When they broke down the door (2022) - ca. 12'
When they broke down the door (2022) - ca. 12'
(soprano; 1, 1, 1, 1 – 2, 1, 1, 0 – 1 percussion – piano/melodica – strings)
Based on a poem by Fatemeh (Shahrzad) Shams, translated by Dick Davis
Sepehr Pirasteh_When They Broke Down the Door.pdfPremiere:
Composers Conference Ensemble
Sharon Harms, Soprano – Holly Druckman, Conductor
July 2022, Brandeis University, MA
Program Notes:
When They Broke Down the Door is based on a poem by Fatemeh (Shahrzad) Shams, professor of Persian Literature at the
University of Pennsylvania, and translated by Dick Davis. Dr. Shams’s work intimately portrays brutal moments of prosecutions,
torture, and execution, while intertwined with a devastating loss of love. My composition emphasizes these complexities within a
suppressed and violent political atmosphere.