Link Music Lab to Present Mahsa Vahdat And Sardar Mohamad Jani In Concert

Link Music Lab will present Mahsa Vahdat, award-winning Iranian vocal artist, composer and cultural activist, and Sardar Mohamad Jani, talented oud player, in concert on December 18 at the Small World Centre for an exclusive show to mark the return of Experimental Link Music Nights.

Famous for her collaborations, Vahdat will improvise with Mohamad Jani, based on their shared foundational knowledge of Persian classical music and poetry. Vahdat has recorded ten albums, several of which have melodies and interpretations of poems by Khayyam, Hafez and Rumi, as Mohamad Jani has masterfully played sacred music rooted in Sufi and Dervish traditions.

Internationally beloved Vahdat returns to Toronto after five years with the launch of her new solo album in 2020, Enlighten the Night, a manifestation of hope and an act of freedom. An advocate for musicians and composers worldwide, the prominent Iranian singer surmounts the restrictions on female solo voice post-Islamic Revolution in Iran with her profound command and vision of Persian music abroad. Vahdat fittingly remarks, "the home of my voice is my safest zone in the world." Recipient of the Freemuse Award in 2010, her commitment to collaboration, teaching, mentorship and the preservation of traditional music is inspiring. Mahsa's performance and recording projects include creative collaborations with her sister Marjan Vahdat, American soul blues singer and songwriter Mighty Sam McClain, boundary-defying Kronos Quartet and master setar player Atabak Elyasi.

Mohamad Jani toured extensively with Badila Ensemble and taught at the Jeunesse Musicales de France before setting down roots in Toronto. He has performed with several prominent Persian musicians, appearing frequently at Tirgan Festival, in Rumi Canada's Inner Journey series, at the Festival du Monde Arabe, with Soundstreams and more.

Visual artist Andrew O'Connor will project Marianne Lystrup's videos during the show.

Experimental Link Music Nights contemplates the Persian-Canadian experience by reinvigorating, re-exploring and re-imagining Persian traditional music within contemporary and cosmopolitan Toronto by inviting different musicians from the diaspora to collaborate and perform together. The series will explore connections between identity, culture, and musical creation with four concerts in its new season from December to March 2022.

Link Music Lab gratefully acknowledges the generous support of Canadian Heritage, Toronto Arts Council and the Ontario Arts Council.

Performance Details:

Time and date: December 18, 2021, Doors 7:30pm, Show 8pm

Location: Small World Centre, 180 Shaw Street, Suite 101, Toronto, ON

Price: $50

Event link: https://bit.ly/3CLsTpZ

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