The Iranian composer, Reza Vali, studied in Europe and is now based in the US. Vali's cross-cultural style fuses Persian modes and forms, Western classical music and the use of microtones - pushing the boundaries of orchestral playing in an exciting way. Mezzo-soprano Janna Baty is the soloist in the orchestral song cycle The Being of Love, sung in Persian. An earlier album of Vali's Flute Concerto, Deylaman and Folk Songs (Set No. 10) can be heard on 8.557224, also in the Naxos 21st Century Classics series.