Independent Film Review: "The King's Speech" (2010), by Payman Akhlaghi

King's Speech (2010, Released 2011)
Directed by Tom Hooper
Music by Alexander Desplat, with original music by Beethoven, Mozart, et al
Cast includes: Colin Firth, Geoffrey Rush, Helena Bonham Carter, Thimothy Spall, Derek Jacobi, et al.

I had avoided the film in its theatrical release, amid or because of the huge publicity surrounding it, followed by 12 Oscar nominations, winning 4, for Best Picture, Best Actor (Firth), Best Director, and Best Original Script (Seidler). I had avoided it, despite my admiration for the production team, including composer Alexander Desplat, most of whom I had long privately registered as consistently reliable in their art and craft. Not even an interesting interview I watched at the time convinced my doubts to vanish. But a few minutes into the DVD version of the film, I realized that fortunately, I couldn't have been any more wrong. To put it succinctly, here was a touching dramatic work, in a way, despite all odds, beginning from the true story behind it, to the carefully crafted script, to the sensible and sensitive ensemble performance, to the music, and to the gestallt of its cinematic experience.

Maimonides' "The Guide for the Perplexed" Translated to Persian by Ms. Shirin-Dokht Daghighian

Maimonides: A Guide for the Perplexed

Translated to Persian byShirin-Dokht Daghighian

Commentaries in English and Persian by the Translator

Published by
Persian Maimonides Foundation, Los Angeles (2011)

راهنمای سرگشتگان، اثر بزرگ فلسفی هارامبام
برای نخستین بار به زبان فارسی

برگردان، معرفی، نقد و حواشی از شیرین دخت دقیقیان

به همت بنیاد ایرانی هارامبام، 2011، لس آنجلس

The Persian translation of Maimonides' (Rambam's) most famous philosophical book, "The Guide for the Perplexed", or as known in its original Arabic, دلالت الحائرین, has just been completed by the Iranian American Jewish scholar, Ms. Shirin-Dokht Daghighian.

برگردان فارسی مهم ترین کتاب فلسفی هارامبام، "راهنمای سرگشتگان" سرانجام توسط دانشمند برجسته، خانم شیرین دخت دقیقیان، به پایان رسیده است. این اثر در 4 مجلد و همراه با حواشی و مقدمۀ مترجم فرهیخته توسط بنیاد ایرانی هارامبام  در لس آنجلس به چاپ رسیده است و به زودی در معرض ابتیاع عموم قرار خواهد گرفت. دکتر میر حمید سالک نقدی خواندنی بر این اثر نوشته اند که در سایت ایران امروز به چاپ رسیده است. 

Uncertainty as a Common Thread in 20th Century Philosophy, Science & Music: A Short Original Essay by Payman Akhlaghi (2011)

Uncertainty as a Common Thread in 20th Century Philosophy, Science & Music
A Short Original Essay by Payman Akhlaghi [Revision 2]

© 2011, Payman Akhlaghi. The following is a slightly modified version of a Foto-Note, first Published on October 1st, 2011, at Facebook.com/PAComposer under Uncertainty as a Common Thread in 20th Century Philosophy, Science & Music. . The following is copyrighted material at the time and by the virtue of its original creation. Proper citation is required. Thank you. [*This post was updated on 12.28.2014 to mend the links and this notice.]

A thread on John Cage's chance composition, "Indeterminacy, Part 1", initiated by Thomas Monteforte and Andy Green, led me to summarize some of my longstanding thoughts on the subject of probability in 20th century music, philosophy, and the little I know about physics.

By now for decades, John Cage has continued to provoke, inform, and fascinate me by way of his compositions, poems, interviews, and the very air of his being. That could be true for his striking "music of silence", i.e  "4'33"", a string quartet in the tonal style, a piece for percussion group which I heard live, his "sketching" over Dvorak's 9th Symphony, a movement from his "Lectures", his composition for an ensemble of radios, or his book of highly structured poetry, "Composition in Retrospect".

Film Review: "The Debt" (2010)

"The Debt" (2010, released 2011, English, 113 min) is one of the most gripping films of the past decade, well worthy of an Oscar consideration for its adapted screenplay, as well as additional considerations for three sophisticated performances by Helen Mirren, the beautiful Jessica Chastain, and the intimate Sam Worthington, cinematography, directing & edit, not to mention a very effective score by Thomas Newman, who's once more succeeded in reinventing his sound world. This is an artful film without a dull moment, one with an relentless suspense which has grown out of the necessities of its narrative, and the lives of its characters and their complicated pasts.

The film follows the intense emotional world of three specially gifted Mossad agents, and survivors of the Holocaust, tormented for decades over a lie they once agreed to live. By allowing its characters to express their pains, hopes and desires, the story surpasses a basic narrative of revenge, bringing out their humanity, three people, who seek not vengeance by justice, who struggle to the end not to become the very abhorrent beast whom they've pursued. The attempt at understanding the mindset of the characters has helped the film exceed the ethnic or political boundaries of the protagonists, and explore and relate to broader aspects of human condition.

I have not yet seen the original Hebrew version of the film, but to my recollection, "The Debt" is one of the finest adapted or original thrillers of the past few years, and next to "Munich" (dir. Steven Spielberg, 2005) and "Walk On Water" (dir. Eytan Fox, 2004, Hebrew), one of the three best revisionist films about Israel at large, and its much talked about secretive agency, in particular.


‎"The Debt" (2010, English, German, 113 mins.)
Directed by John Madden, based on Assaf Bernstein's 2007 film in Hebrew, "Ha-Hov"
Music by: Thomas Newman
Cast includes: Helen Mirren, Tom Wilkinson, Ciaran Hinds, Jessica Chastain, et al.

© 2011, Payman Akhlaghi. All rights reserved.
(*) This review first appeared on Payman's Facebook page.

(*) Payman Akhlaghi is a Los Angeles-based composer, pianist, and piano teacher, covering the greater Los Angeles area. His repertoire includes classical, as well as Persian music. Payman holds an MA and a BA degree in Composition from UCLA. He's currently working on his dissertation toward degree of PhD in Composition. You may contact him by calling (310) 208-2927 [USA].

Chopin, Harmonic Series, Sympathetic Resonance & the Pedal: A Short Note on Nocturne No. 15 in F Minor, Op. 55/No. 1 by Payman Akhlaghi (2011)

Frederic Chopin, Nocturne No. 15 in F Minor, Op. 55, No. 1

A Brief Comparative Discussion of the Coda by Payman Akhlaghi

The Coda From Chopin's
Nocturne in Fm
The Mikuli Edition
(Click to Enlarge)

The Coda of Nocturne Op. 55, No. 1 is founded on a 13-bar pedal point of an F- major chord, spaced in an open position and sustained in the bass. This passage is of particular significance, given the fast decay of piano sounds.

In the Mikuli edition (left), the bass line is once re-articulated, while in the Joseffy edition (right), as well as in the Paderewski edition (as I recall), these chords are tied together throughout the entire passage without interruption. (NB: In the Mikuli edtion, at the beginning of the third system from the bottom, a Pedal marking is clearly omitted by error.)

The Coda from Chopin's
Nocturne in Fm
The Joseffy Edition

The discrepancy is not a trivium. It seems that Mikuli, in his focus on the theoretical aspects of the instrument, has lost sight of the composer's ingenious calculation of the effects of the harmonic series on the bass line, that is, the sympathetic resonance of the LH open strings with the rapidly ascending F-Major arpeggio of the RH. In practice, as the passage unfolds, the bass line "stays alive" by a succession of rapid notes in the right hand. That is, the arpeggio "keeps playing" the open F-C-A strings of the bass, by reinforcing their upper partials.

If so, the pianist might further consider to experiment with the damper pedal, perhaps avoiding it for the entire passage, partially or altogether, to allow for a more unique and delicate effect a more selective interference pattern, to emerge out of the interaction of the RH arpeggio with the only the three strings remained open (senza sordine, or "undamped") in the bass. Alternatively, and perhaps preferrably, one could also experiment with a gradual release of the pedal, as the diminuendo progresses.

You may notice how beautifully the sustained F-major chord in the left hand starts out, and continues, by "shadowing" the right-hand arpeggio. It's a most subtle effect, which could be easily lost if the sustained F-major chord is re-articulated, or if the passage is over-pedalled.

© 2011, Payman Akhlaghi. All rights reserved.

Appendices:
1) The Mikuli edition in PDF:
2) The Joseffy Edition in PDF

Payman Akhlaghi is an LA-based composer, pianist and piano teacher. For lessons, covering the Greater Los Angeles Area, please contact: (310) 208-2927.

"Achorripsis" (1956-57): Iannis Xenakis and Stochastic Music

Achorripsis (1956-57)
Iannis Xenakis
Click for Larger Image

The score of Achorripsis (1956-57), ca. 7 mins, for 21 instruments, composed by the Greek French composer and architect, Iannis Xenakis (1922-2001).

This is an example of Xenakis's work in aleatory and stochastic music. The image is taken from the cover of "Music on the Move", a special edition of UNESCO's Courier, April 1986. This issue is of particular importance to me, as its Persian edition, and especially, Xenakis's enlightening interview therein, left an indelible impression on me as a teenager.

Related Links:
(*) Please click on the following links for the entire April 1986 issue of UNESCO's Courier, the magaine, in English, as well as French or Spanish, in PDF format.
(*) You may also listen to a rendition of Achorripsis, accompanied by an analytic animation, by clicking on the following: Achorripsis on YouTube.

© 2011, Text by Payman Akhlaghi.

Payman Akhlaghi is an LA-based Iranian American composer, pianist, and piano teacher. For lessons covering the greater Los Angeles area, please contact the following number: (310) 208-2927.

Film Review: "Love Crime" (2010, 2011 US Release)

Love Crime (2010, French, 104 mins, 2011 US Release)
Directed by: Alain Corneau
Music by: Pharoah (Ferrel) Sanders
With Kristin Scott Thomas, Ludivine Sagnier, et al.

Fortunately, Alain Corneau the co-writer has won over Alain Corneau the director, delivering a more or less satisfying psychological crime thriller, despite demonstrable weakness in his role as the director. I found the film a wonderful pas-de-duex for two gifted actors, as beautiful as talented they are, depicting ages-long fatal games of love and manipulation in a modern corporate setting. The main regret is that this could have been a much more engaging film, had the director not confused the meditative serenity of the likes of Tarkovsky or Rohmer with a disturbingly lethargic mise-en-scène and edit.

The music does add to the narraive in an atmospheric sense. It's largely made up of soundtrack numbers primarily composed for solo tenor saxophone and koto, which according to Ms. Sagnier, was already helping her get into the mood during the shooting. May I add that the use of koto, a Japanese plucked instrument, although geographically remote from the Paris settings of the film, does highlight the masked hypocrisy of the characters by alluding to Japanese Kabuki.

-- Payman Akhlaghi, September 3rd, 2011, Los Angeles

© 2011, Payman Akhlaghi. All rights reserved.

This short review first appeared on Payman's Personal Facebook Page, on September 3rd, 2011.

Hafez and Kereshmeh: A Brief Metric and Rhythmic Analysis (Short Essay, 2011)

Asymmetric Interpretation
(Click to Enlarge)

Hafez and Kereshmeh: A Brief Metric and Rhythmic Analysis
By: Payman Akhlaghi
A Musical Analysis of the Prosody of a Persian Poem
Short Essay, 5 pages, 2011.
Available for free to the public.
NOTE: This paper contains an error by omission. A revision is due soon. Thank you.

Alternate Symmetrical Interpretation
(Click to Enlarge)

Excerpt:
"To come across any meter other than 6/8 and 4/4 in Persian music remains a delightful surprise, given the prevalence of the two meters across the entire spectrum of this musical culture. Over the past two decades, admirable attempts have been made to introduce 5 and 7 meters into the repertoire of traditional ensembles. However, the prosody of Persian poetry tells us that historically, this music once enjoyed a much more diverse metric and rhythmic life than its recent history suggests, especially considering the intimate connection between Persian poetry and its music.
I came across a poem by Hafez, the rhythmic structure of which intrigued me enough to prepare a brief analysis of its basic meter to share with my Friends (1). [...]
Read the full paper for free on Scribd..

Shrine of the Persian Poet
Hafez (1325-1390 C.E.)

حافظ و کرشمه: تحلیلی مختصر از وزن و ضرباهنگ

شعری از حافظ در ارتباط با گوشۀ کرشمه

به زبان انگلیسی، به قلم پیمان اخلاقی

پنجم آگوست 2011
مطالعه و چاپ رایگان در اسکریبد

Payman Akhlaghi is an Iranian American composer, pianist, and piano teacher based in Los Angeles. He can be reached by phone at (310) 208-2927, or email at PALetters@aol.com .

First draft published on Facebook and Scribd, August 5th, 2011.

Elements of Form and Surprise in Beethoven's String Quartet No. 12, in Eb, Op. 127, by Payman Akhlaghi (2005)

Ludwig van Beethoven
(1770-1827)

Elements of Form and Surprise
In Beethoven’s String Quartet No. 12, Op. 127, in E-Flat Major

Author: Payman Akhlaghi

Academic Research Paper
Toward Degree of Ph.D. in Composition
UCLA, 2005, 26pp.
Advisor: Professor Roger Bourland

Please click Here to read and print the paper for free at Scribd.com.

© 2005, 2011: Payman Akhlaghi. All rights reserved.

Excerpt:

"....Means of Coherence

Op. 127 is an epitome of Beethovenian organicism. Among the factors that are possibly ‎responsible for the structural stability and formal cohesion of this work, Symmetrical Structures, ‎Motivic, Intervallic and Tonal Relations, besides what can be broadly referred to as Architectural ‎Constructions seem to be most prominent. ‎

Goleh Goldooneh Man, Simple Arrangement for Solo Piano



Goleh Goldooneh Man (P. 1of 3)
Tr. & Arr. by Payman Akhlaghi
Click to Enlarge & Print
Or use links on the  right for
the PDF version.

Goleh Goldooneh Man (The Flower of My Vase) 

نت موسیقی "گل گلدون من"، تنظیم ساده برای تکنواز پیانو

Persian Music Score

Transcribed and

Arranged for Solo Piano by: Payman Akhlaghi (2009)

Composer: Fereydoun Shahbazian
Originally Sung by: Ms. Simin Ghanem
3 Pages, in PDF format

Free to Download and Print.
Shortened Link
A Video Clip of the Source Performance



Goleh Goldooneh Man
(P. 2 of 3)

(*) This arrangement is meant for educational purposes.

Not for sale or resale.

© 2009/2011, Payman Akhlaghi, this arr/edition only.

All rights reserved for respective artists.

نت موسیقی "گل گلدون من
نت نویسی و تنظیم آسان برای
تکنواز پیانو از پیمان اخلاقی

آهنگساز فریدون شهبازیان
بر اساس اجرای خانم سیمین غانم

پخش و چاپ مطلقا رایگان است. اما تمامی حقوق این تنظیم برای پیمان اخلاقی و دیگر هنرمندان ذی نفع همچنان محفوظ است.ـ

Lambada, Music Score, Arranged for Solo Piano by Payman Akhlaghi

Lambada, Arranged for Solo Piano
Music Score, Original Transcription &
Arrangement for Piano
by Payman Akhlaghi

Click on the image to print a larger size.
Or Read and Print for Free at Scribd.com

Lambada, Arranged for Solo Piano

Music Score, Original Transcription & Arrangement for Solo Piano by Payman Akhlaghi (1 page, PDF)

Intermediate Level (2009)

Based on Kaoma's 1980's performance, as available on YouTube.

Click Here to read and print the score for free at Scribd.com.

You may also click on the picture on the right to download or print the image.

نت موسیقی لامبادا
نت نویسی و تنظیم برای تکنواز پیانو از پیمان اخلاقی
برای داونلود و چاپ رایگان به لینکهای فوق مراجعه کنید

Film Review: The Princess of Montpensier (2011)

Film Review: The Princess of Montpensier

By Payman Akhlaghi

The Princess of Montpensier" (2010/11, Fr.)
Directed by Bertrand Tavernier (b. 1941)
Music: Philippe Sarde (b. 1945)
Based on the novel by
Madame de la Fayatte (1634-1693)


© Copyright: 2011, All text by Payman Akhlaghi. All rights reserved.

Every film by Bertrand Tavernier is a special treat; and "The Princess of Montpensier" is no exception.

This is a costume drama with real soul, thanks to an inspired casting; beautiful cinematography; shining color spectrum; camera movements as stylish on Steadicam as they're on tracks; beautiful locations; and impeccable mis-en-scène. But above all, the film owes its immense vitality to the director's acute sense of drama, control of rhythm, and espeically, his empathetic humane vision, seemingly a constant of his cinematic oeuvre, regardless of the period in which his stories take place.

Tavernier tells us an early Renaissance story of love and war, power and greed, dogma and freedom, but above all, one of a young woman's tragic fate in the context of patriarchal world, adapted from arguably the first novel ever written. Despite the temporal gap, there's a rare sense of relevance and immediacy maintained throughout, generated by selective dialogues, a linear narrative, decidedly unaffected performances, and hand-held camera movements. In a way, this film is successful against its presumed genre, because the director has deliberately made a "historical film" while avoiding many of the all too common, albeit successful, formulae of grandeur and exalted emotions, often encountered in the so-called Epic dramas.

Elmer Bernstein, Cecil B. DeMille and a Love Story Named Ten Commandments (Film Music Review for General Public)

Bernstein, DeMille, and a Love Story Named "Ten Commandments"
By: Payman Akhlaghi
April 17th, 2011, Los Angeles
First Published as a Note on http://Facebook.com/PAComposer


50th Anniversary DVD Release
Includes both 1923 & 1956 Versions
And Interviews

 Preface

It's a testament to Cecil's uncanny eye for talent, who at 75, entursted his 2nd take on the "Original Testament" into the hands of a young Elmer (34), whom he ironically deemed as "a second Wagner!" The gamble paid off, as the composer managed to weave leitmotifs of glory & romance, passion & mystery, into what's ultimately a love story - the story of humanity's unceasing love for life & freedom.

The Affair of a Lifetime

The 1956 film "Ten Commandment" was indeed director Cecil B. DeMille's second adaptation of the Biblical story of Moses. Even today, the earlier 1923 silent adaptation surprises us by its own share of admirable technical achievements for the period. The "parting of the sea", for instance, is a marvel for its time, as the "creation of the tablets" is a memorable spectacle within its contemporary limitations . In retrospect, it's clear that the director's appreciation of the dramatic values of these two scenes would linger on through the following decades.

Schoenberg's Pierrot Lunaire vs. Webern's Six Bagatelles Op.9: Voices of Modernism? (1999)

Schoenberg vs. Webern: Voices of Modernism?

A Brief Discussion of
Schoenberg's Pierrot Lunaire, Op. 21

and
Webern's Six Bagatelles for String Quartet, Op. 9

(Sechs Bagatellen fur Streichquartett)

Free to Read and Print at Scribd.com.

Author: Payman Akhlaghi (1999)
Graduate Paper Toward Degree of MA in Composition | UCLA, 1999, 28 Pages
Supervising Professor: David Lefkowitz

© Copyright: 1999, 2011, Payman Akhlaghi. All rights reserved for the author.

(*) This academic paper includes background information and analysis mainly focused on Pierrort Lunaire (Arnold Schoenberg); a less extensive discussion of Six Bagatelles, Op. 9 (Anton Webern); and a certain  conclusions on the nature of Modernism in 20th century classical music.

Excerpt from the Introduction:

"The primary thrust of this paper is an attempt in understanding the place of two ‎quintessentially twentieth century compositions within our current discussion of ‎Modernism and according to our present conclusions in the seminar for which the paper is ‎being written. Yet, thereafter, it also tries to achieve a better understanding of Modernism ‎itself, in the light of these two compositions. Here, something should be noted. Although ‎at first this might seem to suggest a basically circular argument in nature, I believe it is far ‎from being so. It should be rather considered a reflection of the dialectic relationship ‎between the general definition of a class on one hand, and the particular species on the ‎other. Indeed, this has been the methodology that was adopted from the outset by the ‎seminar, and considering the illusive and controversial nature of the subject at hand, ‎namely Modernism, it proved to have been a quite suitable approach.‎

Franz Liszt & Exoticism in Classical Music (2006)

Franz Liszt and the Case of the Other
Aspects of Exoticism in Western Classical Music Tradition
Free to Read and Print at Scribd.com.

Complete information:
Franz Liszt and The Case of the Other
Toward a Study of Aspects of Exoticism in
Western Classical Music Tradition

Author: Payman Akhlaghi (2006)


Graduate Independent Research Paper Toward Degree of PhD in Composition
UCLA, 2006, 26 Pages
Supervising Professor: Ian Krouse
© Copyright: 2006, 2011, Payman Akhlaghi. All rights reserved for the author.

(*) The paper partially includes analytical discussions of Nuages Gris, La Lugubre Gondola, Mephisto Waltz (Liszt); Dance of the Dervishes from Consecration of the House (Beethoven); In a Persian Market (Ketèlby); etc.

Excerpt:

"[...] Liszt: Three Late Short Pieces

Nuages Gris

Hardly anything in the myth—and the spectacular works—of the extroverted ‎performer of virtuosic piano pieces could prepare the listener for the intimate world of ‎this short work of 1881, Nuages Gris, i.e. “Gray Clouds”, or “Somber Clouds”. Liszt was ‎the consummate romantic composer for whom the semantic context of the music would ‎be an essential element to justify its existence. Judging from the titles of his works, from ‎symphonic poems to the shorter piano pieces, it appears is that his musical imagination ‎would be stirred more readily by the exotic or surreal sense of a poem or a story, although ‎he also has enough ‘purely musical’ works to his credit: Faust Symphony, Dante ‎Symphony, Prometheus, etc., along with two Concertos and numerous Etudes, among ‎others. For such a compositional mind, the most inventive of harmonic departures would ‎inevitably be intertwined with some form of expressive need.‎

Racism & Religious Radicalism in Modern Jewry

Racism and Religious Radicalism in Modern Jewry 

Am Yisrael Arevim Zeh LaZeh."
Lulav and Etrog,
a symbol of Sukkot,
 often interpreted as a symbol of the
unity of human beings
amid their diversity

By: Payman Akhlaghi

December 28th, 2010

The following draft appeared first as a Note on Payman's Personal Facebook page, December 28th, 2010, where it has generated a heated debate on discrimination, what's in the best interest of Israel, and other related issues. If you have an FB account, you may wish to follow the FB Thread 1 and FB Thread 2. Send me a message via FB if you encounter any problems viewing the page. The viewpoints expressed therein reflect the individual opinions of their respective authors. Be advised that given the nature of the subject, some comments may be emotionally distressful to the reader.

In an FB response to a report by Jerusalem Post, the Iranian Israeli political analyst, Meir Javedanfar worte, "Racism starts with Arabs, then moves to Russian Jews, then Jews of Arab origin and before we know it the country will fall apart. Like a virus, racism sees no boundaries.This is why we need to fight racism with vigor and determination." (The JP report could be found here.)

His wise remarks brought back some old memories, and brought together some lingering thoughts. It seemed they were worthy of being placed together in a single note.

Pianist Anton Rubinstein once said, "Russians call me German, Germans call me Russian, Jews call me a Christian, Christians a Jew. Pianists call me a composer, composers call me a pianist. The classicists think me a futurist, and the futurists call me a reactionary. My conclusion is that I am neither fish nor fowl – a pitiful individual." [Quote found in Wikipedia; also found in Harold C. Schonberg's "Great Pianists".] One could say, In Iran, you were a Jew; in Israel, you'd be an Iranian, or "Parsi", to be exact!

"Sometimes, Only a Wink...", Poem by Payman Akhlaghi

LA Clouds by Payman Akhlaghi
February the 4th, 2010, about 5 PM.
A moment not to be missed...‎

Payman’s Public Page on Facebook,‎
ComposerPA (Payman Akhlaghi)‎

Payman’s Personal Page on Facebook
Payman Akhlaghi (Composer ‎پیمان اخلاقی‎)‎

More of Payman's poetry in
Persian or English at his
Collection of Poetry on Scribd.

Sometimes, Only a Wink... ‎
A Poem by Payman Akhlaghi

Sometimes, it takes
Not decades, but a second;‎
Not a cry, but a whisper;‎
Not running for miles, but moving a muscle;‎
Not writing volumes, but saying a few words;‎
To give someone a warm feel of the world...‎

Sometimes, it takes
Not a storm, but a breeze;‎
Not a sun, but a breath;‎
Not a friend, but a stranger;‎
To break the ice,‎
To flash the smile,‎
To say the kind words...‎

Be that friend,‎
Or that stranger,‎
But move that muscle,‎
And change a world...‎

Payman Akhlaghi
Los Angeles, October 17th, 2010‎

© Copyright: 2010, Payman Akhlaghi. All rights reserved.
First Published on Facbook, October 17th, 2010.
First Published on Scribd on December 17th, 2010.

N.B.: The author is himself a composer. This publication is intended as an introduction to his poetry, and as a preview of his songs in progress. Please read and hopefully enjoy this poem; but you may not set it to music, or print, copy or distribute it – physically, digitally, or through any other means – or use it in any other  form, or for any other purpose, commercial or otherwise. Thank you.

Neruda/Akhlaghi: تو را ساکن می خواهم

تو را ساکن می خواهم

شعری از پابلو نرودا

برگردان فارسی از پیمان اخلاقی

I Like For You To Be Still (1920)
Poema 15. Me gustas cuando callas...

An Original Persian Translation of the Poem Pablo Neruda

تو را ساکن می خواهم
برگردان فارسی از پیمان اخلاقی

تو را ساکن می خواهم، گویی غایبی
آوایم را از دوردست می شنوی
اما صدایم را به لمس تو بختی نیست
گویی چشمانت به لایتناهی پرکشیده اند
چونان که بوسه ای لبانت را مهر کرده باشد
آنک که همه چیز از روح من می آکند
تو نیز سرشار از روح من برمی آیی
تو همسانِ روح منی -- پروانه ای از رؤیا
و به واژۀ "اندوه" می مانی [...]
[لطفاً برای خواندن همۀ شعر اینجا کلیک کنید.]

Kristallnacht (Poem) J Sedaghatfar, Translated by P Akhlaghi

A Synagogue Burning
Krystallnacht, November 9th, 1938

 Kristallnacht

The Night of the Broken Glass

Translation of Poem in Persian by

Jahangir Sedaghatfar

English translation by

Payman Akhlaghi

کریستال ناخت: شب شیشه های شکسته

شعری به زبان پارسی از جهانگیر صداقت فر

برگردان انگلیسی از پیمان اخلاقی

The present poem recounts the horrible events of that nightmare of a night in a quasi-delirious, almost hallucinatory fashion. The brackets designate those moments when the observer pauses the narrative to loudly protest the painful scenes, which are taking place before the eyes.


The Aftermath of Kristallnacht
November 10th, 1938



Kristallnacht

The Night of the Broken Glass

Behold!

Watch over the mothers!

Behold!

Watch over the mother,

Whose fear-poisoned breast

Is feeding bitter milk

Into the mouth of the startled child.

[Alas,

Sacrilege and lunacy
Harden daggers
In the acerbity of blood.]

Behold!
Watch over the newborns
—These fragile hopes of a better tomorrow;
[Please click on Read More for the entire poem.]

Liszt's Sposalizio vs Debussy's Arabesque No.1 (Paper, 2007)

Imagination, Stasis and Motion
In the Piano Music of Liszt and Debussy

A Discussion of Sposalizio and Arabesque No.1

From
Années de Pèlerinage, Deuxième année: Italie, No. 1
(“Years of Pilgrimage, Year Two: Italy, No. 1)
and
Deux Arabesques, No. 1 (1888)

Author: Payman Akhlaghi
Subject: Music Analysis, Comparative Musicology

Submitted: 2007, UCLA, As a Graduate Studies Academic Paper

English, 33 Pages
Published on Scribd: Free to Read.

Excerpt from the introduction:

"Perhaps no two musical oeuvres would leave more distant impressions on the ‎listener than those of Franz Liszt (1811-1886) and Claude Debussy (1862-1918). After ‎all, Liszt is better known for his dazzling bravura than the quiet harmonies of his late ‎period, while the subtlety of taste in almost everything Debussy wrote has made his music ‎stand for all things French.‎

And yet, as implausible it might sound, the two shared enough to make a ‎comparative study of their works meaningful. First, both Liszt and Debussy loved the ‎piano and wrote for it affectionately, enhancing the technical, timbral and expressive ‎potentials of the instrument to its limits. At the same time, unlike their common idol, ‎Frederic Chopin (1810-1849), this affection did not come at the expense of all other that ‎were not piano, as their output embraced orchestral music too with equal dedication.‎

Film Review: Vision (2009)

Happily, rushing to a last-day screening of "Vision" (2009, German, ca 110 mins) at Laemmle's Royal, proved overall worthy of the trouble.

The film, directed by Margarethe von Trotta, and featuring a serene Barbara Sukowa in the title role, is a respectful, if a slow-motion take on the life of the Mediaeval nun and composer, Hildegard von Bingen (1098-1179). I had heard some of her chants in the late 1990's, and I had found them rather soothing. But this film has focused less on her music, and more on Hildegard's visions, writings, message of love, and her quest to reclaim the dignity of women in a male-dominated society. In some ways, this Vision's Hildegard comes across almost as a proto-feminist within a patriarchal world.

The glossy lighting and cinematography of Axel Block has done ample justice to the film's beautiful scenic design, locations, and costumes, as well as to the often attractive features of the leading cast. However, given that Hildegard was one of the earliest (female) composers with a recorded legacy, one would have naturally expected more of the score, composed by Christian Heyne. In general,  however, the image and the soundtrack do succeed in conveying a tangible sense of the period, and an understanding of its culturally and temporally distant characters.

Marginally, it might be a fact of particular interest to Persian movie-lovers, that Ms. Hengameh Panahi, clearly of Iranian origin, is credited in the coveted role of the "executive producer" of the film.

November 25, 2010, Los Angeles
© 2010, Payman Akhlaghi. All rights reserved.

(*) Payman Akhlaghi is an Iranian American composer, pianist and piano teacher, covering the greater los angeles area. He's currently working on his dissertation toward the degree of PhD in Composition (Music). For appointments and further information, please call (310) 208-2927. (ALT: Peyman Akhlaghi, پیمان اخلاقی)

"Moonlight" In Beethoven's Own Hand

Ever wondered how Beethoven's handwriting looked like, as he scribbled, page after page, documenting his genius for the posterity?

Here's a sample of his manuscripts, a page from the first movement of Piano Sonata No. 14, in C-Sharp Minor, Op. 27/2, widely known as "The Moonlight Sonata" -- Yes, that most serene Adagio Sostenuto...

For more, please click on the following link:

Manuscript of the Moonlight

Films: "Up Close & Personal" (1996)

Revisiting "Up Close & Personal" (1996)

I Liked it then; I Loved it now.

It must have been for the perfect chemistry of the two leads (Michelle Pfeiffer, Robert Redford) and their likeable, loving, yet independent and ambitious characters; the tightly written script; director Jon Avnet's chic mis-en-scène; the incessant momentum of the edit (Debra Neil-Fisher); not to mention the lovely, beautifully orchestrated, well-nuanced score by Thomas Newman. But I have a feeling that none of these would have cut it for me were it not for the emotional self-restraint exercised in telling this sweet story of love, growth, and self-discovery, with a tragic ending well fitted to our modern sensitivities.

Some films just get better as they age; this one's done it so gracefully. By all means, catch it on a DVD, or find it somewhere on the Web.

(© 2010, Review by Payman Akhlaghi. All rights reserved.)

For a Sanctuary Called University

Some things cannot or ought not be forgotten.

It was four years ago, almost to the date. Here's a link to the video that captured the utterly shocking events of the night of November 14th, 2006, at my beloved university campus, when a student was subjected to what seemed to be some severe, unproportionately overt security measures. Back then, upon its release, I watched the video two times in horror. Today, I could not even bring myself to watch it. The horror of the first night, when I innocently clicked on a link in an email, has not yet subsided.

From the outset, I thought that it was never my place to run any judgment publicly on an issue so complicated and so sensitive, although as an independent observer, I did arrive at some personal opinions on the matter, and specially the larger context in which it occurred. In this brief personal note, however, I'd rather resort to the following formulation: This should not have happened. This ought not to happen ever again.

Further information is provided in the official Final Report by PARC (August 2007), available in PDF.

(*) I pondered long and hard whether I should dedicate a post on this issue. At the end, I thought that a reminder as mild as this would serve us better, than trying to sweep its account down the dungeons of our collective memory. To avoid unnecessary appearances on search engine results, I did not include any references to specific names, titles, or other parties or locations, who or which were directly invovled in the incident, other than the dates and documents provided as links. As needless as it might seem, I do emphasize that by all accounts, nothing should obscure the fact that the goodness in that particular campus, and the number of good men in those institutions involved in the incident, far outweigh such regrettable mistakes. I wrote this post to contribute as small a share as I could afford to making sure that such goodness shall be multiplied and preserved. Thank you.

Discussing Mahler's "Abschied" from "Das Lied" (2001)

"Gustav Mahler's Everlasting Influence:

A Brief Discussion of Der Abschied, from Das Lied von der Erde"

Author: Payman Akhlaghi
2001, UCLA, A Graduate Studies Academic Paper
English, 41 Pages

Published on Scribd, Free to Read.
All rights reserved for the author.
Click Here to read for free.


Excerpt from the Preface:
"[...] For many decades, the widely adopted narrative of the history of music in the twentieth century seemed to have left Mahler behind, buried with reverence, in the remnants of the Late Romanticism. Yet, neither his progressive aesthetics were fully compatible with the sensitivities of Romanticism [for example, his adventures in time and tonality and the treatment of dissonances were atypical to a Romantic ear], nor his music was containable within the then predominant definitions of twentieth-century Modernism [‘too’ tonal; ‘too’ lyrical]. Thus, he was forced to live in a limbo, shortly existing in a few last pages on the Late Romantics, a few first pages on the early Modernists, and the dark shadow in between. His ‘Yiddish Accent’ and background had only added to the extra- musical impediments and had cost him almost a perfect silence in the wartime Nazi societies. [...]"

© Copyright: 2001, Payman Akhlaghi. All rights reserved. / © Copyright: 2010, Payman Akhlaghi. All rights reserved.
[Payman Akhlaghi (Peyman Akhlaghi, پیمان اخلاقی)]