Niloufar Shiri

Kamancheh player and composer Niloufar Shiri began her musical journey at the Tehran Music Conservatory in Iran. She later immigrated to the USA and pursued her studies in composition at the University of California, San Diego, and Integrated Composition, Improvisation, and Technology (ICIT) at the University of California, Irvine.

Niloufar’s musical world lies at the intersection of classical Iranian music, contemporary music, and improvisation. Her focus revolves around exploring the concept of displacement in relation to familiar and distant environments. Her music closely examines textural and timbral spaces, drawing inspiration from staggered pitch relations found in the Radif, as well as bird sounds, noise, and feedback. Her unique and radical approach to kamancheh performance significantly expands the sonic capabilities of the instrument and places her at the forefront of its practice.

Upcoming projects include a new composition for the Eclipse String Quartet and kamancheh, as well as a primer with the San Diego Symphony. She is currently engaged in a Collective Opera project with the Iranian Female Composers Association (IFCA), sponsored by the MAP fund. She is participating in a collaborative residency at the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity along with Aida Shirazi. Furthermore, both she and Aida Shirazi have been honored as recipients of the Nexus grant for the year 2024.