Berkeley Lecture Series

Born in 1976 in Torbat-e Jam, Iran, Namjoo began his musical training at the age of twelve, studying under Nasrollah Nasehpoor until the age of eighteen. In 1994 Namjoo was offered admission to study Theater and Music at the University of Tehran. Since the music program there would not start for another year, he first joined the theater course, where he learned how to connect with an audience. At Tehran University he trained under Alireza Mashayekhi, Azin Movahed and other masters. Namjoo also studied Iranian folk music under Haj Ghorbane Soleimani. His music's unique style resembles a patchwork of classical poetry of Hafez, Rumi or Saadi with western music, namely rock, blues and jazz. Since 2003, Namjoo has recorded parts of his works in Tehran. His debut album titled Toranj was officially released in Iran in September 2007 with his own voice featured in most of his creations. He has also composed soundtracks for movies and plays, and was featured in the documentary Sounds of Silence (directed by Amir Hamz and Mark Lazarz) which has been screened at international film festivals. He also appeared in a feature narrative film called Few Kilograms of Dates for the Funeral (Director Saman Salur). Namjoo's first performance outside Iran was in January 2006 at the Tehran Hotspot of the International Rotterdam Film Festival where he played solo.