Rostam and Sohrab (opera)

Rostam and Sohrab is an opera by Loris Tjeknavorian. It is based on the story Rostam and Sohrab in the epic Shahnameh. Its composition took 25 years. In 1963, Carl Orff granted Loris Tjeknavorian a scholarship which allowed him to reside in Salzburg and to complete his opera in Austria.

This work is regarded as the first opera composed within Iran that systematically incorporates the melodic and rhythmic characteristics of Iranian folk, religious, and professional music traditions. Rather than directly borrowing existing material, the composer developed the work within the framework of “ethnomusical thinking.”