This is the official website of Farya Faraji, a Canadian-Iranian musicologist, documentary filmmaker and public educator dedicated to fostering a deeper appreciation for the authentic traditional sounds of the world’s musical cultures.

Much of the public imagination surrounding other cultures’ music is shaped less by the traditions themselves than by the soundtrack tropes of modern media. Film and video game scores, through their immense cultural reach, often determine what audiences perceive as “Greek,” “Middle Eastern,” or even “medieval” music. Yet these familiar sounds can stand at a considerable distance from the real musical languages of those cultures, reflecting cinematic convention more than living tradition.

This work seeks to de-center the dominance of film-soundtrack aesthetics in the public perception of world music. He and his colleagues engage in research-based, culturally grounded musical work that moves beyond cinematic tropes and returns attention to the traditions themselves, with their accurate, authentic depiction as the priority.

Collaboration stands at the heart of every project. Each work is developed alongside traditional musicians, musicologists, historians, linguists, and other culture-specific experts from the regions being explored. The goal is not the expression of a personal artistic vision, but a collaborative enterprise in which authorship takes second place to authenticity, cultural specificity, and tradition.

This mission has resonated with a wide global audience, and many of the musical projects created by Farya Faraji and his collaborators, as well as his video essays, have reached millions. Their success stands not as a testament to any single authorial voice, but to the enduring power and beauty of allowing traditional music to speak on its own terms.

Below, you will find links detailing some of Faraji’s ongoing projects.