books and CDs as well as workshops, meetings and seminars were also organized on the sidelines of the festival last year.

Photo: Musicians perform at the opening ceremony of the 12th Regional Music Festival in Kerman on November 7, 2019. (IRNA/Abuzar Ahmadizadeh)

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