Golnoush Khaleghi ( ; 6 January 1941 – 14 February 2021) was an

Iranian-American Iranian-Americans, also known as Persian-Americans, are United States citizens or nationals who are of Iranian ancestry, or who hold Iranian citizenship. Most Iranian-Americans arrived in the United States after 1979, as a result of the Irani ...

musician and conductor. She was Iran's first female conductor.

Early life and education

Khaleghi was born in

Tehran Tehran (; , ''Tehrân'') is the capital and largest city of Iran. It is the capital of Tehran province, and the administrative center for Tehran County and its Central District (Tehran County), Central District. With a population of around 9. ...

and studied at the Persian National Music Conservatory, the Mozarteum Salzburg, and later at the

University of Wisconsin A university () is an institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly means "community of teachers and scholars". Uni ...

Career

From 1975 to 1979, Khaleghi was the conductor of National Iranian Radio & Television Choir, known as "Hamâvazân". Shortly after the 1979

Iranian revolution The Iranian Revolution (, ), also known as the 1979 Revolution, or the Islamic Revolution of 1979 (, ) was a series of events that culminated in the overthrow of the Pahlavi dynasty in 1979. The revolution led to the replacement of the Impe ...

she moved to the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. In 1985 she founded the Ruhollah Khaleqi Orchestra in homage to her father and to preserve Persian music in the United States; however, the orchestra's activities was halted in 1990 due to financial difficulties.

Personal life

She was married to American organist Stephen Ackert, with whom she had two sons—David and Julian. Khaleghi died in

Washington D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

on 15 February 2021, at the age of 80.

Works

Compositions

* "Azadi Anthem" (1979) for choir, with lyrics by Fereydoun Moshiri * "Concerto for Santur and Orchestra" (1988) * Piano works based on Persian folk music and melodies by Darvish-Khan, Morteza Neydavood, etc.

Arrangements

* "Pure Wine" (1991), arrangement of her father's works for voice, choir and orchestra.

Books

* "Ey Iran: Memorial volume of Ruhollah Khaleqi". Mahoor Institute, Tehran, 2006. * "Ruhollah Khaleghi's Compositions & Arrangements". Mahoor Institute, Tehran, 2019.

Notes

References

External links

An Interview with Golnoush Khaleghi: BBC Persian TV
(with English subtitles) Iranian women musicians 1941 births 2021 deaths Musicians from Tehran Iranian emigrants to the United States {{Iran-musician-stub