"In a time when the world has been separated by political and religious fundamentalism, we give the message of peace," says Aryan Rahmanian, the lead vocalist of the Neydavood Ensemble.

For the past several years, Neydavood has been pursuing its mission to preserve and promote Persian classical and folk music, as well as the beautiful regional music of Iran. The ensemble's leader is the tar (long-necked, waisted lute) and setar (small, long-necked lute) master, Ashkan Ghafouri, who also founded Northern California's Tar School, a cultural institution dedicated to promoting Persian classical music through musical education and performance. Percussionist Shahin Gorgani, ney (Persian reed flute) player Kamran Thunder, and bam tar (bass Persian lute) player Clark Meremeyer join Aryan and Ashkan in the ensemble, which is named after the great 20th century Persian traditional musician, Ustad Morteza Neydavood. Together, they present the beautiful Persian traditional and regional music of Iran, which is tightly linked to the region's age-old history and culture and interwined with the words of the great Persian poets, including Jelaluddin Rumi, Hafez, Saadi, and Omar Khayam.