Nima Fathi conducted the Rudaki Orchestra in a series of performances of American pop songs by the likes of Elvis Presley and Frank Sinatra on June 18 and 19 at the Vahdat (Rudaki) concert hall in Tehran.
Speaking before the performance, Mr. Fathi said: “Our parents and grandparents used to listen to American pop songs of the 1950s all the way through the 80s on the radio. I’ve always dreamed of conducting a live performance of these nostalgic and timeless songs.”
Fathi added: “Our previous two concerts in 2016 and 17 were big hits with the generation of listeners who are old enough to remember these songs. We’ll perform songs by Elvis Presley (1935-77), Frank Sinatra (1915-1998), Dean Martin (1917-1995), Leonard Cohen (1934-2016), Joe Dassin (1938-1980), Doris Day (1922-), Pat Boone (1934-), Albano Carrisi (1943-), Brian Hayland (1943-) and the Beatles.”
“The audience will be delightfully surprised by our new arrangements of the great golden oldies,” Fathi noted. “There are certain restrictions on performances by solo female singers. But we have found a solution for the performance of Doris Day songs and those from the 1960 movie Mary Poppins.”
[Translated from Persian by Fardine Hamidi]
