Waiting at the Door of the Beloved: a Night of Sufi Poetry and Live Persian Music
WLL student Serena Tara writes: “Yesterday, Tuesday May 2nd I participated to the event “Waiting at the Door of the Beloved, an Evening of Live Persian Music and Sufi Poetry”. One of my former professors, Prof. Tabatabai, was coordinating the event. I was completely amazed by the performance. I was expecting two separate sessions, one of poetry reading and one of music, but, to my surprise, the event consisted of a one-hour-long concert that mixed poetry and music together: an amazing singer would sing the poems accompanied by the pianist and two men playing three persian instruments, which were one similar to a small guitar and the other two specific kind of drums. Then, Prof. Tabatabai would read the sufi poems as well as their translation in English, always accompanied by music. It was the first time I was exposed to Persian music and Sufi poetry and I enjoyed both the intensity and the dramatic tone that characterize both of them. They really captured my attention and, for that hour, I felt totally immersed in the Persian world. It was one of the best events I have ever attended and I highly recommend it in case they host it again next year!”
This event took place on Tuesday, May 2nd at The Elie Wiesel Center for Jewish Studies, 147 Bay State Road.