Welsh Music Salon: Sounding Persian with Niloofar Ejraei at the West Van Library

Tuesday, Sep 15, 2026
6:30 PM – 7:30 PM
More Details

Join Niloofar Ejraei, our Sound Artist in Residence, for a special performance celebrating Iranian classical music.

Niloofar will weave a live santur performance throughout an accessible introduction to the dastgah system—the modal framework of Iranian classical music—and the concept of the radif, the body of traditional melodies that forms the foundation of Persian musical improvisation.

Through live performance and discussion, she will demonstrate how a musician moves through a dastgah: beginning with a slow, exploratory chahar mezrab, developing melodic ideas, and arriving at moments of free improvisation that draw on centuries of accumulated musical knowledge.

The presentation will also explore how this musical tradition has evolved over time, from the intimate private gatherings of the Qajar era, to the first shellac recordings of the early twentieth century, to mid-century concert hall performances, and into the present day where Persian musicians record in professional studios and share their music with audiences around the world. Each of these settings has influenced how the music is performed and how it is experienced.

No prior knowledge of Persian music is required. The live performance is at the heart of the program, while the discussion offers context and insight—the music itself tells the story.