"The Sky At Dawn" by Diana Rowan & Pezhham Akhavass
An ecstatic journey from Iran to Ireland, the Celtic harp and Persian tombak collide in passion, joy, darkness and surprise. A timeless duo that speaks to our deep need for connection and inspiration.

http://www.strikingly.com/sky-at-dawn

11.Spring Giddiness from "The Sky At Dawn" by Diana Rowan & Pezhham Akhavass

Motion

Showing the power of the Tombak, a kind of goblet drum by one of Iran's foremost percussionist; this album explores traditional and modern approaches to universal language of rhythm using just one instrument to show multiple rhythms and techniques. Recorded 2008

Illusion

Pezhham Akhavass is a percussionist/multi instrumentalist/Tombak a type of goblett drum from Persia. Pezhham was born in 1980 and graduated with bachelor's degree in music from Sureh University of Tehran. With the support of his renowned artist father Mostafa, Pezhham began studying the Tombak at the age of five with the guidance of Ostad Naser Farhanghfar. From 1989-1991, he continued studying Tombak with Mr. Saeid Roudbary. Pezhham developed a very unique ability to grasp the technicalities of the tombak and bring a new approach to rhythm. His unique approach has resulted in Pezhham being termed one of the most distinguished musicians of his generation.

In addition to Tombak and Daf, Pezhham is knowledgeable about Setar, Tanbour and Oud. and has studied other percussion instruments including: daf, Indian Tabla, kanjira and gatam.

From 2001-2007 Pezhham worked professionally with the renowned vocalist, Shahram Nazeri where he traveled the world performing in some of the worlds most prestigious festivals, events and concert halls. Pezhham has performed in Iran, Europe and Morocco in many notable music festivals including: Festival del Popolo in Italy, Théâtre de la Ville andThéâtre du Soleil in Paris, Fes Festival in Morocco, Sodran Theatre in Sweden, and also performed in Austria, Australia, and Finland. 

In 2008, Pezhham was invited as a guest artist to perform with YoYo Ma as part of his Silk Road project to a sold out crowd at the Hollywood Bowl.

In 2009, Pezhham performed in Konya Turkey as part of the Mystic Music Festival. 

In 2010, Pezhham was the featured percussionist of the Masters of Persian Music Tour where he performed in a 10 city United States tour including;Disney Hall in Los Angeles, Zellerbach Hall in Berkeley, Irvine Barclay Theatre in Irvine, Skirball Center in New York City, Sanders Theatre in Boston, Hanna Theatre in Cleveland; Symphony Center in Chicago, Ferst Center for the Arts in Atlanta, Kennedy Center in Washington, DC and the Symphony Center in Chicago. 

Pezhham has toured, performed and recorded with some of the masters in Persian music including Shahram Nazeri, Kayhan Kalhor, Hossein Alizadeh, Aliakbar Moradi, Saeid Farajpouri, Majid Derakhshani, Hosein Yousefzamani, Hosein Omoumi and Masoud Shoari. 

Today, Pezhham resides in San Francisco California where he teaches private lessons in tombak, daf and setar. Pezhham is working on different productions and projects, gives lectures and demonstrations in Persian music and performances.

Pezhham

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