Unreleased Shajarian recordings from 2014 European concert unveiled
Iran unveiled two previously unreleased albums drawn from the final European concert of Mohammad Reza Shajarian, the towering master of Persian classical vocal music, at a ceremony held at Tehran’s Museum of Contemporary Art on December 17.
The albums, ‘Sar dar Gariban’ (Head Bowed in Contemplation) and Bang-e Dohol (The Beat of the Drum), capture Shajarian’s last live performances in Europe in 2014 and were presented during a special program titled ‘An Enduring Keepsake,’ giving audiences first access to rare, lesser-heard material from the late singer’s closing years, IRNA reported.
The recordings were released by Delavaz, the label he founded, and revive what organizers described as the “fervor” of Iranian vocal music shaped by five decades of his distinctive sound.
Shajarian, was born in Mashhad on September 23, 1940, and died on October 8, 2020, aged 80, after a prolonged illness. He was buried in Tus, in Iran’s northeastern Khorasan Razavi Province. Across a career spanning more than half a century, Shajarian recorded about 60 albums, performed extensively at home and abroad, and lent his voice to film scores including ‘Delshodegan’ (The Heartbroken).He was an accomplished calligrapher in the Nasta‘liq script, chaired Iran’s Music House high council, founded the Shahnaz ensemble, and established cultural ventures ranging from Delavaz to the Bam Art Garden.
He received the Aga Khan Foundation’s “Godfather of Music” award, earned two Grammy nominations, and was named by the Asia Society as the most celebrated figure in Iranian classical music. In 2010, Canada’s Vancouver Sun listed him among the year’s most significant musical artists worldwide, later ranking him among the world’s top 50 voices.
Shajarian was also revered for his Qur’anic recitation, notably the supplication ‘Rabbana,’ (Our Lord) which became emblematic for generations. In his later years, he introduced several newly designed instruments, including the Sorahi and Shahrashoub, unveiling them publicly in Tehran in 2011.