September 5th 2026

City Recital Hall

Photos by Aaron Hilborn

Review by Alan Connor

I arrived near the City Recital Hall not overly familiar with Hamed Sadeghi’s previous work, at the end of the hottest spring day Sydney has recorded since the 1800s. Strong winds tore along George street earlier, carrying a few local hostelry canopies with it, now a different kind of energy was building as I watched the audience eagerly filtering into the recital hall auditorium to hear a night of contemporary Middle Eastern musical traditions.

Zela Margossian Quintet

The opening act, Zela Margossian took the stage at 7pm and what followed was a mesmerising display from a quintet who had control of the room from the get-go. Margossian, playing in a wide brimmed hat, started with a cascade of piano notes, with her influences from traditional Armenian music carrying the fusion of folk, jazz and classical music that followed. Reeds wove around the ARIA-nominated composers piano, revealing an enchanting melody that had the audience on the edge of their seats. Rapturous applause followed as the band confidently hit their stride. 30 minutes is not a long time for a band of this calibre to showcase their talent, which allowed them to play just Four pieces. This was immersive music, rich in texture, rhythm and emotional depth that rewarded attentive listening.

Comfortable – Hamed Sadeghi

Hamed Sadeghi, the multi-award-winning Persian-Australian tar player and composer led his eight-piece onto the stage after a short interval, and the sound of his tar soon filled the room, confirming he is a master of his craft. The tar is a unique-looking instrument, double-bowled and figure-eight shaped – the lute of the Persian classical tradition Sadeghi was raised in, producing music that can sound deceptively simple while revealing remarkable depth and complexity.

With the band attentively watching Sadeghi, in unison with the audience, the percussion performance soon came alive. Adem Yilmaz was on percussion again after having spent the first half hour of the evening driving Margossian’s quintet and now effortlessly blending into an entirely different ensemble as though he’d been there all along. A simple, melancholic piece opened the tar up, then the unison of the full ensemble, including double bass, percussion, and bass clarinet joined in and eight players started sounding like one innovative instrument. This is music that matters.

The unaccompanied tar passages were dazzling, but the music gains more than the sum of its parts when Sadeghi passed the weight around, which is what he does very well. I could see the floor was well filled from my balcony seat, where I was able to see the venue laid out below, along with a transfixed audience. Sometimes the cheap seats are the best in the house.

There’s an old tradition that says this kind of Persian classical music played at the right mode and at the right tempo can settle a racing mind. It did that for me. Persian physicians were prescribing music for sleeplessness a thousand years ago. The ensemble could’ve played for another hour and I would be wide awake.

After an hour Sadeghi’s finale kicked in and after a standing ovation and much applause, the audience filtered out past the merch table in the foyer selling CDs and vinyl of the composition released that night, both mediums moving from the table briskly on their way to a new home. I learned something new as I walked out amongst the Saturday night revellers with my ears still in Tehran, the best music doesn’t transport you somewhere else, it makes that place feel unexpectedly close.

Comfortable was released on the night of the performance, with further Australian and international dates through 2026 and 2027. The Zela Margossian Quintet supports Tigran Hamasyan at the Seymour Centre on 24 October