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		Great Master of Classical Persian Music Creates Non-Profit Organization Dr. Hossein Omoumi founds Haft Dastgah Association, center for research and introduction of classical Persian music Seattle, WA (PRWEB) May 5, 2005 -- Dr. Hossein Omoumi, a renowned ney (Persian reed flute) player and co-founder Mr. Barry Alavi create Haft Dastgah Association to offer valuable cultural literacy to an ever-diversifying world. Haft Dastgah’s mission is to introduce classical Persian music and poetry to Americans and Canadians, familiarizing them with this 1000-year-old heritage of cultural wealth. Haft Dastgah aspires to be the ultimate organization involved with research and preservation of classical Persian music and focuses on helping North Americans become actively involved in creating awareness and passing on this cultural legacy. Haft Dastgah Association’s fiscal agent, Jack Straw Productions, is the Northwest’s only non-profit multidisciplinary audio arts center. “As a medium already close to the heart, music has the power to open doors of cultural connection where history and science cannot,” says Dr. Hossein Omoumi, president and CEO. Dr. Omoumi’s performance career has included appearances at many of the major festivals and concert halls in Europe and the United States. He is also a noted scholar and teacher of Persian music, having served on the National Conservatory and the University of Tehran, the Center for Oriental Music Studies of Sorbonne University in Paris and UCLA in Los Angeles. He now teaches at the Ethnomusicology department of the University of Washington in Seattle. “I discovered and fell in love with classical Persian music a year-and-a-half ago” says Heather Carman, Hossein Omoumi’s student at the University of Washington. “Its tonalities, structures and philosophies,” she adds, “have captured my heart and my imagination. The opportunity of studying with Dr. Omoumi is, for me, an inexpressible privilege. He is able to teach complex concepts with simplicity and perception as well as patience.” Haft Dastgah Association’s program includes private and group instruction in classical Persian music in Seattle, Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco and Vancouver. Haft Dastgah will also collaborate with the University of Washington, University of British Columbia and UCLA to organize lectures, workshops and classes. The production of audio recordings and DVD’s featuring a series of preparatory lessons to classical repertoire for beginners will be in the program as well. Haft Dastgah Association also plans to create publications and books and to conduct research in most effective methods to teach classical Persian music. About Haft Dastgah Haft Dastgah Association, a non-profit organization based in Seattle, provides facilities for different Persian artists to promote classical Persian music in North America. These activities are sponsored by tax-deductible gifts, grants and in-kind donations of supporters. Learn more about Haft Dastgah at www.haftdastgah.org. About Jack Straw Productions Jack Straw Productions is the Northwest’s only non-profit multidisciplinary audio arts center. A community-based resource since 1962, they provide a production facility for local artists who work creatively with sound. Jack Straw Productions serves as a project sponsor for artists, arts organizations, and cultural groups who are seeking nonprofit status for funding purposes. The principle advantage to the donor is that all gifts, grants and in-kind donations to the sponsored project become tax-deductible. For more information please visit Jack Straw Productions at www.jackstraw.org.                                                                                                    ### FOR MORE INFORMATION Carole Omoumi, 206-419-9847