Pegah Varamini (PhD): Lecturer in Persian Classical Music Education, Composer, Pianist, Vocalist

Dr Pegah Varamini (PhD) is a lecturer of Persian Classical Music Education at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, The University of Sydney, Australia. For the first time, Pegah has introduced Persian Classical Music at tertiary level in Australia, to both undergraduate and postgraduate students. 

She delivers lectures in several Units of Study (UoS), including:

1- MUED1010 Key Ideas in Music Education

2- EDMT5700 Music Curriculum 

3- MUED3605 Teaching Junior Secondary Music

Pegah started her PhD in 2016 at the Queensland Conservatorium of Music and in 2017 she transferred to the Sydney Conservatorium of Music to pursue her studies under the supervision of A/Prof Michael Webb and Dr Daniel Rojas. She completed her degree in 2021 (see Research for further details of the project). 

Pegah started playing piano at age 9 under the auspices of maestro Ali Jafarian, a prominent and influential composer, violinist and pianist in Persian classical and orchestral music. Alongside, she got professional training to sing Persian traditional repertoire since age 9.

In 1998, Pegah started her collaboration with Shiraz University of Medical Sciences Chamber Orchestra as a pianist. Later in 1998, she joined “Fars Ladies Chamber Orchestra” conducted by maestro Ali Jafarian.

Under the guidance of renowned composers, maestro Homayoun Khoram and Anoushiravan Rohani, Pegah achieved a high level of musical technical skills. She won national prizes in different festivals such as 1st place in Jahad Daneshgahi Youth Music Festival, Shiraz (1995) and 5th Jasmine Music Festival, Tehran (2003). She studied Persian vocal radīf with Vahid Taaj and Peyman Nadimi. She has been actively involved in the teaching of Persian classical piano and vocals since 2003.

After arriving in Australia to study her PhD in Pharmaceutical Sciences in 2009, Pegah formed Hezar Ava Ensemble, with the goal of introducing classical music of her country. She arranges and composes music for this ensemble.

Pegah has also been trained for Western classical singing and performed with different choirs as a soprano singer, such as those of the Queensland Music Society (QUMS) and QPAC (2010–2015), is trained for music conducting (Dr. Debra Shearer-Dirié, 2012), trained for Western classical piano (Matthew Harrison, 2013–2016) and Western classical violin (Rebecca Tzigankova, 2015–Present). 

She arranged and performed Persian Suite I and II with a symphony orchestra, Orchestra Corda Spiritus (director: Dr Stephen Wu, Brisbane, 2014–2016)

Pegah has been a founding member of Queensland Iranian House of Music (QLD IHOM) management committee for the first year it was established (2012–2013), as well as Iranian Musicians in Australia (IMIA) (2014–2016).

In July 2016, Pegah performed Stabat Mater by Karl Jenkins, with The Sinfonia Orchestra and Musica Antiqua Collegii Choir, as the Solo Oriental Vocalist, in Brisbane. For the first time, she arranged and performed all eastern movements in Persian traditional style.

She has been a member of NSW IHOM’s Professional Council of Music (2016–2019).