Both enjoying successful and acclaimed international reputations, the two Iranian composers here represent two generations of musicians trained in the West. Hormoz Farhat, born in 1928, was the first Iranian to study music in the USA, taking classes with Darius Milhaud, Lukas Foss and Roy Harris. He worked at UCLA for many years before returning to Iran. His music is in many genres and has been performed in the USA and throughout Europe. His two substantial piano sonatas are major contributions to the genre. Amir Mahyar Tafreshipour (b.1974) carries on this tradition and studied in the UK and Denmark, where his new opera is to due to be premiered in December 2020 subject to lockdown restrictions being eased. His work draws on Persian influences and subjects in a truly cosmopolitan way, demonstrated well by the pieces on this album. Mary Dullea enjoys a very busy career as a soloist and chamber musician and regularly performs and broadcasts in many countries. Her discography is exceptional and demonstrates her support and championing of new music. Her pianism and musicality as well as remarkable virtuosity make her an ideal interpreter.

Sunday Telegraph 11th October 2020
    The motoric force of the Iranian-born nonagenarian Hormoz Farhat’s Piano Sonata No 1, composed in the 1950s, contrasts fascinatingly with the confident expansiveness of its successor, written in 2010...Mary Dullea, unfailingly grasping this music’s intent, shades her playing beautifully.