3- Existence: Life

“A performer with magnetic, pop-star appeal...” 
New Yorker -

Hafez Nazeri is Iran’s most influential and admired new composer and singer and is the son of legendary musician Shahram Nazeri. Together they have accomplished the prominent role of introducing Persian/Sufi music to the Western world. Most recently Hafez's latest album "Untold" has topped the Classical Charts at #1 twice so far. 

Hafez has been featured by numerous news outlets and has been chosen by Vanity Fair as one of the most successful Iranians in NYC, and by the Los Angeles Times as one of the Culture Monsters of 2009.

In 2014 Hafez has been featured by CNN: http://www.cnn.com/video/data/2.0/video/international/2014/07/03/spc-inside-middle-east-lebanon-syria-c.cnn.html

BBC: http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-28333811

BBC's Fifth Floor: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p0240kzq

Over the past years he has performed sold out concerts to standing ovation at the most prestigious concert halls around the world such as Stern Auditorium Carnegie Hall, Walt Disney concert Hall, Atlanta Symphony Hall, Kodak Theater, Royal Albert Hall and many others.

Hafez began voice lessons at the age of three, and went on to place first in many voice competitions. At seven, he began focusing his studies on tanbour and setar which he had been playing since he was three. He then became intrigued by the daf, a percussion instrument he taught himself to play. In the process, he created a unique technique that is now emulated by many of Iran’s young daf players. 

By the age of nine, Hafez had already begun to perform alongside his father in many prestigious music festivals in Europe and the Middle East. At the age of sixteen he performed at the Sfinks Festival in Belgium, the Festa Del Popolo in Italy, the Théâtre de la Ville in Paris and the Beiteddine Festival in Lebanon, along with many others. Hafez is considered to have extended the technique of setar-playing and has received praise from musicians and craftsmen alike.

In 2000, Hafez assembled a talented group of young performers to form the Rumi Ensemble. Together they performed Hafez’s original compositions in a series of landmark concerts in twenty Iranian cities. These musical innovations not only reached younger audiences, they also had an impact on the musical scene in Iran and beyond. With 140,000 in attendance, The Rumi Ensemble’s concerts in Tehran set a record for the entire Middle East. 

Selected pieces from this tour have been performed by the Armenian Philharmonic Orchestra in London’s Royal Albert Hall, and at music festivals including the Sodra Teatern in Stockholm, the De Bijloke in Ghent, Belgium, as well as at the Fez Festival in Morocco, and the Théâtre de la Ville in Paris.

At the age of 21, in a search for new artistic ground, Hafez came to New York to study western classical music. In 2005, he received a Diploma in Composition and Conducting from the Mannes College of Music. 

Later, during the same year, Hafez, along with new members of his Rumi Ensemble launched “In the Path of Rumi," a highly successful North American tour which performed record-breaking, sold-out concerts, to rave reviews. The venues included The Atlanta Symphony Hall and Los Angeles’ Kodak theater (12/11/05) - the most highly attended Persian classical music concert outside of Iran.

Hafez’s international appeal led to several invitations to speak at various media outlets, including radio stations such as KPBS, KUSC, KPFK, KPFA, TIME, UC Berkeley Radio and several of NPR in the United States.
Hafez’s musical compositions have been praised in major publications such as New York Times, Los Angeles Times, L.A Weekly, Boston Globe, San Francisco Chronicle, Washington Post, San Diego Tribune, Atlanta Journal, Telegraph, The Independent, Republica, Le Monde among others.
He was also featured in broadcast interviews, which include 10-minutes on CNN’s Live From with Kyra Phillips, BBC World Service’s program, The Ticket with Mark Coles, a live appearance on the Fox Channel, an exclusive on ABC NEWS, and an exclusive with Associated Press.

Hafez is also the recipient of a UCLA Creativity Award for Most Distinguished Young Composer. The Irvine City Hall Award of Distinction in Kurdish music was given to Hafez Nazeri for his contributions in spreading Rumi’s spiritual message of peace through the language of music. The United Nations Association also recognized Hafez’s contributions and his innovation in undertaking the “In the Path of Rumi” tour. 

February 25, 2006 was named Hafez Nazeri Day in San Diego County by the Mayor and the Chairman of San Diego’s Board of Supervisors. Soon after, he received recognition awards from the sheriff of Los Angeles, and the United States Congress, and was invited to lecture at Emory University, and Harvard University, where he was recognized for his pioneering efforts and innovation in Persian music. 

In 2007, Hafez premiered his most passionate and ambitious undertaking: The Rumi Symphony, as the first major celebration of Rumi’s 800th birthday anniversary. It was performed in the United States at the Walt Disney Concert Hall, and received a standing ovation. He also released a new CD called The Passion of Rumi, which L.A Times and the Boston Globe chose as one of the five best CDs in World Music for 2007.

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