$15 (General Admission)
7:00pm Show
Contemporary takes on Persian classical music accompanied by American blues.
Band Members:
Aida Shahghasemi - Voice/Guitar
Kavyesh Kaviraj - Piano
Christopher Rochester - Saxophone
⊹
Aida Shahghasemi is a Minneapolis-based musician with roots in Iran. She studied psychology and anthropology at University of Minnesota with a focus on the cultural aspects of Persian classical music and the restrictions imposed on the voices of Iranian female vocalists. She received her master’s degree in arts politics from New York University, where she also taught a course she developed on arts activism in Iran. She has been a touring member of Iron & Wine and Marketa Irglova’s bands and sang on two of Glen Hansard’s albums. Her three albums are Wind Between the Horse’s Ears (2015), Cypress of Abarkooh (2019), and Chashmandaaze Rooydaad (2022). Shahghasemi is a McKnight Music Fellow and serves as an adjunct faculty in the MFA program at Minneapolis College of Art and Design. She is a mental health therapist at Hiraeth Psychotherapy and works primarily with adults and couples dealing with trauma.
Kavyesh Kaviraj is a critically acclaimed composer, arranger and pianist living and working in Minnesota. The Twin Cities–based musician has worked with several internationally renowned artists, including Wynton Marsalis, David Sanchez, Justin Robinson, Roosevelt Collier, and Steve Cole.
Christopher Rochester is an African American musician, educator, and composer. His career has taken him from classrooms to international stages, where he has led ensembles, designed programs, and spoken about music’s role in shaping culture, equity, and belonging.
