Nowruz in Isfahan

Cities and Memory - remixing the world

"I have long been inspired by Iranian culture and particularly its music and poetry.
Much to my surprise, my response to the field recording of the city of Isfahan eventually took the form of a kind of oblique word-picture, prompted by the images and themes which the original field recording sounds brought to mind, which I then set to the sound of a Daf percussion arrangement. One of the main jumping off points was also the idea of the festival of the spring equinox, ‘nowruz’ - which literally means’ ‘new day’ in Persian, and which is a central celebration in Iranian culture.
"The Daf is a traditional Iranian percussion instrument associated with nowruz celebrations amongst many other things, whose unique sound I adore and which I felt tied in with the themes of sonic heritage in this context. My dear friend Mobin Hosseini from Sanandaj, Iran, kindly provided the accompanying Daf track. The field recording appears in its entirety, since this seemed the most fitting soundtrack to the rich imagery it inspired for me. I hope it might prove similarly evocative for anyone who listens to my contribution to the project."
Nowruz in Isfahan reimagined by Fiona Conn @outsidetheoutlines.
———————
This sound is part of the Sonic Heritage project, exploring the sounds of the world’s most famous sights.
Find out more and explore the whole project: https://www.citiesandmemory.com/heritage