André Hossein, born Aminulla Huseynov, also known as Aminollah Hossein ( fa, امین‌الله حسین; russian: Аминулла Гусейнов 1905, in Samarkand – 9 August 1983, in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

) was a French composer of

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

or Azerbaijani origin and a

tar Tar is a dark brown or black viscous liquid of hydrocarbons and free carbon, obtained from a wide variety of organic materials through destructive distillation. Tar can be produced from coal, wood, petroleum, or peat. "a dark brown or black bi ...

soloist. Hossein was the first Persian composer who was able to present his works in international concerts.

Life and education

His son,

Robert Hossein Robert Hossein (30 December 1927 – 31 December 2020) was a French film actor, director, and writer. He directed the 1982 adaptation of ''Les Misérables'' and appeared in '' Vice and Virtue'', '' Le Casse'', '' Les Uns et les Autres'' and '' ...

, has written that André Hossein studied in

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 millio ...

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

and later in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

where he attended a music academy in Stuttgart and the

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...

Conservatory from 1934 to 1937. His fascination with ancient

Persia Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

led him to convert to

Zoroastrianism Zoroastrianism is an Iranian religion and one of the world's oldest organized faiths, based on the teachings of the Iranian-speaking prophet Zoroaster. It has a dualistic cosmology of good and evil within the framework of a monotheisti ...

. His newfound religion immensely influenced his musical works such as "Persian Miniature", "I love my Country", and "Symphony Persepolis". He married Anna Mincovschi, a

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

comedy actress from

Soroca Soroca (russian: link=no, Сороки, Soroki, uk, Сороки, Soroky, pl, Soroki, yi, סאָראָקע ''Soroke'') is a city and municipality in Moldova, situated on the Dniester River about north of Chișinău. It is the administrative ...

( Bessarabia), who had immigrated to

with her parents after the

October Revolution The October Revolution,. officially known as the Great October Socialist Revolution. in the Soviet Union, also known as the Bolshevik Revolution, was a revolution in Russia led by the Bolshevik Party of Vladimir Lenin that was a key mome ...

.Information on Anna Minevski's brother — resistance fighter Lova Minevski
He spent the rest of his life in France. He also studied privately under

Paul Antoine Vidal Paul Antonin Vidal (16 June 1863 – 9 April 1931) was a French composer, conductor and music teacher mainly active in Paris.Charlton D. Paul Vidal. In: ''The New Grove Dictionary of Opera.'' Macmillan, London and New York, 1997. Life and care ...

Conservatoire de Paris The Conservatoire de Paris (), also known as the Paris Conservatory, is a college of music and dance founded in 1795. Officially known as the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris (CNSMDP), it is situated in the avenue ...

Works

In 1935 Hossein wrote his first ballet, ''Towards the Light''. He also composed numerous pieces for the

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keybo ...

, including some

étude An étude (; ) or study is an instrumental musical composition, usually short, designed to provide practice material for perfecting a particular musical skill. The tradition of writing études emerged in the early 19th century with the rapid ...

s. Aminollah's love for his native Persia/Iran is evident in many of his works, especially ''The Symphony of

Persepolis , native_name_lang = , alternate_name = , image = Gate of All Nations, Persepolis.jpg , image_size = , alt = , caption = Ruins of the Gate of All Nations, Persepolis. , map = , map_type ...

'' (also known as ''The Rubble of the Forgotten Empire''), which he finished in 1947. Aminollah Hossein also made a symphony on Khayyám poems in 1951. Other works by him include three piano concertos, ''Persian Miniature'', ''Scheherezade (Shahrzad)'', and ''Arya Symphony''. He also composed some

film scores A film score is original music written specifically to accompany a film. The score comprises a number of orchestral, instrumental, or choral pieces called cues, which are timed to begin and end at specific points during the film in order to e ...

, including films directed by his son

, the Paris-born actor and director. Various works by Hossein have been performed and recorded on LP discs by Orchestre du National de l'Opera de Paris (conducted by Jean-Claude Hartemann), Orchestre National de l'Opera de Monte-Carlo (conducted by Pierre Dervaus) and

Nuremberg Symphony Orchestra The Nuremberg Symphony Orchestra (German: Nürnberger Symphoniker) is a German orchestra based in Nuremberg. Its principal concert venue is the Meistersingerhalle. The orchestra's current ''Intendant'' (managing and artistic director) is Lucius ...

(conducted by

Ali Rahbari Ali (Alexander) Rahbari ( fa, علی رهبری; also Romanized as "Alī Rahbarī", ; born 1948) is an Iranian composer and conductor, who has worked with more than 120 European orchestras, including the Berlin Philharmonic and the Mariinsky Ope ...

) in the collection "Symphonic Poems from Persia", supported by the Ministry of Culture and Art in

Tehran Tehran (; fa, تهران ) is the largest city in Tehran Province and the capital of Iran. With a population of around 9 million in the city and around 16 million in the larger metropolitan area of Greater Tehran, Tehran is the most popul ...

in late 1970s.

References

External links

André Hossein article
at Encyclopædia Iranica
Israeli pianist Pianist Amiram Rigai plays Aminollah Hossein's ''Persian Fable''
(audio)
Arya Symphony by A. Hossein
(audio)
Aminollah Hossein's memorial

100th anniversary of Aminollah Hossein
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hossein, Andre 1905 births 1983 deaths People from Samarkand People from Samarkand Oblast Iranian classical musicians Iranian composers Iranian film score composers Iranian tar players White Russian emigrants to France Converts to Zoroastrianism French film score composers French male film score composers Iranian Zoroastrians French people of Iranian descent 20th-century classical musicians 20th-century French composers Emigrants from the Russian Empire to France 20th-century French male musicians