TEHRAN – Ensemble Musikfabrik, a leading Cologne-based German group for contemporary music, plans to perform pieces composed by Iranian composers during their upcoming concert.

The concert entitled “Montagskonzert” will be held at Cologne’s KOMED im Mediapark on January 10, 2022, the ensemble has announced.

“Zagros” composed by Karen Keyhani for oud is one of the pieces, while “Neues Werk” composed by Sara Abazari for oud, flute, horn, percussion and violin is another.

The repertoire of the group also features Arshia Samsaminia’s “Micro-Moments IV” composed for flute, violin, horn, percussion, oud and fixed media.

German musician Joachim Heintz’s “Y” written for oud and live electronics will also be performed.

The compositions have been commissioned by the ensemble with support from the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media.

“In ‘Micro-Moments IV’, composed based on maqams of ancient Iranian music, the listeners would never hear a piece made based on the criteria for pure Iranian music,” Samsaminia said in a press release published on Saturday.

“I have used the maqams and musical intervals from ancient Iranian music solely as instruments for composing a piece having a modern ambiance but without any cultural conceit; possibly the impression of Iranian music can be traced only by studying the partitas in the piece,” he added.

“I wanted to compose a piece based on my own thoughts, and not based on my Iranian identity. Therefore, I used the maqams and the musical intervals of ancient Iranian music to create something new in the music world,” he noted.

Samsaminia called Musikfabrik one of five popular ensembles of the world and said, “Working with this ensemble can get a musician noticed in the world.”

Yasamin Shahhosseini, an Iranian oud virtuoso who has worked with many musicians and groups across the world, will accompany Ensemble Musikfabrik during the concert.

Ensemble Musikfabrik places particular emphasis on artistic innovation in their music. 

“New, unknown, and often personally commissioned works in unusual media are typical of their productions,” the group has said.

Photo: An undated photo shows Ensemble Musikfabrik performing in a concert.

MMS/YAW