Reza Vali () is an Iranian musician and

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and def ...

Life and education

Vali was born in

Qazvin Qazvin (; ; ) is a city in the Central District (Qazvin County), Central District of Qazvin County, Qazvin province, Qazvin province, Iran, serving as capital of the province, the county, and the district. It is the largest city in the provi ...

in 1952 and studied at the Tehran Conservatory. In 1972, he attended the

University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna The University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna (, abbreviated MDW) is an Austrian university established in 1817 located in Vienna. With a student body of over three thousand, it is the largest institution of its kind in Austria, and one of t ...

, where he studied. He later attended the

University of Pittsburgh The University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) is a Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. The university is composed of seventeen undergraduate and graduate schools and colle ...

where he received his PhD in composition and

music theory Music theory is the study of theoretical frameworks for understanding the practices and possibilities of music. ''The Oxford Companion to Music'' describes three interrelated uses of the term "music theory": The first is the "Elements of music, ...

Career

Vali has received the Austrian Ministry of Arts and Sciences honor prize and two

Andrew W. Mellon Andrew William Mellon (; March 24, 1855 – August 26, 1937), known also as A. W. Mellon, was an American banker, businessman, industrialist, philanthropist, art collector, and politician. The son of Mellon family patriarch Thomas Mellon ...

fellowships. He was selected by the

Pittsburgh Cultural Trust The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust (PCT) is an American, nonprofit, arts organization that was formed in 1984 to promote economic and cultural development in Downtown Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The "Trust" has focused its work on a fourteen-square block ...

as an Outstanding Emerging Artist, for which he received the Creative Achievement Award. Vali's orchestral works have been performed by the

Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra (PSO) is an American orchestra based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The orchestra is resident at Heinz Hall, located in Pittsburgh's Cultural District. Since 2008, the orchestra's music director is Manfred Ho ...

, the

Seattle Symphony The Seattle Symphony is an American orchestra based in Seattle, Washington. Since 1998, the orchestra is resident at Benaroya Hall. The orchestra also serves as the accompanying orchestra for the Seattle Opera. History Beginnings The orchest ...

, the

Boston Modern Orchestra Project The Boston Modern Orchestra Project (BMOP) is a professional orchestra founded in 1996 by artistic director Gil Rose in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. In its first twelve seasons, the BMOP was able to perform over 80 concerts of conte ...

, the

Baltimore Symphony Orchestra The Baltimore Symphony Orchestra (BSO) is an American symphony orchestra based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Baltimore SO has its principal residence at the Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall, where it performs more than 130 concerts a year. In 2005, ...

, the Memphis Symphony Orchestra, and

Orchestra 2001 Orchestra 2001 was founded at Swarthmore College, where it was Ensemble-in-Residence for over twenty-five years. In addition to concerts in the Philadelphia area, the ensemble has brought new American music to countless new audiences through nation ...

. He has been commissioned by the

, the

, the Pittsburgh New Music Ensemble, the

Kronos Quartet The Kronos Quartet is an American string quartet based in San Francisco. It has been in existence with a rotating membership of musicians for 50 years. The quartet covers a very broad range of musical genres, including contemporary classical musi ...

, the

Seattle Chamber Players The Seattle Chamber Players are a chamber ensemble focused on contemporary music, founded in 1989 in Seattle, Washington, U.S. In January 2004, the group was awarded the ASCAP/Chamber Music America Award for Adventurous Programming. , the core mem ...

, and the Arizona Friends of Chamber Music, as well as receiving grants from the

Pennsylvania Council on the Arts {{Short description, American arts agency in the state of Pennsylvania The Pennsylvania Council on the Arts (PCA) is an agency serving the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. Its mission is to strengthen the cultural, educational, and economic vitality of P ...

and the Pittsburgh Board of Public Education. His chamber music has been performed by the

Cuarteto Latinoamericano Cuarteto Latinoamericano is a string quartet from Mexico. Since its founding in 1981, the quartet has toured in Europe, The Americas, Israel, China, Japan, and New Zealand. They have premiered over 100 works written for them. The members of Cuart ...

, the Del Sol Quartet, the Pittsburgh New Music Ensemble, the

, the

, and the

Da Capo Chamber Players The Da Capo Chamber Players are an American contemporary music "Pierrot ensemble," founded in 1970. Winners of the Naumburg Award in 1973, its founding members included composer/pianist Joan Tower, violinist Joel Lester (former dean of Mannes Co ...

. He is a professor emeritus at

Carnegie Mellon University Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) is a private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. The institution was established in 1900 by Andrew Carnegie as the Carnegie Technical Schools. In 1912, it became the Carnegie Institu ...

, where he has been on the faculty since 1988.

Works

Folk Songs series

*Folk Songs Set No. 1, for soprano and piano (1979) *Folk Songs Set No. 2, for soprano and piano (1981) *Folk Songs Set No. 5, for soprano, choir, harp, piano and percussion (1984) *Folk Songs Set No. 7, for voice and chamber orchestra (1986) *Folk Songs Set No. 8, for voice and ensemble (1989) *Folk Songs Set No. 9, for flute and cello (1991) *Folk Songs Set No. 10, for soprano and chamber orchestra (1993) *Folk Songs Set No. 11A, for four cellos (1995) *Folk Songs Set No. 11B, for string quartet (1995) *Folk Songs Set No. 12, for soprano, string quartet and piano (1996) *Folk Songs Set No. 13, for four cellos (1996) *Folk Songs Set No. 14, for soprano and chamber orchestra (1998) *Folk Songs Set No. 15, for flute, clarinet, percussion, violin and cello (1999) *Folk Songs Set No. 16 ''The Being of Love'', for soprano and orchestra (2005) *Folk Songs Set No. 17 ''Sornâ'', for clarinet and ensemble (2015)

Calligraphy series

*Calligraphy No. 1, for string quartet (1999) *Calligraphy No. 2 ''Zand'', for string quartet (1999) *Calligraphy No. 3, for string quartet (1999) *Calligraphy No. 4, for Persian

santur The santur ( ; ) is a hammered dulcimer of Iranian origin.--- Rashid, Subhi Anwar (1989). ''Al-ʼĀlāt al-musīqīyya al-muṣāhiba lil-Maqām al-ʻIrāqī''. Baghdad: Matbaʻat al-ʻUmmāl al-Markazīyya. History The santur was invented ...

and string quartet (2001) *Calligraphy No. 5, for violin or viola (2003) *Calligraphy No. 6, for string quartet (2006) *Calligraphy No. 7 ''Kismet'', for three flutes (2007) *Calligraphy No. 8 ''Kereshmeh'', for six woodwinds and percussion (2007) *Calligraphy No. 9 ''Kord'', for solo cello (2008) *Calligraphy No. 10 ''Khojasteh'', for violin and cello (2010) *Calligraphy No. 11 ''Gâtâr'', for string quartet (2011) *Calligraphy No. 12 ''Geryân'', for string quartet (2011) *Calligraphy No. 13 ''The Ancient Call'', for orchestra (2014) *Calligraphy No. 14, for Persian

and string quartet (2014) *Calligraphy No. 15 ''Raak'', for string quartet (2015) *Calligraphy No. 16 ''Isfahan'', for orchestra (2017)

Orchestral

*''Deylámân'' (1995) *''Ravân'' (2013)

Concertante

*Four Movements for String Quartet and Orchestra (1993) *''The Dervish and the Magus'', for cello and chamber orchestra *Flute Concerto (1997) *Concerto for Persian

Ney The ney ( ; ) is an end-blown flute that figures prominently in traditional Persian, Turkish, Jewish, Arab, and Egyptian music. In some of these musical traditions, it is the only wind instrument used. The ney has been played for over 4,500 ye ...

and Orchestra ''Toward That Endless Plain'' (2003) *Double Concerto for Persian Ney,

Kamanche The kamancheh (also kamānche or kamāncha) (, , , ) is an Iranian bowed string instrument used in Persian, Azerbaijani, Armenian, Kurdish, Georgian, Turkmen, and Uzbek music with slight variations in the structure of the instrument. The ...

, and Orchestra ''Segâh'' (2010)

Chamber

*String Quartet No. 1 *String Quartet No. 2 (1991) *String Quartet No. 3 (2001) *Love Songs, for piano quartet (2003) *String Quartet No. 4 ''Ormavi'' (2017)

Recordings

* 2024: ESFAHÂN (Navona Records) * 2019: Longing: Chamber Music of Reza Vali (MSR Classics) * 2018: The Ancient Call (

Albany Records Albany Records is a record label that concentrates on unconventional contemporary classical music by American composers and musicians. It was established by Peter Kermani in 1987 and is based in Albany, New York. In May 2024, Albany Records wa ...

) * 2015: The Book of Calligraphy (Albany Records) * 2013: Reza Vali: Towards that Endless Plain (

) * 2006: Chant and Dance: Works for Chamber Ensemble (Albany Records) * 2005: Calligraphies: Works for String Quartet (Albany Records) * 1995: Persian Folklore (New Albion)

References

External links

Arghonoon Project by Reza Vali (2010)
presented at the Studio for Creative Inquiry at Carnegie Mellon University 1952 births Carnegie Mellon University faculty Iranian classical composers Iranian emigrants to the United States Living people People from Qazvin Iranian classical musicians University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna alumni University of Pittsburgh alumni {{Asia-composer-stub

Life and education

Career

Works

Folk Songs series

Calligraphy series

Orchestral

Concertante

Chamber

Recordings

See also

References

External links