CD Review | Sayeh Roshan, Ali Kian Yazdanfar, Brigitte Poulin

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Sayeh Roshan

Ali Kian Yazdanfar, double bass; Brigitte Poulin, piano

Leaf Music, 2025

Sayeh Roshan is the new project by Ali Kian Yazdanfar and the type of album that can be enjoyed as much by listening to it as by reading the liner notes. The double bass player here puts himself at the crossroads of Persian and western cultures on one hand, and new music and folklore on the other. Along with Brigitte Poulin at the piano, he brings to life new works, most of which were specially commissioned for this project.

The composers used for this fascinating blend of cultures are all Iranian, or of Iranian origin. Behnoosh Behnamnia is one of them. Featured alongside Bamdad Fotouhi on the tombak, she plays the kamancheh, a bowed string instrument, to offer charming Persian folk music that alternates with pieces for double bass and piano. The opening three-movement work by Amir Eslami plays with the acoustic ambiguity between traditional and western instruments, the latter imitating the former.

Sayeh Roshan explores rich harmonics

What strikes one first is how well the vibrant textures and rich harmonics are captured by the studio recording. The piano’s colours slowly diffuse as notes are held, while Yazdanfar explores the acoustic abilities of his own instrument with an array of techniques that range from soft to harsh. Despite his virtuosity, it is unfortunate that its high register comes across as unnatural based on the nature of the double bass itself. A cello, with its naturally more brilliant timbre, might have worked better in the circumstances.

The last composition, by Reza Vali, also uses imitation to suggest the human voice via the highest register of the double bass. Yazdanfar and Poulin add to the possibilities of their instruments with some sung passages, but these feel too fragile, both in themselves and in the way they are recorded. An unusual listening experience. Be warned!    

Translation: Cecilia Grayson

This page is also available in / Cette page est également disponible en: Français (French)