The song of the phoenix

Welcome to Persian culture. Welcome to a world of poetry, philosophy, and music. Shahab Azinmehr and Farnoosh Khodadadeh, together with Seraphine Stragier and Nathan Daems, made a special performance around a mythological story that recurs in different cultures. With texts and translations by Josse De Pauw. One of the masterpieces of Attar Neishabouri, a 12th-century Iranian mystic and poet, is ‘De Samenspraak van Vogels’. In this beautiful storybook, Phoenix also appears; the mysterious chants of this bird lie at the basis of the art of music. Attar highlights the special life story of Phoenix in a poem and reveals a deeper truth: even for the legendary bird, life is finite. The greatest life task, he teaches us, is letting go and accepting death. This ancient wisdom forms the basis for the haunting compositions of Shahab Azinmehr. Together with Nathan Daems, Seraphine Stragier, and Farnoosh Khodadadeh – together the ensemble AAVAAZ – they sing the song of Phoenix, to experience the beauty of life, death, and the resurrection of this inspiring bird with you. To mourn and celebrate together. Setar, vocals, composition, and arrangements Shahab Azinmehr | Saxophone, vocals Nathan Daems | Daf, vocals Farnoosh Khodadadeh | Cello, yayli tambur, harp, vocals Seraphine Stragier | Text and translations Farnoosh Khodadadeh and Josse De Pauw