Guitar

Behdad was the head of the guitar program at Azad University, Tehran, Iran, before immigrating to the USA in March 2000. His lifelong interest in music began at age 15, when he taught himself guitar by learning rock music of the 1970′s.

In early 1980, he began studying classical guitar under Sadegh Moazen, who had studied under John Duarte and Timothy Walker. After a short time he recorded his first duet with Kazem Moazen.

Behdad is the only Iranian guitarist to have performed the Concerto de Aranjuez with the Tehran Symphony Orchestra and Bahman Symphony Orchestra. He has given several concerts at both Tehran and Azad Universities. Furthermore, his benefit concert for the Children’s Book Council of Iran was recorded by Iran’s International Television Broadcasting Company.

Under Mr. Mehran Rohany from the Royal College of London, he studied harmony, counter point, and form. Under Mr. Sharif Lotfi, Head of the Music Department of Tehran Art University, he learned the basis of performance. He also studied Iranian traditional music with Mr. Majid Kiani, the head of the Music Department of Tehran University.

His concert repertoire runs the gamut from Renaissance to Modern music. From 20th century music, he has played the works of Walton, Briten, Brouwer, Frank Martin, Hentze, Rak, and Koshkin. He has given lectures with performance in Modern and Programmatic music and on 20th Century guitar technique, using Villa Lobos’ 12 Etudes and Leo Brouwer’s Etudes. Additionally, he has taught master classes for architecture students about the relationship between music and architecture.

In 1993, he joined the Canningtown summer school master class in England and studied with John Duarte and Riccardo Iznaola. At this master class he was the finalist student performer.

As a composer his music blends the influence of the West with traditional Iranian folk melodies in a modern music system.

Though well known in his native Iran, Behdad is relatively new to music lovers in the West, but his gifted performances are introducing him to a delighted American audience. The Philadelphia Classical Guitar
society says this about his performance: “A recent Iranian immigrant who has taken this country by storm.”