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Since earliest times music and dance have played a major role in uniting people through ritual, often seeking union with the divine through trance or ecstasy.

This festival seeks to bring back some spiritual nourishment to our lives; to focus our physical and mental selves. While the music and rituals associated with each genre are very different from each other, they share a common thread in bringing people together in search of enlightenment. These are just a few of the many forms that music takes to enrich our lives.

FRIDAY, APRIL 27 - This program marks a rare NY appearance of Homayoun Sakhi, who has established an international reputation as the outstanding Afghan rubab player of his generation. A master of the rubab, a double-chambered lute that is revered as the national instrument of Afghanistan, he performs the music of Afghanistan, which is rich in traditions that span the Middle East, Central Asia and North India. 

SATURDAY, APRIL 28 - One of the world’s leading sitarists, Ustad Shahid Parvez belongs to an illustrious musical family and has achieved success in not only preserving the tradition, but in pushing its boundaries to greater heights. He is one of the leading exponents of the Etawah gharana (tradition), which was popularized by the great Ustad Vilayat Khan, and belongs to the seventh generation of this musical lineage


SUNDAY, APRIL 29 - The internationally renowned Hossein Omoumi, virtuoso of the Persian ney (flute) and accomplished vocalist, makes a rare NY appearance joined by the evocative vocalist Jessika Kenney, Amir Koushkani (setar and tar lutes), and Hamin Honari (tombak – goblet drum, daf – tambourine). Their program of mystical and spiritual Persian music is influenced by the Isfahan school, which is based on vocal repertoire and poetry; included are works by Rumi and Attar