Moj Magazine: MOJ MAGAZINE PARADE OF PIONEERS

Saturday, January 17, 2015

MOJ MAGAZINE PARADE OF PIONEERS

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Moj Magazine celebrating parade of pioneers like Nima Yushij, Ardeshir Mohasses , Forugh Farokhzad, Ghamar, Sadegh Hedayat ,Moj Sevom/Third Wave in Contemporary Persian Poetry, etc... Whose bravery, open mindedness and creativity set examples and paved way for innovations .
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This is a picture of the legendary Iranian singer Qamar al-Moluk Vaziri (1905-1959)--the courageous vocalist who dared to defy the patriarchal misogyny of her time and sing in public--she inaugurated and inspired generations of female vocalists who came after her--until the establishment of the tyrannous Islamic Republic in 1979 when women were categorically banned to perform in public--

I remember my mother singing Qamar al-Moluk's songs along while doing her chores when she was broadcast on the radio back in the 1950s in Ahvaz--

Today young Iranian musicians face a fanatical ruling regime that is afraid of the simplest manifestations of joy and creativity--young female musicians and vocalists are the particular target of this brutish banality --

Imagine Egypt and the larger Arab world without Umm Kalthum or Fairuz, imagine France and Europe without Edith Piaf, imagine the U.S. Without Ella Fitzgerald or Billie Holiday or Mahalia Jackson or Joan Baez . . . the list is endless and global . . .

Majid Derakhshani, a leading composer and musician who was about to take his female ensemble Mahbanu for a concert in Dubai was just prevented from leaving Iran and his passport confiscated --why? Because people love their music!

What despicable tyranny is this Islamic Republic, you may wonder!

Last September Aljazeera broadcast a brilliant documentary by a young Iranian filmmaker, Ayat Najafi, who follows the trials and tribulations of his sister Sara Najafi, a composer determined to overcome this ghastly injustice and stage a concert by female vocalists --the result is a defiant cry of freedom by beautiful voices and even more beautiful souls refusing to yield to the ugly reign of brutes over their homeland and their dreams --

I was just informed by the filmmaker that a longer version of his film, "Bird of Dawn," is currently touring around the world and he prefers if this shorter version were not widely distributed --so honoring his request I have deleted the Aljazeera link --but hope you will all be able to see the full version --

Moj Magazine

Saturday, January 17, 2015

MOJ MAGAZINE PARADE OF PIONEERS

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