About Mehr Ensemble
MEHR is widely recognised as Australia’s leading Persian music ensemble. Formed in Tehran, Iran, and now based in Melbourne, the group performs ornate original compositions within the Radif tradition of classical Persian music, while also drawing inspiration from the diverse regional musics of Iran and neighbouring regions such as Kurdistan and Azerbaijan. Above all, in the time-honoured fashion of authentic Persian music, Mehr takes its aesthetic direction from classical Persian poetry, especially that of Mawlana Rumi.
A typical Mehr Ensemble set consists of a suite of songs interspersed with free-flowing instrumental and vocal solos which rise and fall, the whole performance gradually building in intensity until the last note. Each section is like a unique jewel, refracting light in its own way and emphasising a particular colour and register, each joined by an invisible thread which unites them. The whole performance, in this way, aims to give the sense of an arc or invisible line—a line which traces the journey of the soul in and out of this world...
Led by composer Puya Mehman Pazir, the group also features several of Australia’s most respected Persian musicians.
Mehr Ensemble has toured throughout Australia and overseas and collaborated with numerous local and international musicians.
In May 2012, the group recorded and released its first album, Love and Devotion.
