Directors’ Note:

Welcome to Hamnavā: the spring concert of the Canadian Golha Orchestra. While our community continues to experience profound political and emotional turmoil, we are grateful for your presence in a concert that seeks to create a space for togetherness, empathy, solidarity, mourning, and, hopefully, a collective re-imagination of a better tomorrow for Iranians, Iran, and the world.

Hadi Milanloo – Executive Director
Kousha Nakhaei – Artistic Director
Nil Basdurak – Director of Strategic Planning

Program:

Rouhollah Khaleghi
Arranged by Kousha Nakhaei
Aref Qazvini
Adapted by Rouhollah Khaleghi
Aref Qazvini
Arr. Rouhollah Khaleghi
Hoseyn Dehlavi
Morteza Mahjoubi (1900-1965), Abolhassan Saba (1902 - 1957), Javad Maroufi (1912-1993)
Lyrics: Rahi Mo’ayyeri (1909-1978), Sa’di (13th c.)
Arr. Golnoosh Khaleghi, K. Nakhaei

I. Deylamān
This deeply expressive melody comes from the Deylaman region in northern Iran and was collected by Abolhassan Saba while working in music education there. Saba later added it to the classical repertoire (radif), and it became especially popular after its performance in Kārevān—both as an instrumental and a vocal version.
II Tasnif:
The suite concludes with a tasnif composed song by Morteza Mahjoubi—one of the great pianists and composers in the traditional Iranian style. This piece is known for its emotional depth, beautifully capturing the themes of love and separation within the modal world of Dashti. The lyrics by Rahi Mo’ayyeri express this emotional journey simply and powerfully:
با ما بودی - بی ما رفتی
تنها ماندم - تنها رفتی
"You were with me — but left without me. I remained alone — and you left alone."
Uzeyir Hajibeyov
Saman Shahi in Collaboration with Delojaan Choir

INTERMISSION

Hossein Dehlavi (1927-2019)
Composer, arranger, and conductor Hossein Dehlavi was part of the generation of musicians who followed Rouhollah Khaleghi and the composers of the Golha radio programs and continued creating Iranian music for orchestras that included Western and Iranian instruments side by side.
A student of the renowned master Abolhasan Saba, Dehlavi orchestrated many of Saba’s works, including Naghme-ye Tork, which is based on Saba’s melodic material in Bayat-e Tork, one of the principal modes of Iranian music. Dehlavi’s original arrangement has been adapted for the Canadian Golha Orchestra by Kousha Nakhaei.
Aref Qazvini
Arranged by Rouhollah Khaleghi
Ali Tajvidi
Attr. Akramoddoleh
Abolhasan Saba
Rouhollah Khaleghi
Parviz Meshkatian

All pieces arranged for CGO by Kousha Nakhaei
*Lullaby arranged for CGO by Saman Shahi

Artist Bios:

Kousha Nakhaei is a conductor, violinist, kamanche player, and educator. He co-directs Sarv Music Academy, a music education centre he co-founded in 2013, curating a multifaceted music education program. He serves as the artistic director for Canadian Golha Orchestra, Sarv Strings and Sarv Choir and regularly arranges music for these groups. As an instrumentalist, he has performed with artists such as Sepideh Raissadat, Ali Rostamian, Naser Masoudi, and Loreena McKennitt. He has toured in Canada and the US with the Sarv Ensemble, Canadian Arabic Orchestra, and Canadian Golha Orchestra. He recently completed an intensive conducting course with Kenneth Keisler.

Sepideh Raissadat is an internationally acclaimed Persian classical vocalist and musician known for her refined and expressive performance of Iranian traditional music. She began her recording career at the age of 19 with an album with Master Parviz Meshkatian (Konj-e Saburi, 2000). Her first public concert happened during the same year at Tehran’s Niavaran hall. As a child, she began studying Persian classical music with the famous Iranian diva Parissa and later with renowned masters Parviz Meshkatian and Mohammad-Reza Lotfi. Ms. Raissadat has performed widely across Europe and North America, appearing at major festivals and prestigious venues including invitations by prestigious institutions, including UNESCO, the Vatican and international media such as BBC and RAI, and venues such as Lincon Centre. Her career has spanned concerts and recording projects with renowned musicians such as Parviz Meshkatian, Hamid Motobassem, Reza Ghasemi, Iman Vaziri, and Iman Habibi. She has performed with ensembles such as Orchestre Métropolitain de Montreal, Orchestra of St. Luke’s (New York), Nexus Percussion Ensemble, and the Canadian Golha Orchestra. Sepideh holds a B.A. degree in painting, a B.Mus degree from the University of Bologna and an MA in Ethnomusicology from the University of Toronto. She has received her PhD in Ethnomusicology from the University of Toronto.

Habib Hoseini is a Persian classical singer living in Canada. He was one of 35 young singers selected by the renowned master Mohammad Reza Shajarian in a 2007 audition to attend Shajarian’s vocal technique and repertoire classes. He continued his studies with ostad Shajarian for seven years. Habib has performed at multiple international venues as a soloist and has recorded albums in collaboration with both Persian and international musicians. He has also been invited to perform at several prominent music festivals and events, including the Tirgan opening ceremony in 2017 and the music departments of McMaster and Alberta Universities in 2018. Additionally, he received a grant from Centre des Musiciens du Monde and Conseil des Arts de Montreal to perform an eight-concert tour in Montreal during 2019-2020. Habib’s singing is rooted in Persian classical and folk music; however, living in Canada has allowed him to expand his experience through collaborations with musicians from diverse cultures and nationalities, including English, French, Turkish, and Arab artists. Habib also holds a Ph.D. in Artificial Intelligence and has an extensive background in automatic audio, speech, and music signal processing and analysis.

Directed by Parisa Bohlouhi

The Delojaan Choir, founded in 2012, nurtures Iranian choral music while creating a welcoming artistic home for singers based in K-W area. Under the leadership of Parisa Bohlouli since 2018, this volunteer ensemble of more than 30 auditioned members meets weekly for rehearsals, vocal training, and musicianship development, fostering growth through shared learning.
Delojaan is known for its strong community spirit, performing in Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal, K‑W, and London, and presenting benefit concerts. The choir has collaborated with the Canadian Golha Orchestra, the Canadian Opera Company (COC), and respected Iranian and Canadian composers, celebrating cultural connection within Canada’s multicultural landscape. In 2026, Delojaan premiered Echoes of Resilience through the COC’s Opera Makers program, marking a meaningful artistic milestone.