Interview with Hamed Sadeghi: Northern Rhapsody – Jazz was never meant to be static: Videos, new CD cover, Photos

Interview with tar virtuoso Hamed Sadeghi. An interview by email in writing.

Jazz Blues News: – First, let’s start out with where you grew up, and what got you interested in music. How exactly did your adventure take off? When did you realize that this was a passion you could make a living out of?

Hamed Sadeghi: – I grew up in Iran, surrounded by a rich musical heritage. Music was everywhere — in the air, the streets, the culture. The tar caught my attention early on. Something about its resonance felt deeply human.

When I was 14 I asked my mum to get me a tar, she was very supportive, bought me one and I started taking lessons – I’ve never stopped playing music since then! When I was 18 I knew I wanted to be a full time musician and I couldn’t imagine myself doing anything else.

JBN: – How has your sound evolved over time? What have you been doing to find and develop your own sound?

HS: – It’s definitely grown with me. At first, I was focused on mastering tradition, learning the deep roots of Persian classical music. But moving to Australia opened me up — to jazz, contemporary classical, experimental textures. Eishan Ensemble was born from that need to express something that wasn’t one or the other, but both. I think that blend has become my sound.

JBN: – Have you changed through the years? Any charges or overall evolution? And if so why?

HS: – Of course. And I hope I keep changing. The more you experience — travel, collaboration, even silence — the more it shapes you. I’ve become more patient, more open to space in the music. Less about proving something, more about saying something meaningful.

JBN: – How do you prepare for your recordings and performances to help you maintain both spiritual and musical stamina?

HS: – Musically, my preparation is layered. Of course, I spend hours with the tar, refining the nuances of each piece. I explore dynamics, and deepen my relationship with the sound. But also I listen widely—to the environment, to other artists, and to the emotions behind each note I want to share.

Spiritually I try to stay connected to stillness and silence, this keeps me grounded.

JBN: – What do you love most about your new album 2025: Hamed Sadeghi – Northern Rhapsody, how it was formed and what you are working on today.

HS: – Northern Rhapsody is deeply personal to me. It’s an exploration of the human experience, born from my quest to capture the essence of beauty through music. The album draws on connection and transformation, it navigates through new cultures and landscapes.

Touring regional New South Wales profoundly shaped this work. While many locals describe Australia’s beauty through its beaches and coastal cliffs, I found inspiration inland—the winding rivers, the scent of eucalyptus, and the orange sunsets over hills. These landscapes offered a sense of peace and belonging that resonated deeply with me.

I recall an evening in Bellingen: after a concert, we returned to our accommodation facing a farm. Dew on the leaves, a soft fog in the horizon, and the silence was broken only by the whispering wind. We sat there for almost an hour, absorbing the tranquillity.

Musically, Northern Rhapsody feels more grounded compared to our previous albums. The compositions are gentle and spacious, emphasizing soundscapes inspired by vast landscapes. I used an unconventional configuration of instruments—tar, saxophone, double bass, and percussion—to create a balance between tightly composed melodies and improvisational sections.

Buy from here – New CD 2025

JBN: – How did you select the musicians who play on the album?

HS: – Chemistry is very important. I’d like to collaborate with people who listen — not just musically, but spiritually. They need to feel the space and contribute to it with honesty. Most of them are long-time collaborators, and we trust each other completely.

JBN: – What sort of feedback did you receive after it was released from musicians or your friends and family?

HS: – The album is not released yet but after releasing the first single By The Mountain, I’ve been getting really good feedback. Local radio stations in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane have been playing this track already.

The response was humbling. Friends and family connected with it emotionally. Some musician friends mentioned how it surprised them structurally — that meant a lot. It’s always beautiful when something abstract you create finds meaning in someone else’s life.

JBN: – Can you share any memories from gigs, jams, open acts and studio sessions over the years?

HS: – So many. I remember once at WOMADelaide, just as we started a piece, a huge gust of wind swept through the stage — right on the beat. It felt like nature was joining in. Another time, we played an intimate gig in a very old monastery in Europe and the acoustics turned the tar into something magical.

Another time, we flew from Sydney to Europe for a tour, once I received my tar at the airport in Porto I realised my tar was broken, we had to find someone in the middle of the night to fix it.

JBN: – In your opinion, what’s the balance in music between intellect and soul?

HS: – You need both, but if soul’s missing, no amount of intellect can save it. The technique should serve emotion, not overtake it. Soul is what stays with people after the music stops.

JBN: – There’s a two-way relationship between audience and artist; are you okay with delivering people the emotion they long for?

HS: – Absolutely. If someone comes to a concert needing healing or joy, and my music helps, that’s the greatest honour. But I also think it’s important to challenge people, to take them somewhere new, not just somewhere familiar.

JBN: – How can we get young people interested in jazz when most of standard tunes are half a century old?

HS: – Jazz was never meant to be static. Let them blend it with their own cultures, techniques, sounds. That’s how it stays alive.

JBN: – John Coltrane once said that music was his spirit. How do you perceive the spirit and the meaning of life?

HS: – We come and go like seasons. In the scale of time, we’re insignificant… and yet, we feel things so deeply. That contradiction is fascinating to me.

Music, for me, sits in that contradiction. It’s this invisible, temporary thing — it exists for a moment, then it’s gone. But in that moment, it can move people and shift something inside you.

JBN: – If you could change one single thing in the musical world and that would become reality, what would that be?

HS: – I’d love to see more emphasis on collaboration across cultures. Music thrives on diversity, and I think we get to see a whole new world when artists from different worlds come together.

JBN: – Whom do you find yourself listening to these days?

HS: – Gustavsen Trio, Anouar Brahem and Keith Jareth …

JBN: – Let’s take a trip with a time machine: where and why would you really want to go?

HS: – I’d love to witness a gathering of Persian poets and musicians during the time of Hafez — just to feel the atmosphere of creativity and mysticism.

JBN: – What is the message you choose to bring through your music?

HS: – I come from a tradition that’s centuries old, and I live in a place that’s constantly evolving. My music sits between those two worlds — East and West, past and present, memory and imagination. And I want listeners to feel that it’s okay to live in between things. You don’t have to choose one identity, one culture, one emotion. You can hold many truths at once.

JBN: – Do You like our questions? So far, it’s been me asking you questions, now may I have a question from yourself…

HS: – They’re great, very thoughtful. I’d ask: “What’s the last piece of art that really moved you, and why?”

JBN: – Thanks for the question, Branford Marsalis’ concert, see the publication here․

JBN: – Have you ever given a free concert during your entire concert career? At the bottom line, what are your expectations from our interview?

HS: – Yes, quite a few. As for this interview, I just hope it helps someone understand the heart behind the music a little more.

Interview by Elléa Beauchêne

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