Photos: Natalie Chitwood, Mandana Khanzade, Moein Hasheminasab
About
Mehrnam Rastegari is a well-established Persian musician, award-winning film score composer, singer, violinist, and master Kamancheh player. She has been featured in some of the most prestigious music festivals worldwide, including GlobalFest in NYC, USA, Secret Planet in NYC, USA, Fajr International Music Festival in Tehran, Iran, the WOMEX (World Music Expo) in Tampere, Finland, Ragas Live Festival in NYC, USA, the International Competition named after Tlep Aspantaiuly in Astana, Kazakhstan, and numerous concerts across The United States, Germany, Switzerland, France, Iran, and more.
Rastegari is an extraordinary Kamancheh performer, acclaimed by some of the finest Kamancheh artists and instructors globally, who have certified her as a Master Kamancheh player. She is a GMW (Global Musicians Workshop) alumna and a recording artist for the "World Music Institute," contributing to their multiple projects, including music performances, WMI Plus interviews, and podcasts. She was a featured guest speaker at the TEDx event "Oasis: Existence in Nothingness."
Furthermore, she has composed for over 10 feature films, theaters, and award-winning short films. Notably, "Dispirited" earned her the "Best Original Score" award from the Melbourne City Independent Film Awards (MCIFA), and she received a nomination for the original score in the Japan Kadoma Festival for the film "Rotten." "A Poetess" also secured the "Best Persian Film" award at WMIFF, USA. Rastegari is a valued member of the NYAO (New York Arabic Orchestra) and has had the privilege of performing at the United Nations Headquarters. She also contributed as a violin player to recording the music track "Mirage" for "Assassin’s Creed."
Rastegari is the founder of "Mehrnam Rastegari Traditional Persian Band" in New York City, where she continues to perform. She has also started a Rock Middle Eastern band named "Chogan", where she brings her originals, also some rearranged Middle Eastern folk music, and has garnered success.
She was born in 1991 in Iran. Her first stint with music was at the age of 11 when she was trying to play different rhythms on a traditional Iranian percussion called Tombak. Her family encouraged her to learn Tombak professionally. She discovered a magical sound flowing from the Violin class in the music institute. well! She was mesmerized by it, so she decided to learn Violin, she also played Kamanche, a kind of Iranian fiddle, for several years. She practiced very hard and enjoyed every moment of playing it. In her teens, during some musical events and performances, she got in touch with other Iranian musical instruments and music maestros. The similarities between the Iranian Violin and the Kamancheh made her choose the Kamancheh as her main musical instrument. She learned from the best Kamancheh masters such as Imamyar Hasanov, and Ardeshir Kamkar to name a few. After learning for six months she had her first official concert as a Kamancheh player with an ensemble. The success of the concert made her very popular and gave her many opportunities to perform in different ensembles. After almost a year she felt like composing her music. She experimented and improvised in various styles. Eventually, she found herself in fusion and world music.
Her art reflects her interest in the juxtaposition of cultures. She believes that in current times the most valuable arts are those which most people with different languages can feel connected.
MCIFA (Melbourne city independent film awards), The best original score for the short film "DISPIRITED"
Nominated for the original score of the film "ROTTEN" in Japan Kadoma festival
GlobalFest 2023 (NYC)
Secret Planet 2023 APAP Showcase (NYC)
Ragas Live Festival 2023 (NYC)
U.N Headquarters with NYAO 2023 (NYC)
Barbes since 2022 (NYC)
Let Her Sing 2022 (U.S., SF)
Drom 2024 (NYC)
Bar Lunatico 2024 (NYC)
Yalda Night at The Bridge and Tunnel (NYC)
Yalda Night at TheTrops 2022, 2023 (NYC)
Nublu Classic TheTrops (NYC)
Womex 2019 Finland
Concerts in Germany, Switzerland, and France 2019 with Khonyagaran orchestra
Fajr music festival "Tehran and Abadan" 2019
Performance and talk in the first Tedxiums "Tedx of Iran University of Medical Sciences"
The Other Side Of The Mirror Theater (2022)
Concert with Zhaw ensemble "Tehran and Kish Island" 2019
Participated in the International Competition "Tlep Aspantaiuly" Kobyz Palace, Kazakhstan 2018
Performance in "Love letters from the Middle East" theatre 2017
Participated in "1695 project" modern music festival, Shiraz
Concert with "Moje no" orchestra Composed by Ali Ghamsari, Vocal by Mohammad Motamedi
Concert with Mehras ensemble
Concert with Naghshava ensemble
Concert with Ghogha ensemble
Concert with Azar ensemble
Concert with Paykoob band
The way, Wing, Egyptian, Wave, Water bubbles, Purity
The short film "AND JUST TWO MORE"
The short film "ZUGZWANG"
The short film "ROTTEN"
The short film "DISPIRITED"
The short film "A POETESS"
The short film "ABYSSAL"
The Theater "MARBAZI"
The short film "MASSAGE ROOM"
The short film "THE DOUBLE LIFE OF MUSA"
The featured film "OVERPASS"
Biography
Performances
Published tracks
Film scores and theaters
Awards
