Mohammad Reza Mortazavi

"Like sounds from a different world" - NDR Kultur

»Mortazavi creates trance-like polyrhythmic soundscapes, complete with melodies and exquisite phrasing.«  - Sydney Opera House

"You could also say, this is a revolution." - ZDF-Aspekte

 »The composer makes surreal, beautiful music performed on traditional instruments like the tombak and daf that speaks to basic human emotion using just his nimble hand- drumming.«  - Pitchfork

"Rhythm and spirituality – Mortazavi combines both and delivers incredible energy through his music" - NDR Kulturjournal

"The best hand-drummer worldwide…" - ORF

"Watching the unbelievably virtuos soloist, one could get the impression he does not have two but at least six hands." - ARTE

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At the age of nine, he won the first tombak competition in his home country, and today everyone agrees: Mohammad Reza Mortazavi is an exceptional artist!
The outstanding Iranian solo percussionist and composer has gained worldwide recognition through his virtuoso playing on the traditional Persian hand drums Tombak and Daf.
Mortazavi is an artist who strives for absolute freedom and the transgression of boundaries. His music is a fascinating interplay of complex rhythms, captivating melodies and a unique playing technique, he crafts a network of danceable rhythms, uptempo beats and trance-like textures with great virtuosity, melodies and polyphponies entwine one another in seemingly endless rhythmic variations, creating truly hypnotic worlds of sound. Mortazavi‘s amazing musical range stretches all the way from soft and slow to swift, dynamic and diverse, he wants to open up new worlds of sound with his music.
With his impressive show, Mortazavi has already performed on the big stages and festivals (from Roskilde to Fusion or the World Music Festival Shanghai via the Sydney Opera House to the Berlin, Cologne or Luxembourg Philharmonie).

Despite the difficulties brought about by the pandemic, Mortazavi has used the time to work on new compositions and productions. He even had the opportunity to perform on the virtual version of Burning Man.

In 2022, Mortazavi released his new album "PRISMA", which thrilled his fans all over the world. He also played at the ARTE 30th anniversary concert of the legendary TRESOR in Berlin.

Mohammad Reza Mortazavi's percussion solo performances by far exceed the idea of what to expect from a percussion concert. 

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