BBC Proms Plus Features SOAS Music Graduate

Left to right, Adib Rostami,Tomos Brangwyn
and Medhi Ganjvar during the soundcheck

Contemporary Iranian music is showcased by SOAS graduate Tomos Brangwyn on BBC Radio 3 tonight as part of the 2013 Proms Plus season.

Tomos, who graduated with a First Class Honours in Music from SOAS this year, was commissioned by the BBC to form an ensemble to perform a programme of traditional Iranian music, played upon traditional instruments.

The ensemble line-up is Tomos on santur, Adib Rostami on kemenche and Medhi Ganjvar on tombak. Tomos met Adib and Mehdi through his music making within the Iranian diaspora in London. All three musicians played an equal part in arranging material for the performance. Their programme includes improvisation as well as famous contemporary Iranian compositions by composers including Parviz Meshkatian, Faramarz Payvar and Hossein Alizadeh.

Tomos says: “I have been performing the santur and dulcimer in professional contexts throughout the last 2-3 years, so being part of the Proms provided another great opportunity to develop myself as a professional performing musician. Being able to explore Iranian music alongside two hugely skilled and experienced Iranian musicians was a huge privilege.”

Tomos is making a name for himself as a multi instrumentalist specialising in dulcimers and related instruments of the world, including the santur.

His next live performance is this Sunday, August 25, at Folk East, a Suffolk folk festival where I will be playing the dulcimer (a santur type instrument found in English folk music) with English folk singer Lisa Knapp.