Since September this year, the Tehran Symphony Orchestra has performed works by composers such as Hossein Dehlavi, Hossein Nassehi, Ludwig van Beethoven, Antonio Vivaldi, Antonín Dvořák, Franz Schubert, Dmitri Shostakovich, and Johann Strauss. On the final day of the 39th Fajr International Music Festival, they once again took the stage under the baton of Manouchehr Sahbai, accompanied by the Rudaki Foundation Choir conducted by Razmik Ohanian.

This concert, one of the highlights of the festival’s program, was met with strong audience attendance. Unfortunately, as with some other festival performances, no concert booklet was distributed—a typical practice in symphonic concerts to inform the audience about the program. Interestingly, the pieces were instead introduced by a presenter, who also asked the audience to refrain from clapping between movements to preserve the performers’ and conductor’s concentration.

The program included Scent of Spring by Hassan Riyahi, Egmont Overture by Beethoven, The Marriage of Figaro Overture by Mozart, The Barber of Seville Overture by Gioachino Rossini, Petite Suite (in four movements) by Claude Debussy, Dance in the Court of King Samanagan (Part One) by Hossein Nassehi, Circle Dance by Heshmat Sanjari, Ritual Fire Dance by Manuel de Falla, Hungarian Dances Nos. 1, 4, and 5 by Johannes Brahms, and Radetzky March by Johann Strauss. The orchestra concluded its Fajr Festival performance with the upbeat Radetzky March and a waltz by Shostakovich.

In terms of performance quality, the orchestra initially appeared somewhat uncoordinated—particularly in the softer dynamics and slower tempos, where unity faltered. However, as the concert progressed, the performance improved significantly, especially in the orchestral suite, where the woodwinds carried the melodic narrative with notable brilliance, and the strings blended well in the third and fourth movements. The weakest link in the performance was the horn solo, which lacked confidence and precision.

In the second half, which featured Iranian compositions, the orchestra demonstrated a strong command of the repertoire. Ritual Fire Dance, with its heroic atmosphere, stood out in this segment. However, in the Hungarian Dances, synchronization issues resurfaced—particularly during the faster sections, where the strings appeared rushed and the ensemble lost some of its cohesion.

Manouchehr Sahbai, as the orchestra’s music director and conductor, succeeded in selecting a repertoire that kept the audience engaged until the end. The program’s variety—balancing Western and Iranian works—created an effective emotional dynamic throughout the concert. Sahbai’s conducting style, marked by minimal gestures, aimed to guide the orchestra with efficiency and precision. Notably, he led the entire performance without a score in front of him.

In their next concert, scheduled for March 7, 2024, at 9:30 PM in Vahdat Hall, the Tehran Symphony Orchestra—again conducted by Sahbai—will present The Magic Flute Overture and Concerto for Flute and Harp in C Major by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, along with Symphony No. 5 by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. The soloists for the Mozart concerto will be two young performers: Farzaneh Asadi (flute) and Diba Vali (harp).