Nim Dong

Nim Dong, the orchestral and intense debut by Australia-based Eishan Ensemble blends Persian classical music with jazz, transporting the listener on a rollercoaster of different atmospheres, moods, and rhythms. The tracks here are all composed and arranged by tar player Hamed Sadeghi, and it’s usually his instrument to lead the music, but always leaving enough space for the other core instruments — the sax, percussion, guitar, and double bass — to add texture and their own improvisational flourishes. On each track, whether the ebullient opener “Nim Dong,” the gorgeous “Solo Tar and Double Bass” or the more melancholic “Regret,” Sadeghi’s arrangements perfectly combine the modal systems of Persian classical and jazz to create an intensely evocative, timeless sound.