Programme notes

In Song of the Reed the reed quintet meets one of the most famous singers from Iran: Mohammad Motamedi. Together these musicians present a programme in which traditional Iranian songs are played alongside instrumental classical music.

Song of the Reed is all about nostalgia to the place of origin. The well-known eponymous poem by the 13th-century mystical poet Rumi describes the pain of those who are cut from their home as a reed cut loose from its roots. Centuries old Persian poetry forms an inexhaustible well for Iranian songs. The speciality of Motamedi is to set these verses tot elegant melodies.

Programme

After Me
Unknown (arr. Rafael Fraga)
Text by Omar Khayyam

Lalaee
Kaveh Vares 
Based on a melody by Mohammad Motamedi
Text by Soheil Mahmoudi

Kie-Kie
Sheida (arr. Mehdi Abdi)
Text by Ali Akbar Sheyda

Improvisation on Ghazal no. 12
Mohammad Motamedi and Pouriya Jaberi
Text by Jalal Aldin Mohammad Balkhi (also 
known as Rumi and Molana)

Ich muss dich lassen
Heinrich Isaac, Johann Sebastian Bach,
Johannes Brahms (arr. Raaf Hekkema)
Text by Mohammad Motamedi

Bhaad
Arefeh Hekmatpanah

Isfahan
Billy Strayhorn (arr. Raaf Hekkema)

Syrinx (after Claude Debussy)
Raaf Hekkema

Mort tu as navré
Johannes Ockeghem (arr. Raaf Hekkema)

Keshmakesh (an old Persian Song)
Unknown (arr. Aftab Darvishi)
Text by Mohammad Motamedi and Aref 
Ghazvini

encore

Jana
Pouriya Jaberi

Rendez-vous
Unknown (arr. Mehdi Abdi)

Read the lyrics

Calefax

Oliver Boekhoorn oboe, duduk
Raaf Hekkema saxophone
Alban Wesly bassoon
Jelte Althuis bass clarinet 
Bart de Kater clarinet

Mohammad Motamedi vocals, ney 
Pouriya Jaberi daf, tanbur

Biographies

Calefax is a close-knit ensemble of five reed players united by a shared passion. For more than thirty-five years they have been acclaimed in the Netherlands and abroad for their virtuosic playing, brilliant arrangements and innovative stage presentation. They are the inventors of their own genre: the reed quintet. They provide inspiration to young wind players from all over the world who follow in their footsteps.

Mohammad Motamedi is an Iranian traditional singer and ney (reed flute) player. He has worked with the great maestros of Iranian music such as Alexander Rahbari, Mohammadreza Lotfi and Hossein Alizadeh. In addition to concerts in his home country, Motamedi has performed at Carnegie Hall in New York and the Theatre de la ville in Paris.

Pouriya Jaberi is an Iranian percussionist based in the Netherlands. He specialises in various traditional Iranian percussion instruments such as the daf and tanboor. In recent years, Jaberi has performed with various ensembles at festivals in Armenia, Australia, Norway, Turkey and England

Soon in Amare