New academic center bolsters UCLA as a major force in the study of Iranian culture
Through a $5 million pledge by Haleh Emrani in honor of her late husband, Ahmad Gramian, UCLA will establish the Gramian-Emrani Center for Iranian Music in The UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music. The center builds on the school of music’s Iranian Music Program, established after a 2018 gift from Farhang Foundation, a non-political, non-religious, not-for-profit community organization devoted to celebrating and promoting Iranian art and culture. The Gramian-Emrani Center for Iranian Music will blend the twin strengths of the school of music: music performance and scholarship.
“I am hoping for this gift to increase focus on the research and study of the music of Iran, while hosting public performances for the benefit of the community at large,” said Haleh Emrani. “My late husband was passionate about Iranian music, one of the world’s oldest traditions that continues to be vibrant and relevant today.”
The new center builds on UCLA’s commitment to the study of Iranian cultural traditions, both ancient and contemporary. UCLA’s Pourdavoud Institute for the Study of the Iranian World was established in 2017 as the premier research center for the study of Iranian antiquity, including its influence and interpretation in the medieval and modern world. The Yarshater Center for the Study of Iranian Literary Traditions, founded in 2023, is a research hub for Iran’s diverse literary traditions.
“We are grateful for this gift by Haleh Emrani, and especially humbled to honor the memory of Ahmad Gramian,” said Eileen Strempel, inaugural dean of the school of music. “His vision was instrumental in promoting Iranian music and culture. Haleh’s leadership in establishing this center will provide invaluable support for the next generation of artists and scholars.”
The Gramian-Emrani Center for Iranian Music will build upon the scholarly and artistic resources within the school of music. Guest artists and scholars hosted by the center will collaborate with graduate students and faculty in ethnomusicology, musicology and music composition. The center will also partner with the school’s world-renowned Ethnomusicology Archive to collect and preserve Iranian music. Scholars interested in the documentation of cultural transmission across regions and centuries will benefit from roundtables, workshops and conferences hosted by the center.
“Our Iranian music program has a proud tradition of bringing world-class artists and scholars to the school of music,” said Shahab Paranj, a postdoctoral fellow in Iranian music who will provide artistic direction for the new center. “This center will enable us to continue that work and expand our concerts and scholarly programs. Iranian music remains a vibrant force in today’s world, and we are not only preserving its heritage, but also broadening its horizons.”
Maintaining both scholarly research and active public programming is paramount to the center’s founding donor, Haleh Emrani. Los Angeles is home to an Iranian community of over 400,000 people, one of the largest concentrations of Iranian immigrants in the country.
“Music creates an important link between past and present. It helps build communities,” said Emrani. “The music of Iran has always been diverse and in conversation with other musical traditions. This center will allow that cultural vitality to continue.”
The new center will launch an inaugural celebration on October 20 at 6 p.m. PST in Schoenberg Hall at the school of music. The celebration, free to the public, will feature perfomances by the Iranshahr Orchestra; UCLA Iranian Ensemble; tanbour and composer Kaykhosrou Pournazeri; and singer Sahar Boroujerdi. Speakers at the event include donor Haleh Emrani; director of the new center and distinguished professor at the school of music Richard Danielpour; and postdoctoral fellow in Iranian music, Shahab Paranj.
Emrani’s late husband, Ahmad Gramian, was a founding trustee and then chairman of Farhang Foundation. A lifelong supporter of the arts, Gramian was well known for his philanthropic work with educational and cultural institutions.
ABOUT THE UCLA HERB ALPERT SCHOOL OF MUSIC
The school of music prepares students for twenty-first century music careers. Home to renowned musical scholars, music industry experts and world-class musicians, educators and composers within one institution, the school of music offers students an interdisciplinary education that prizes music performance and scholarship while also emphasizing active engagement in the greater Los Angeles community. Esteeming all musical traditions as vital expressions of an evolving global society, the school of music boasts over 40 ensembles performing music from around the world.
Founded in 2008 with a naming gift of $30 million from the Herb Alpert Foundation, the school of music was formally established as UCLA’s 12th professional school by the UC Regents in 2016. The school originally comprised the departments of ethnomusicology, music and musicology, and has since added interdisciplinary programs in global jazz studies and music industry, and the Herbie Hancock Institute of Jazz Performance. School of music graduates and faculty members are recipients of prestigious MacArthur fellowships, Grammy Awards and Emmy Awards, and are leaders as composers, musicians, educators, scholars and innovators in the music industry. Learn more at www.schoolofmusic.ucla.edu.
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