Jaberi: The Báb – Piano Sonatas & Ballades Afshin Jaberi

• Afshin Jaberi (b. 1973): Piano Sonata No. 1, ‘The Seeker’
• 1 I. Allegro 06:09
• 2 II. Andante 04:19
• 3 III. Rondo: Allegro 07:03
• Piano Sonata No. 2, ‘The Path To Peace’
• 4 I. Agitato 03:13
• 5 II. Andante 03:03
• 6 III. Allegretto 05:08
• Piano Sonata No. 3, ‘The Bedouin’
• 7 I. Andante - Allegro 07:05
• 8 II. Adagio 05:07
• 9 III. Rondo 05:03
• Ballades
• 10 Ballade No. 1, The Herold 05:12
• 11 Ballade No. 2, Eroica 12:23
• 12 Ballade No. 3, The Martyrdom 09:38
• Total Runtime 01:13:23

Info for Jaberi: The Báb – Piano Sonatas & Ballades

Iranian composer Afshin Jaberi’s powerful music combines 19th century western piano traditions with eastern melodic influences. It is strongly connected with the message of equality and peaceful unity promoted by his religious faith.

The Báb Ballades depict dramatic heroism and tragic sacrifice, while the Sonatas express the horrors of war and the fragility of remote cultures, out of which new hope and the chance for reconciliation can emerge.

”Art was always the center of my life; I was always attracted to beauty and striving towards harmony; the music in this recording was a beginning of a spiritual journey, a journey of faith, sacrifice, a path of life with deep emotional affections… They were my remedy facing the hardships and calamities and challenges of my life.” (Afshin Jaberi)

Afshin Jaberi, piano

Afshin Jaberi
was born in 1973 into an Iranian family residing in Qatar. Unable to receive formal musical instruction there, he began to develop his interest in the subject by himself. His musical education began properly in 1991 in Hungary, where he attended the Franz Liszt Academy of Music and received his bachelor’s degree in music education. His rapid progress attracted the attention of his teachers and, after two and a half years as a part-time student, he was readily accepted into the academy for full-time study. Besides the distinct progress he made in piano performance, his compositions also attracted attention, especially his First Ballade, written at the age of eighteen; another eight were to follow. His compositions are influenced by the spirit of his faith, from which the acts of heroism and sacrifice of the central figures are reflected in his Ballades. This background has enabled him to bring together the sounds of East and West in his compositions.

Jaberi continued his studies in Kazakhstan at the Almaty Conservatoire, where he obtained his master’s degree and PhD in Pedagogical Science. Again, he won the attention and respect of his teachers and fellow students with his compositions. Exceptionally, he was asked to perform his own pieces alongside works of the standard classical repertoire for piano examinations and graduation concerts.

During the course of his studies he gave numerous concerts in Hungary and Kazakhstan, and later in Slovakia, Russia, Bahrain and Qatar. Jaberi is multi-lingual, speaking Persian, Arabic, English, Hungarian and Russian. Upon his return to Qatar he became involved in the family business but continues to compose, teach music and perform.

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