Persian poetry reimagined through contemporary music
Persian Poetry After Dark | In English is an ongoing music and poetry project that brings the words of some of Iran’s most important poets into a contemporary musical landscape.
The project explores Persian poetry through ambient electronics, soul, indie pop, trance, downtempo, deep house, chillout, trip-hop and other electronic and contemporary sounds — creating a meeting point between the emotional depth of Persian literature and the language of modern music.
At its heart, the project is simple: to bring powerful Persian poetry to people who may never have encountered it before, and to allow its emotions to be experienced through music and in English.
The growing collection includes adaptations inspired by poets such as Rumi, Hafez, Forough Farrokhzad, Vida Farhoudi, Ghazal Tajbakhsh, Nima Yushij, Ahmad Shamlou, Fereydoon Moshiri, Mohammad Zohari and others, with more poets and poems being explored as the project develops.
Why Persian Poetry After Dark?
Persian poetry has a remarkably rich emotional and philosophical tradition. Across centuries, Persian poets have written about love, longing, separation, desire, loneliness, mortality, spirituality, darkness, hope and the mysteries of being human.
But much of this poetry remains inaccessible to people who cannot read Persian.
Persian Poetry After Dark began with a desire to explore whether music could provide another way into this literary world.
Rather than simply translating a poem and presenting it as a conventional song, the project attempts to preserve the emotional atmosphere, imagery and spirit of the original poetry, while allowing the words to exist naturally within contemporary music.
The intention is not to replace the poetry. It is to create another doorway into it.
“Persian poetry has an extraordinary emotional depth, but much of it remains inaccessible to people who cannot read Persian. I wanted to explore whether music could become another way of introducing these voices to people around the world — not by replacing the poetry, but by allowing people to encounter its emotions in a different form.”
— Tony Zohari
From Persian poetry to English songs
The words used in the project are English adaptations of Persian poetry.
Where possible, the adaptations remain close to the original poem, while sometimes allowing changes in phrasing, structure or repetition so that the words can work naturally as lyrics.
This creates an interesting space between translation, adaptation and songwriting.
A poem that was originally written for the page can acquire a different emotional life when it is sung, spoken, whispered or surrounded by music.
Some pieces remain close to the structure of the original poem. Others are shaped more freely into musical compositions. The approach depends on the character of each poem.
The goal throughout is to respect the original work while allowing it to breathe in a new language and a new artistic form.
Where poetry meets contemporary music
There is no single sound associated with Persian Poetry After Dark.
Each poem suggests its own musical world.
A poem about longing might become a deep, atmospheric electronic track. Another may lead towards cinematic soul, trip-hop or dark ambient music. A love poem might find its place within deep house, chillout or melodic electronic music, while a mystical poem may suggest trance, dreamlike textures or a more expansive cinematic sound.
The music is therefore not simply a background for the poetry.
It becomes part of the interpretation.
Electronic textures, basslines, percussion, atmospheric soundscapes, melodic elements and vocal performance are used to create a contemporary environment in which the poetry can be heard differently.
The result is intended to feel less like a traditional poetry recital and more like an emotional encounter between Persian literature and contemporary music culture.
Connecting generations and cultures
One of the central ideas behind the project is the possibility of connecting Persian literary heritage with new generations and international audiences.
Persian poetry has travelled across centuries, countries and cultures. Poets such as Rumi and Hafez are already known internationally, while many other important Persian poets remain far less familiar outside Persian-speaking communities.
Persian Poetry After Dark seeks to widen that conversation.
By presenting these works in English and placing them within contemporary musical forms, the project creates a space where Persian literary heritage can meet modern international music culture.
It is also an exploration of what happens when an ancient literary tradition is placed inside a completely contemporary environment.
The language may change.
The musical form may change.
The technology may change.
But the emotions at the centre of the poetry — love, loss, desire, loneliness, hope, memory and the search for meaning — remain remarkably universal.
The poets
The project is gradually bringing together voices from different generations and periods of Persian poetry.
Among the poets explored so far are:
Rumi — whose poetry continues to explore love, spiritual transformation, longing and the relationship between the human and the divine.
Hafez — whose work combines love, desire, wine, spirituality, irony and the search for freedom in some of the most celebrated poetry of the Persian tradition.
Forough Farrokhzad — one of the most influential voices of modern Persian poetry, whose work explored love, identity, desire, loneliness and the experience of modern life.
Nima Yushij — widely regarded as the father of modern Persian poetry, whose work transformed the possibilities of Persian poetic expression.
Ahmad Shamlou — a major modern Persian poet whose powerful and often socially conscious poetry explored love, freedom, humanity, suffering and existence.
Fereydoon Moshiri — known for poetry of emotional directness, love, separation, human relationships and social feeling.
Vida Farhoudi — whose poetry brings a deeply personal and dreamlike emotional perspective.
Ghazal Tajbakhsh — whose contemporary poetry provides another voice within the project’s exploration of love, dreams and emotional memory.
Mohammad Zohari — whose poetry can move between intimacy, darkness, love, memory and existential reflection.
And the project continues to expand, with poets including Attar of Nishapur, Saadi Shirazi, Parvin E’tesami, Simin Behbahani, Sohrab Sepehri, Nosrat Rahmani and Mehdi Akhavan-Sales also becoming part of the growing collection.
An evolving project
Persian Poetry After Dark is not intended to be a single album or a one-off musical experiment.
It is an ongoing project.
As new poems are discovered and explored, the musical language of the project continues to evolve. Some works may become intimate poetry songs; others may develop into atmospheric electronic compositions, deep house tracks, cinematic pieces, trip-hop productions or longer-form instrumental journeys.
The common thread is the poetry itself.
Every new song begins with words that already carry their own history, imagery and emotional weight.
The music provides another way of listening to them.
A contemporary way of discovering Persian poetry
At a time when music can travel instantly across languages and borders, there is an opportunity to introduce literary traditions to audiences who might otherwise never encounter them.
Persian Poetry After Dark | In English is an attempt to use that opportunity.
It brings together Persian poetry, English adaptation, contemporary music production and digital distribution to create something that sits between literature and music.
For listeners who already know Persian poetry, the project offers the possibility of hearing familiar words in an unfamiliar musical setting.
For listeners who know little or nothing about Persian poetry, it can be a first encounter.
And perhaps that is the most important part of the project:
to allow timeless words to find new listeners.
Listen to Persian Poetry After Dark
The music is being released gradually and is available through major digital music platforms, including Spotify, YouTube Music, Amazon Music and other streaming services.
The collection will continue to grow as more poems, poets and musical interpretations are added.
Persian Poetry After Dark | In English
Timeless words. Contemporary sound. A different way of hearing Persian poetry.
