Hayedeh
Encyclopedia
Hayedeh born Ma'soumeh Dadehbala , (April 10, 1942, Tehran – January 20, 1990, San Francisco) was a Persian classical and Pop
Persian pop music
Persian pop music refers to pop music with songs in the Persian language or other regional languages of Iran and Afghanistan...
singer with a contralto
Contralto
Contralto is the deepest female classical singing voice, with the lowest tessitura, falling between tenor and mezzo-soprano. It typically ranges between the F below middle C to the second G above middle C , although at the extremes some voices can reach the E below middle C or the second B above...
vocal range. In a career spanning more than 20 years, she had many hits. More than two decades after her death, Hayedeh is considered one of the most influential and iconic Persian vocalists and recognized as one of the culture's most popular 20th century singers.
Early life and career
Hayedeh was born in TehranTehran
Tehran , sometimes spelled Teheran, is the capital of Iran and Tehran Province. With an estimated population of 8,429,807; it is also Iran's largest urban area and city, one of the largest cities in Western Asia, and is the world's 19th largest city.In the 20th century, Tehran was subject to...
. She is the older sister of another famous Persian singer, Mahasti
Mahasti
Mahasti bornEftekhar Dadehbala was a legendary Persian Pop and classical singer and diva and the younger sister of singer Hayedeh.- Background :...
.
Hayedeh's professional career began in 1968 at the age of twenty six as a singer on a Persian traditional music Tehran Radio program called "Golhaa-yeh Rangarang" (Colorful Flowers)( گلهای رنگارنگ) directed by Davoud Pirnia. Hayedeh studied Avaz (Persian vocal music) with the famous Persian violinist and composer Ali Tajvidi
Ali Tajvidi
Ali Tajvidi , was a Persian musician, composer, violinist, songwriter, and music professor at the School of National Music and Tehran University...
. Hayedeh performed her first hit song "Azadeh" which was composed by Tajvidi on the lyrics of Rahi Mo'ayeri. Performing this work with Golha Orchestra in 1968 at Radio Tehran introduced Hayedeh's vocal talent to Persians who warmly received it. "Azadeh" which was composed by music by Ali Tajvidi, and was written by Rahi Moayeri was Hayedeh's first official hit. It was first performed in 1968 on Radio Tehran with the Gol-ha Orchestra and was later released by Ahang-e Rooz Records.
Persian pop music
Persian pop music refers to pop music with songs in the Persian language or other regional languages of Iran and Afghanistan...
to her classical Persian repertoire. In this period Hayedeh worked with several songwriters, such as Fereydoun Khoshnoud, Jahanbakhsh Pazouki, Anoushiravan Rohani
Anoushiravan Rohani
Anoushirvan Rohani also spelled Anooshiravan Rowhani is an Iranian pianist and songwriter.Born in Rasht, Iran in 1939, Anoushiravan received music lessons from his father Reza Rohani, himself a poet and violinist...
and Mohammad Heydari
Mohammad Heydari
-Career:He received santur lessons first from Hossein Saba and, after his death, from Abolhassan Saba. He also worked with Abdollah Davami and Haj Agha Mohammad Irani-Mojarrad....
. "Bezan Tar", "Gol-e Sang", "Nowrouz Aamad", "Eide Tou" and "Soghati" were among her memorable works during this period.
After The Revolution and In Exile
On August 29, 1978 shortly before the Iranian RevolutionIranian Revolution
The Iranian Revolution refers to events involving the overthrow of Iran's monarchy under Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi and its replacement with an Islamic republic under Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the leader of the...
, Hayedeh emigrated to the United Kingdom. She stayed there for three years and moved to the United States in 1982 to continue her career and live close to her sister Mahasti.
Hayedeh lived in Los Angeles from 1982 until the end of her life. The growth of the Persian community in Southern California
Southern California
Southern California is a megaregion, or megapolitan area, in the southern area of the U.S. state of California. Large urban areas include Greater Los Angeles and Greater San Diego. The urban area stretches along the coast from Ventura through the Southland and Inland Empire to San Diego...
due to the increasing number of people leaving Iran after the revolution bolstered Hayedeh's career in the 1980s
1980s
File:1980s decade montage.png|thumb|400px|From left, clockwise: The first Space Shuttle, Columbia, lifted off in 1981; American President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev eased tensions between the two superpowers, leading to the end of the Cold War; The Fall of the Berlin Wall in...
. Heyedeh released many successful albums during this time and many songs of her were bootlegged in Iran as well. Hayedeh's political and nostalgic songs such as "Rouza-ye Roshan Khodahafez" and Faryad became very popular with the Persian (Iranian) exile
Exile
Exile means to be away from one's home , while either being explicitly refused permission to return and/or being threatened with imprisonment or death upon return...
community. Some of her other hits were "Shabeh Eshgh", "Gol Vajeh", "Ravi", "Bahaneh", "Eshareh", "Ghesseyeh Man", "Zendegi" and "Nargeseh Shirazi".
Hayedeh's songwriters in the US were mostly Farid Zoland, Sadegh Nojouki
Sadegh Nojouki
Sadegh Nojouki is a famous Iranian composer, songwriter and arranger. He has composed and arranged some of the most popular songs before and after the Iranian revolution. He introduced a new style into Iranian music, successfully merging traditional and pop instruments...
, Mohammad Heydari
Mohammad Heydari
-Career:He received santur lessons first from Hossein Saba and, after his death, from Abolhassan Saba. He also worked with Abdollah Davami and Haj Agha Mohammad Irani-Mojarrad....
and Andranik. Lyricists she worked with were Ardalan Sarfaraz, Homa Mir-Afshar, Iraj Razmjou but the lyricist who wrote most of Hayedeh's songs and hits was her best friend Leila Kasra
Leila Kasra
Leila Kasra also known as Hadieh or Hedieh , was a legendary Persian poet, writer and lyricist who wrote many hits for many famous Persian artists like Ebi, Dariush, Sattar, Vigen, Moein, Mahasti, Andy, Homeyra, Hassan Shamaizadeh, Siavash Shams, Shohreh, Shahram Solati, Nooshafarin, Habib,...
(a.k.a. Hadieh). She was featured in two of her albums reading her songs. Kasra died in 1989 a few months prior to Hayedeh's death, after a long struggle with breast cancer.
During the 80's Hayedeh played sold-out venues in the US, Canada, Europe, and other places in the world. Hayedeh regularly appeared on the Los Angeles Persian TV channels such as Jaam-E-Jam TV and IR TV. In some of her TV programs. Hayedeh criticized Iran's fundamental regime and was a supporter of monarchy.
Documentary
Persian pianist and journalist Pejman AkbarzadehPejman Akbarzadeh
Pejman Akbarzadeh is an Iranian musician, researcher, journalist and radio producer.- Early life :Born in Shiraz in 1980, Akbarzadeh had his first music lessons at the age of nine from Gholam Loghmani and later from Bahram Nasrollahi...
has made a documentary
Hayedeh Legendary Persian Diva
"Hayedeh Legendary Persian Diva" is a 2009 documentary film about the late Iranian iconic singer Hayedeh, made by the exiled musician and journalist Pejman Akbarzadeh in The Netherlands....
about Hayedeh which was screened in Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
in January 2009 for the first time.
The documentary had its US premier in May 2009 at Noor Film Festival in Los Angeles and nominated as the "best documentary" at the Festival. Hayedeh Legendary Persian Diva
Hayedeh Legendary Persian Diva
"Hayedeh Legendary Persian Diva" is a 2009 documentary film about the late Iranian iconic singer Hayedeh, made by the exiled musician and journalist Pejman Akbarzadeh in The Netherlands....
was also screened at 9th International Exile Film Festival (Sweden), 4th Iranian Film Festival
Iranian Film Festival
The Iranian Film Festival is a film festival held annually in the Netherlands. Until now, the festival has taken place in Utrecht , Rotterdam , and in 2009 the festival will take place in filmtheatre De Fabriek in Zaandam....
(The Netherlands) and Austrian Film Archive
Filmarchiv Austria
The Filmarchiv Austria is an organisation for the discovery, reconstruction and preservation of Austrian film record material: films themselves, literature about film and cinema, or film-related periodicals...
in Vienna. In September 2009 the semi-official Fars News Agency in Tehran criticized Pejman Akbarzadeh for making a film about the "corrupt monarchist singer, Hayedeh".
Hayedeh documentary has been released on 20 January 2010, the 20th death anniversary of Hayedeh. The DVD has been released by Persian Dutch Network in Amsterdam.
Personal life
Hayedeh married and divorced three times and had three children named Kamran, Keyvan and Noushin Nouri, all of whom live in the US. Her eldest grandson "Soheil", who is the first born son of Keyvan Nouri, is currently pursuing a career as a freelance composer in Los Angeles. The public fascination with Hayedeh's personal life, as is true for all great performers, attracted a great deal of scrutiny of her private affairs. However, as is customary, most of Haydeh's so-called trivia were based on rumors.Death
Hayedeh's death shocked and saddened Persians around the world. On January 24, 1990, Hayedeh was buried at the Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery
Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery
The Pierce Brothers Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery is a cemetery in the Westwood Village area of Los Angeles, California. It is located at 1218 Glendon Avenue in Westwood....
in Los Angeles, California. Her funeral was attended by thousands and most of the Persian singers and entertainers in exile.
Khosrow Motarjemi, a Persian IT expert in California, recorded a video of this three and a half hour concert, which for unknown reasons has never been officially released. That night Hayedeh told the audience: "Life is like an express train...I am going to the House of God. Who knows what will happen in the future; I may not be alive tomorrow...", then she performed one of her last songs, "Man Mikham Be Khoune ye Khoda Beram" (I want to go to the House of God). The song’s lyricist, Leila Kasra
Leila Kasra
Leila Kasra also known as Hadieh or Hedieh , was a legendary Persian poet, writer and lyricist who wrote many hits for many famous Persian artists like Ebi, Dariush, Sattar, Vigen, Moein, Mahasti, Andy, Homeyra, Hassan Shamaizadeh, Siavash Shams, Shohreh, Shahram Solati, Nooshafarin, Habib,...
(Hedieh) who was Hayedeh's best friend, died of cancer a few months before Hayedeh.
Hayedeh was recording an album shortly before her death and was due to finish recording it after she returned from her concert in San Francisco. Hayedeh was last interviewed one week before her death. The magazine which had the interview was released a day after her death, the issue became a bestseller. In the interview Hayedeh said that she was tired of rumors about her and said that she was going to continue her work and expand it even more.
Legacy
Hayedeh's albums are ageless masterpieces and are still best sellers. Her songs are constantly played on Persian TV and radio channels. Many covers of her songs are sung by famous Persian pop singers. Houshmand Aghili performed Hayedeh’s "Sarab," Parviz Rahman Panah remixed her "Saal", Shahla Sarshar performed a tragic song called "In Memory of Hayedeh," singer Amir did a cover of Hayedeh's song "Soghati" in 2008 and Mahasti performed three songs in memory of her late sister.In 2010 Rastin did a cover on her song "Saghi". She is considered the queen of Persian music by most Iranians. To this day she still is one of the few Persian female vocalist with a contralto
Contralto
Contralto is the deepest female classical singing voice, with the lowest tessitura, falling between tenor and mezzo-soprano. It typically ranges between the F below middle C to the second G above middle C , although at the extremes some voices can reach the E below middle C or the second B above...
voice.
According to Prof. Erik Nakhjavani in Encyclopædia Iranica
Encyclopædia Iranica
Encyclopædia Iranica is a project whose goal is to create a comprehensive and authoritative English language encyclopedia about the history, culture, and civilization of Iranian peoples from prehistory to modern times...
: "Analogues to Delkash
Delkash
Delkash born, Esmat Bagherpour Baboli , was an Iranian diva and actress with a rare and unique voice and vocal range.-Biography:...
, before her, Hayedeh sang with technical authority and passionate energy. Her laryngeal control made it possible for her to produce a series of graceful vibrato and glissando vocalizations required by the Avaz Persian vocal music. She could smoothly pass from the upper reaches of her alto voice to the lower, fuller, and darker range of the contralto. This mixture of strong laryngeal strength and learned vocal technique gave her alto-contralto voice a rare, powerful resonance and texture in the performance of the Avaz. Furthermore an acute sense for musical timing, the rhythmic flow of vocal music, affective musical phrasing, and poetic delivery enabled her to express and interpret effectively any songs she sang."
As of 2007 Hayedeh's albums are sold on Itunes
ITunes
iTunes is a media player computer program, used for playing, downloading, and organizing digital music and video files on desktop computers. It can also manage contents on iPod, iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad....
.
Partial discography
- Gol Vaajeh
- Shabe Eshgh
- Sogand
- Bezan Taar
- Ay Zendegi Salam
- Shanehayat
- Nashanideha
- Kharabati
- Ya Rab
- Padeshaheh Khooban
- Ruzhaye Roshan
- Shahre Ashoub
- Ghesseye Man
- Aroosak
See also
- Ali TajvidiAli TajvidiAli Tajvidi , was a Persian musician, composer, violinist, songwriter, and music professor at the School of National Music and Tehran University...
- Leila KasraLeila KasraLeila Kasra also known as Hadieh or Hedieh , was a legendary Persian poet, writer and lyricist who wrote many hits for many famous Persian artists like Ebi, Dariush, Sattar, Vigen, Moein, Mahasti, Andy, Homeyra, Hassan Shamaizadeh, Siavash Shams, Shohreh, Shahram Solati, Nooshafarin, Habib,...
- Farid Zoland
- Sadegh NojoukiSadegh NojoukiSadegh Nojouki is a famous Iranian composer, songwriter and arranger. He has composed and arranged some of the most popular songs before and after the Iranian revolution. He introduced a new style into Iranian music, successfully merging traditional and pop instruments...
- MahastiMahastiMahasti bornEftekhar Dadehbala was a legendary Persian Pop and classical singer and diva and the younger sister of singer Hayedeh.- Background :...
External links
- Hayedeh Documentary Project Website (English & Persian)
- Hayedeh... at a Glance (Hayedeh biography in English)
- Hayedeh and a Documentary About Her (DW/Iranian.com, in English)
- Speaking of Hayedeh and a God Given Voice (by Hooman Khalatbari, BBC Persian)
- "Hayedeh...", Pejman Akbarzadeh brings out the legendary singer's world in its full dimensions Iranian.com (English)
- Persian-Israeli singer Rita performs Hayedeh's "Gol-e Sangam"
- 15 Years After Hayedeh's Death (by Mahmoud Khoshnam, BBC Persian)
- A Diva from Persia: Rise and Fall of Hayedeh by Noam Ben-Zeev, HaaretzHaaretzHaaretz is Israel's oldest daily newspaper. It was founded in 1918 and is now published in both Hebrew and English in Berliner format. The English edition is published and sold together with the International Herald Tribune. Both Hebrew and English editions can be read on the Internet...
Daily (in Hebrew)