TEHRAN - The funeral ceremony for Hossein Khajeh-Amiri, the renowned singer of Iranian music known as Iraj, was held on Friday morning in front of Vahdat Hall in Tehran, attended by a large crowd of his fans and members of the music community.

Following the funeral ceremony, Iraj’s body was transferred to the Artists’ Section of Behesht-e Zahra Cemetery, south of the capital, where he was laid to rest, ILNA reported.

Iraj passed away on Wednesday, at the age of 94, after a period of illness and health problems related to old age, air pollution, and other physical difficulties, which had led to several hospitalizations over the past few months.

With several decades of activity in the field of Iranian music and singing, he was one of the most recognized figures in Iran’s music scene. Throughout his artistic career, he delivered 2,000 songs and performances on the radio, in the “Golha” program, and in cinema. “Golha” (The Flowers) was a well-known Iranian radio music program produced from 1956 to 1979.

On the passing of the late vocalist, Seyyed Abbas Salehi, the Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance, issued a statement expressing his condolences.

In part of the message, he wrote: “The late Khajeh-Amiri was an incomparable master of music in our time. The power of his voice was admirable; his profound knowledge of the radif (the classical repertoire of Iranian music), his mastery of ornamentation (tahrir) and high-register singing, and his thoughtful pairing of poetry and song gave his singing a distinctive identity”.

“He was among the last figures of the brilliant generation of contemporary Iranian vocalists—a generation that kept Dastgahi music (standard musical system in Persian music) alive not only among connoisseurs but in the everyday lives of the people,” the minister added.

SS/SAB