TEHRAN -- The Tehran Symphony Orchestra (TSO) gave its premiere performance of the peace and friendship composition in Strasbourg, France on Saturday.

This was the first performance by TSO out of those planned for six European countries by conductor Manucher Sahbaii and solo singer Nima Masiha.
Their second performance took place in Brussels on Monday. They will be performing in Rome on Wednesday, and their next stops will be Rotterdam on Saturday and Geneva on Sunday.
Vienna will be their final destination where they will perform on February 3 after which they will be returning home, said Sahbaii.
Composed by Majid Entezami in last year, the composition was originally entitled the Islamic Revolution Symphony, but has recently been renamed for the European concerts.
However, some musicians believe that the Peace and Friendship piece is not a symphony at all and is only a composition. Sahbaii also conceded this point and said, “I agree that this composition does not have the classical form of a symphony but I must point out that the piece has been composed in four movements for a choir and a solo singer.”
The composition was first performed at Tehran’s Vahdat Hall for five nights during Iran’s Fajr celebrations for the 30th anniversary of the Islamic Revolution in February 2009. A number of high-ranking Iranian officials, including President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, attended the concerts.
Photo: The Tehran Symphony Orchestra performs a concert in Strasbourg, France on January 23, 2010. (Mehr/Mahmudreza Amiri-Andi)