  
About the Double-Album:
The Tragedy of Zal
(Opera in Persian)
Based on the original poetries of Ferdowsi
Armenian Philharmonic Orchestra & Choir
Conducted by: Loris Tjeknavorian
Solo Singers: Kostantin Symonyan (Rostam),
Sarkis Torsyan (Sohrab),
Gayane Grigoryan (Tahmineh),
Arnold Kocharyan (King of Samanjan & Afrasiab) and
Surik Zurbyan (Narrator).
Recorded in 2000 at the Aram Khachaturian Concert Hall in Yerevan, Armenia.
About the Play:
This work provides a more or less connected story, told in metrical and rhymed verse, of the Iranian Empire, from the creation of the world down to the Mohammedan conquest, and it purports to deal with the reigns of the fifty Kings and Queens.
The personal name of the author (Ferdowi - whose honorific title was Abo'l Qasem) is unknown and the dates of his birth and death are also conjectural, though the latter probably took place at some time between the years 1020 and 1025 of the Christian era.
Ferdowi indeed did not invent the legends he put into verse forms; in other words, he was not a fiction-writer drawing his imagination for the central character or the actual plots of his stories. They were established parts of the national tradition. But he elaborated what he found already in existence and he himself composed the innumerable speeches he put into the mouths of his heroes.
The narrative begins with the creation of the world and continues by narrating how the primordial kings invented crudely conceived basic requirements of civilization. In King Manouchehr's reign appeared the great warrior Sam. Sam's son Zal fell in love with Rudaba, by whom he became the father of the prince of Rostam, the mightiest of all heroic figures who enter upon the scene in Shahnameh. He makes his appearance intermittently during a number of reigns which between them cover a space of three centuries. It was during a number of reigns which between them cover a space of three centuries. It was during the reign of the inept Shah Kavus that most of Rostam's heroic feats occurred, and also his combat with his son Sohrab, who died tragically by his hands.
Total running time: 97:07
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