Piano Solo, Nazanin Aghakhani, Persian princess

Source: http://www.nazaninaghakhani.com/ (From the album "Nana & the Blue Piano"- to be available soon.) Nazanin Aghakhani was born in Vienna, Austria, to a family of Persian heritage. Her musical talent was nourished early on -- she took her first piano lessons at the age of seven. Between 1992 and 2000 Nazanin studied the classical piano intensively at the main Vienna Conservatory, where her first teacher, Karl Barth, played a vital part in shaping her musical language. Further studies with pianist Meira Farkas followed. In addition to winning youth competitions, Nazanin also gave solo recitals and performed live on TV. At about this time Nazanin became fascinated by the flexibility and possibilities of orchestral sound. At the age of twelve she was already taking extra lessons in score reading and counterpoint with Austrian composer and conductor Thomas Christian David. In 2000 she embarked on her training as an orchestral conductor: Between 2000 and 2002 Aghakhani studied conducting at the University of Music in Vienna with Erwin Acel, Leopold Hager and Yuji Yuasa, and choral conducting with Howard Arman. Between 2002 and 2006 she continued with in-depth studies at the Royal Academy of Music in Stockholm, Sweden, with Jorma Panula, and choral conducting with Anders Eby. This culminated in a Bachelor of Arts in 2006. Aghakhani also was regularly involved in master courses with conductors Alan Gilbert and Jukka-Pekka Saraste. While in Stockholm Nazanin Aghakhani took the opportunity to develop her skills as a composer, especially in the genre electro-acoustic music. Her teachers, Bill Brunson and Fredrik Hedelin, have given her a professional insight into versatile techniques and also introduced her to contemporary music at the highest level.