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I am a composer and a performer whose music seeks freedom and connection, bridging cultures and emotions. I am also a researcher, pursuing a doctorate at the University of Southern California (USC), where I examine the intertwined nature of emotion and culture. This research is not separate from my music but rather a deepening of it—an attempt to understand how emotion shapes our collective identity and how culture, in turn, shapes our perception of emotion.

My artistic journey has been one of continuous exploration and collaboration. In 2014, I composed Bérénice, a landmark work that blended theater and music into a cohesive experience. Premiered at IRCAM in Paris and dedicated to Swiss actress Caroline Imhof and the soloists of the ensemble Intercontemporain, this piece sought to create a natural unity between sound and expression. It marked my first attempt to use music as a tool for creating a space where expression transcends traditional artistic boundaries and influences.

In 2016, I composed Love Song for a Long-term Hatred with Israeli trombonist Alon Stoler and the Chémirani Trio, a renowned Iranian percussion ensemble. The piece aimed to show how music creates a space where cultures, often divided by politics, can engage in dialogue, share emotions, and weave a common expression. It was a way to explore how art can actively contribute to preserving the connections that unite us by uncovering the shared existential foundation in which we are all grounded.

My ongoing collaborations with musicians from extremely diverse backgrounds—ranging from jazz and contemporary to classical, world music, drone, and electronic—have continually shaped my artistic vision. Each project pushes the boundaries of what music can achieve, inspiring me to create works that transcend genres and backgrounds. These partnerships encourage me to think beyond traditional composition, crafting music that invites open interpretation and introspection.

In 2022, I released my debut album, "Sunbathing". This collection of five pieces for solo instruments and electronics serves as a reflection of the past decade of my compositional journey. Grounded in a contemporary style, it also begins to explore new ways of broadening our understanding of music-making, while addressing questions such as memory and our relationship with the Western artistic tradition.

2023 marked an exciting evolution in my approach to composition. I wrote Rusty Song for Patricia Kopatchinskaja and the ensemble Intercontemporain, conceiving it as a platform with multiple entry points. I wanted this work to be a place where people of all backgrounds could connect, experiencing the music in their own ways. This experience expanded my vision of music as a land of freedom, where each listener might interpret and feel individually yet find themselves within a shared emotional space.

Currently, I am working on my next album, In Between, a project that reflects my passion for exploring the spaces between thought and feeling, noise and sound, identity and culture. Influenced by Sufi mysticism, In Between delves into the ambiguities of existence. Sufism inspires me to view art as an existential quest for freedom, a journey inward to release what is most deeply felt and hidden.

In my research at USC, I explore these same themes, examining how our emotional responses are shaped by cultural contexts and how our collective identity is woven from shared emotional experiences. I reflect on the concept of cultural autonomy and agency, aiming to show that by shifting our understanding of art's role in human societies, we can bring deeper meaning to our experience of life. This exploration goes beyond the intellectual—it directly informs and enriches my music, making each piece a dialogue between sound and meaning, an echo of both individual and collective experiences. I want my music to offer listeners a moment to connect, reflect, feel deeply, and gain a fuller understanding of themselves and others.

Art, for me, is a journey towards freedom. Each composition is a space where listeners can step into the unknown, find themselves within the sound, and emerge with a new understanding—an opportunity to experience, individually, what we are together.