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Parsology

Farshid Ketabchi
An Iranian community site/blog about Persian art, culture, music, history, and politics. It also profiles Iranian artists and scientists. And it...
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26

Niyaz, a blend of Sufi poetry & folk songs from the Middle East

Parsology ― I had the opportunity to see the recent concert by Niyaz in the San Francisco Bay Area (at Yoshi’s Oakland in September), as part of their world tour. After performances in Oakland, LA and Vancouver, their tour went on to Tunisia, Turkey and... (more)
Tags: Music, Performing Arts, azam ali, niyaz, ramin torkian, world music
 Farshid Ketabchi ― Posted on Nov 6th, 2011
19

Rana Farhan, blending Rumi and the Blues

Parsology ― Rana Farhan, the NY based Iranian singer, along with her band, had a performance at Yoshi’s San Francisco, on October 2, 2011, that was quite well-received. “I do not know how Rana manages to combine the classical Persian poetry with... (more)
Tags: Music, Performing Arts, blues, jazz, molavi, rumi
 Farshid Ketabchi ― Posted on Oct 8th, 2011
46

Alamut, Ismailis, and the Legend of Hassan Sabbah

Parsology ― We all have heard of Hassan Sabbah, the supreme leader of Nizari Ismailis order of eleventh century Persia, but only few know about the true history of this controversial branch of Shiite Islam and its leaders. Ismailism In 765 Shiism gave birth to a... (more)
Tags: History, alamut, alborz, hassan sabbah, islam, ismaili
 Farshid Ketabchi ― Posted on Sep 14th, 2011
6

Moshkin-Ghalam’s interpretation of Iraj Mirza’s “Zhohreh & Manouchehr”

Parsology ― Zohreh & Manouchehr, the poem Zohreh & Manouchehr is a 23-page long poem written by the early 20th century Iranian poet and satirist Iraj Mirza, who in turn based it on William Shakespeare’s poem “Venus and Adonis”. And this story has... (more)
Tags: Uncategorized
 Farshid Ketabchi ― Posted on Aug 6th, 2011
8

Let no love fall victim to Circumstance

Parsology ― wppa_bgcolor_img = "#eeeeee";wppa_popup_nolink = false;wppa_fadein_after_fadeout = false;wppa_animation_speed = 600;wppa_imgdir = "http://parstimeout.com/wp-content/plugins/wp-photo-album-plus/images/";wppa_auto_colwidth = false... (more)
Tags: Film, cinema, circumstance, film festival, movies, persian film
 Farshid Ketabchi ― Posted on May 5th, 2011
71

Mehrnoosh, a new voice in the Persian pop music

Parsology ― I am generally not a huge fan of Persian pop music except some old timers like Dariush, Farhad (RIP), Googoosh, Haydeh (RIP), among few others, many of whom have been performing since before the 1979 revolution. Among the newer pop singers I like the... (more)
Tags: Music, mehrnoosh, persian music, pop music
 Farshid Ketabchi ― Posted on Feb 14th, 2011
90

Ethnic jokes in the Persian culture

Parsology ― As I have discussed in About Iranians, Iran is a diverse country both geographically and culturally. Geographically we have it all — from the open seas and hot climate in the south along the Persian Gulf, to the dry and extreme climate of vast... (more)
Tags: Culture, History, ethnic groups, jokes, minorities, stereotypes
 Farshid Ketabchi ― Posted on Jan 11th, 2011
35

Soltices & Equinoxes, and the Persian tradition

Parsology ― There are four special occasions during a year — two equinoxes and two solstices — that have astronomical significance and they mark the beginning of the four seasons. But they also have cultural significances among certain people and... (more)
Tags: Culture, equinox, mehregan, nowruz, solstice, tradition
 Farshid Ketabchi ― Posted on Dec 25th, 2010
84

Paintings of Maryam Naghshineh

Parsology ― After the revolution of 1979 in Iran and the establishment of the Islamic Republic in the early 1980s, most art forms especially performing arts, were either prohibited (e.g. pop music or singing and dancing by women), or they became very limited and... (more)
Tags: Fine Arts, artists, maryam naghshineh, paintings
 Farshid Ketabchi ― Posted on Nov 14th, 2010
20

Cyrus the Great, a conqueror or a human rights advocate?

Parsology ― Cyrus the Great, via Wikipedia Recently an LA local news crossed the wire that I came across: the LA City Council has approved the installation of a bronze statue of Cyrus the Great in LA downtown! Apparently a wealthy Iranian born investor,... (more)
Tags: Culture, History, Politics, cyrus the great, iran
 Farshid Ketabchi ― Posted on Oct 29th, 2010
56

Taste of Persia in Beverly Hills

Parsology ― September 2nd 2010 (9/02/10) had a special meaning for the famed city of Beverly Hills as its zip code is 90210. And the city celebrated the occasion in style with a special program called “Taste of Beverly Hills”, an opening to city&... (more)
Tags: Culture, farhang foundation, persian cuisine
 Farshid Ketabchi ― Posted on Sep 14th, 2010
73

Meehan Ensemble: Fresh sounds in the Bay Area Persian music scene

Parsology ― At the end of June 2010, shortly after my move to the San Francisco Bay Area, I had the opportunity to attend a Persian classical music concert by the local group Meehan Ensemble. I was up for a very pleasant surprise — a beautifully arranged... (more)
Tags: Music, classical music, meehan ensemble, santur, shurangiz ensemble, traditional music
 Farshid Ketabchi ― Posted on Aug 26th, 2010
25

Golshifteh Farahani & her song Sokoot

Parsology ― The beautiful and capable Iranian actress, Golshifteh Farahani, has appeared in movies such as Santoori (2007, in Persian) and “Body of Lies” (2008, co-starring Leonardo DiCaprio), following which the cleric-run Iranian government banned... (more)
Tags: Film, History, Music, Politics, Profiles, Golshifteh Farahani
 Farshid Ketabchi ― Posted on Aug 24th, 2010
81

Famed Iranian painter, M.A. Taraghijah passed away

Parsology ― Award-winning Iranian painter, Mohammad Ali Taraghijah, passed away in Tehran on August 12, 2010 at the age of 67 from a heart attack. He was born in 1943. Though he studied mechanical engineering, Mr. Taraghijah found his real passion in painting... (more)
Tags: Fine Arts, Profiles, artist, calligraphy, painting
 Farshid Ketabchi ― Posted on Aug 16th, 2010
88

A brief look at the Green movement

Parsology ― More than a year has passed from the uprising in Iran that followed the presidential election in June 2009. People of Iran felt outraged and cheated with the seemingly rigged election result. So they took to the streets and demanded a vote recount... (more)
Tags: History, Politics, freedom, green movement, human rights, iran election
 Farshid Ketabchi ― Posted on Aug 9th, 2010

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