King of Prussia, PA — Theodore Presser Company is pleased to announce a new work in the Ithaca College Choral Series, We Are One (312-41854 — $1.80) for a cappella SATB chorus, by Behzad Ranjbaran, which sets the words of beloved Persian poet Sa’di to music. The text of We Are One was chosen to be included in the Voyager spacecraft as the representation of the poet’s native Iran, and its beautiful text illustrates the bond of humanity and the importance of empathy for others: “Human beings are all members of one family / Created with one common essence and soul / If any of us suffers or bears pain / We all know and share the suffering together / To not feel sympathy for human suffering / Is to be less than human.” This work would be ideal for 9/11 memorial concerts. Includes an English translation, as well as a pronunciation guide.

 

Behzad Ranjbaran was born in Tehran, Iran. His musical education started early when he entered the Tehran Music Conservatory at the age of nine. He came to the United States in 1974 to attend Indiana University and received his doctorate in composition from the Juilliard School, where he currently serves on the faculty. Ranjbaran’s music has been performed in recent seasons by soloists Joshua Bell, Renée Fleming, Jean-Yves Thibaudet, Yo-Yo Ma and conductors Charles Dutoit, David Robertson, JoAnn Falletta, Robert Spano, and Gerard Schwarz, among others. Behzad Ranjbaran’s music is frequently inspired from his Persian heritage. He draws on this background, inspired by place, literature, art, and the Persian traditional music.

Offering music by today’s greatest composers and teachers, Theodore Presser Company is the leader in publishing educational and recital music. Theodore Presser Company is a full-range music publisher and distributes the music of over 30 publishers from around the globe, with a combined sales catalog that features over 60,000 available works. For more information about new publications from Theodore Presser Company or to locate a dealer near you, log on to www.presser.com or e-mail us at sales@presser.com. For a review copy of the publication listed in this release, please contact Heidi Vanderlee at (212) 777-0900, ext. 230 or send an e-mail to hvanderlee@presser.com.