An Iranian contemporary folk music group; reflecting the diversity of Iranian culture and its sonic features.
Rastak StoreLive in Concert
Date: Thursday 21, December 2023
Venue: MKM Attila Ilhan Salonu, Istanbul
Our new album, “Essentials,” is available on all major digital music platforms. We have meticulously curated, re-recorded, and re-mastered a collection of our best work for your listening enjoyment. We are thrilled to share this new project with our fans.
"Rastak," in Farsi, means a newly born plant that grows at the bottom of a tree. Sometimes it grows taller and stronger than the main tree itself. So, it can be interpreted as a plant with its roots in the ground, containing all the essential elements of life, when it is fully grown. We, the Rastak music group, like the "Rastak" natural process, have borrowed the background of our music from the roots of our history and culture. We have been using ethnic-based themes with our specific arrangement to connect with a more extensive range of the audience worldwide for years.
Rastak is one of the most well-known bands in Iranian contemporary folk music, which was formed as an experimental music group in 1997. The group seeks to collect, record, and interpret Iranian folk music for a global audience. Rastak incorporates language, culture, and history, merging traditional instruments and forms with contemporary rhythms.
Rastak has performed in many international music festivals and concerts held in Iran, England, Austria, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, The Netherlands, Sweden, the United States, Canada, Australia, India, Japan, Malaysia, Chile, Poland, Turkey, Georgia, Belgium, Oman, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Bangladesh [Dhaka International Folk Fest 2017], Iraq, Erbil, United Arab Emirates, etc.
Rastak comprises diverse musicians who bring their talents and styles to the group. The members of Rastak come from various musical backgrounds, which has helped us create a truly distinctive sound that blends the old and the new.
Art Director, Co-Founder, and Tar Player
Lead vocal, Tanbur, Divan, Setar, Dotar, Qupoz, Oud
Lead vocal, Daf, Percussion
Kamancheh, Kamancheh Alto, Gheychak
Oud, Tar, Setar
Percussion
Qanun
We have been blessed to have chance working with great musicians and Ustads from different parts of Iran. Some of the musicians that we have had the pleasure of collaborating with include Gholamali Pourataee, Ashiq Imran Heydari, Mashallah Bameri, Safar Ali Ramezani, Bijan Kamkar, Vahid Asadollahi, Mohammad Ali Delnavaz, Naser Vahdati, Gholam Hossein Nazari, Ehsan Asadollahi, and Mohsen Sharifian,
Omid Mostafavi, Hamed Bolandhemmat, Yasaman Najmeddin, Parisa Inanloo, Yavar Ahmadifar, Mohammad Mazhari, Piran Mohajeri, Sepehr Saadati, Sara Naderi, Kaveh Sarvarian, Yaser Navazandeh, Farzad Khorshidsavar, Negar Ezazi, Saba Jamali, Reza Abedia, Sahar Ebrahim, Nima Niktab, Sara Ahmadi, Hosna Parsa, Danoosh Asadpour, Bita Ghasemi
Inspired by different genres of folk dances in Iran, we chose Dance as a theme for this album. Dance with Rastak, our 6th album, is released in two audio and video editions and comprises folk songs from ethnicities such as Azerbaijan, Dezful, Kerman, Kurdistan, Khurasan, and Shiraz.
Learn More ...In this project, we are working on the music of Iran's neighboring countries to be a messenger of peace while depicting the beauty of Middle Eastern music and culture. The idea of this album was born due to the positive feedback in overseas performances.
For the past two decades, Rastak's experimental music works of art, deep research, and fieldwork have focused on the sonic features of Iranian folklore and its diverse, multicultural ethnic groups resulting in different compositions like movie soundtracks, theatre text music, six music albums, and eight single tracks.
Year: 2007
Audio
Year: 2010
Audio and Video
Year: 2013
Audio and Video
Year: 2018
Audio and Video
Year: 2016
Audio and Video
Year: 2021
Audio and Video
Year: 2019 - 2020
Audio
Year: 2019 - 2020
Audio
Year: 2019 - 2020
Audio
Year: 2019 - 2020
Audio
Year: 2019 - 2020
Audio
Year: 2019 - 2020
Audio
Year: 2021
Audio - Video
Year: 2022
Audio - Video
Year: 2022
Audio - Video
We couldn't have done it without you. That means your generosity and support helped us to put some beautiful Iranian folk music out into the world. Once again, thank you so much. We are grateful for each of you and your willingness to jump in and be a part of this journey.