Mehrnam Rastegari

Origins Series

Photo by Mandana Khanzade

Wednesday, January 24

Drom – 85 Avenue A – Manhattan

7 PM – Doors / 8 PM – Show

$25 Advance Seating / $20 Advance Standing / $30 Day-Of

Membership Benefits Apply

WMI presents Mehrnam Rastegari, a prominent Iranian kamancheh player and award-winning film composer who has been performing on prestigious stages worldwide. She moved from Iran to New York City in 2022 and immediately started collaborating with local artists from many backgounds. Rastegari formed a traditional Iranian music group of local New York musicians which includes traditional Iranian instruments kamancheh, qanoun, nay, oud, daf plus vocals. The group performs music from different regions in Iran sharing cultural diversity in style, language, music and dance. In the spirit of the brave women in Iran, Mehrnam Rastegari echoes the slogan “Women Life Freedom” and will feature music from Iranian musicians who have been censored in Iran for many years.

The band is composed of –

Mehrnam Rastegari – Kamancheh / Vocals

Daro Behrouzi – Nay

Martin Shamoonpour – Daf

John Murchison – Qanoun

Rachid Halihal – Oud

The ORIGINS series features artists who delve into the folklore and roots of their respective culture’s music to tell the story of their origins, preserving and affirming cultural identities and legacies.

Mehrnam also joined us for a WMI Plus At Home as well as a WMI FolkTales podcast recording.