The Kioomars Musayyebi Quintett is the new band of composer and santur virtuoso Kioomars Musayyebi.

In this project, he is joined by a lineup of long-time musical companions, brought together in a new combination.

He has been musically and personally connected with jazz guitarist Christian Hammer from Gelsenkirchen since 2014. After their first performances together, they recorded the CD “Tamanna” with the Kioomars Musayyebi Quartet and performed at festivals across Germany (Horizonte Festival in Koblenz, Essen Original, Musikkulturen in Bielefeld, Hildesheimer Wallungen, etc.). Musayyebi has been playing since 2013 with the rhythm section consisting of bassist Jens Pollheide and drummer Benny Mokross in the “Transorient Orchestra,” a world music big band with which they won, among other honors, the WDR Jazz Prize in the “Musikkulturen” category. The quintet is completed by another long-time musical collaborator, the outstanding Persian percussionist Reza Samani. He is not only Musayyebi’s preferred partner on tombak, daf, and udu, but they also perform together in the Nouruz Ensemble, founded in 2018 by Bassem Hawar—an ensemble that connects contemporary Oriental art music with Western musical cultures.

After the quintet’s first performance in the concert series “Hammer+” at the cultural venue “werkstatt” in Gelsenkirchen-Buer, both the musicians and the audience were so enthusiastic that they decided to further develop this lineup.

Kioomars Musayyebi santur & composer

Christian Hammer guitar

Reza Samani percussion

Jens Polheide bass guitar

Benny Mokross drums