Ode to Abadan (2017) – SATB a cappella (7’30”)
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This work takes inspiration from a beautiful poem by Persian poet Shahrzad Irani. Like my father, Shahrzad grew up in Abadan during its heyday as a booming oil hub; however, as the Iran-Iraq war loomed many fled, and when the war eventually began, the Abadan became a ghost-town: no one dared lived in a city which directly bordered the conflict area. After the war, many expats from Abadan returned to assess the damages and try to rebuild; however, this process still continues today and Abadan is still not back fully to what it once was. My late father recounted to me many times his experience returning to the wreckage that was once his hometown then: everything was totally leveled, the city was rubble, his childhood home was gone completely, and everyone was gone; he wept. Shahrzad too had the same experience in her return to Abadan after the war, and in an attempt to recapture this time long past, penned this wistful ode to a place and people she recalls fondly.