Laibach: Alamut

RTV Slovenia Symphony Orchestra
Conductor: Navid Gohari
Vocal group Human-Voice Ensemble
Gallina Vocal Group
Otto Lechner, organ
AccordiOna Accordion Orchestra

Alamut is an original symphonic work by avant-garde music group Laibach based on a famous story from eleventh-century Persia, as told by the Slovenian author Vladimir Bartol in his eponymous novel. The main protagonist is the heretic Hassan-i Sabbāh, the charismatic religious and political leader of the Nizari Ismailis and the founder of a mysterious Islamic sect known as the Assassins (or the Hashashins), whose name is still feared and respected today. Hassan-i Sabbāh is a self-proclaimed prophet who leads a holy war against the Seljuk Empire from his eyrie – the castle of Alamut.

In Laibach’s Alamut, the ideas of radical political and religious nihilism interweave with the classical Persian poetry of Omar Khayyam, the sensual verses of a medieval Persian female poet, Mahsati Ganjavi, blend with minimalist orchestral colours based on Iranian tradition, Hassan-i Sabbāh’s infernal mechanism finds an echo in the industrial principle of the workings of the orchestra and Laibach’s unique sound. 

The project is presented by a/ political, a London-based non-profit organisation, and created in collaboration with Iranian composers and performers. The music was composed by Luka Jamnik, Idin Samimi Mofakham and Nima A. Rowshan. The RTV Slovenia Symphony Orchestra will be conducted by the Iranian conductor Navid Gohari. Also appearing are the Human-Voice Ensemble vocal group from Tehran, Gallina Vocal Group and Disharmonic Cohort – AccordiOna women’s accordion orchestra. 

In the spirit of international cultural cooperation between Iran and Slovenia, Laibach has long sought to present and perform this work with the Tehran Symphony Orchestra in Iran, in Tehran's famous Vahdat Hall. However, the epidemic and aggravating international political developments over the past two years impeded the realization of this project. The historic symphony thus received its world premiere on 5 and 6 September 2022 as part of the Festival Ljubljana.