Iranian American Composer, @TEDFellow, and Artistic Director. Founder of @flyingcarpetfes. Aga Khan Music Award Laureate.
San Francisco, CA
Joined April 2022
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Sahba Aminikia retweeted
This weekend, the world’s music community came together at the Southbank Centre to celebrate the 11 groundbreaking winners of the 2025 Aga Khan Music Awards (AKMA). The winners represent musical traditions from Morocco, Bahrain, Türkiye, Iran, Lebanon, India, Mali, Palestine, Greece, Pakistan and Senegal.
Selected by an independent seven-member jury from a pool of over 400 nominees, the laureates share a prize fund of $500,000. The Awards ceremony headlined a four-day festival celebrating music from the Great East, marking the first time the Aga Khan Music Awards have taken place in the United Kingdom.
Ahead of the prize-giving ceremony, Prince Amyn Aga Khan conferred the AKMA distinguished Patron’s Award upon the Warsi Brothers and Naseeruddin Saami, two of South Asia’s most remarkable musical acts. Both trace their heritage to the esteemed 13th-century Sufi poet Amir Khusrau.
Other 2025 laureates are Mariam Bagayoko, Sahba Aminikia, Kamilya Jubran, Qalali Folk Band, Kyriakos Kalaitzidis, Hamid El Kasri, Derya Türkan, Senny Camara and Farah Kaddour.
“Music is the pulse beneath our stories, the memory of what we’ve built and the proof of what we have survived.
-Fairouz Nishanova, Director of the Aga Khan Music Programme
Photos: AKDN / João Octávio Peixoto
#AgaKhanMusicAwards #Culture #Music #Pluralism #CulturalHeritage
Sahba Aminikia retweeted
🚨 We’re nominated for @TheWebbyAwards ! 🚨
Our TED Fellows Film Series is a mix of TED Talks and short documentaries, that spotlight changemakers tackling the world’s biggest challenges!
📽️ Watch the films: bit.ly/41XHKxD
🗳 Vote by April 17: bit.ly/4cm35o2
Sahba Aminikia retweeted
TED Fellow and composer Sahba Aminikia (@sahbakia) brings the healing power of dance, storytelling, music and performance to some of the most dangerous places on Earth.
By celebrating children and their communities with beauty and joy, he shows how to cultivate hope, connection and love — even in conflict zones.
“The ultimate power is in unity," Sahba says.
ted.com/talks/sahba_aminikia…
Sahba Aminikia retweeted
The Flying Carpet Festival is back!
🤝 Support Our Mission! Help us bring beauty and hope to vulnerable children and communities affected by conflict. Your donations make a world of difference. Donate today: donate.flyingcarpetfestival.…
Sahba Aminikia retweeted
Happy International Children’s Day!!! ♥️♥️🥳🥳 Please support our campaign to create a safe space for children living near Turkish Syrian border: sirkhane.org/donate
SFCM Grad Named TED Fellow in Recognition for Work with Refugees sfcm.edu/discover/newsroom/s…
Sahba Aminikia retweeted
🌟 Exciting news! We’re thrilled to launch our new campaign for Sirkhane 2025 🎪💫 Let’s come together to keep the magic of social circus alive for vulnerable children. Link in bio to learn more! ❤️ #Sirkhane2025 #SocialCircus #Support
Sahba Aminikia retweeted
We’ve been cooking up something new that we’re thrilled to finally share with you. The TED Fellows Film Series is a brand new kind of content from TED. These short films are a mix of TED Talks and short form documentaries about TED Fellows.
TED Fellows are emerging innovators pushing boundaries in their fields. This community is now made up of 500+ extraordinary changemakers in over 100 countries. Though few in number, their work directly impacts the lives of over 200 million people each year.
We’re thrilled to introduce the incredible 2024 cohort in our first batch of TED Fellows Films. This dynamic group of visionaries is tackling the world’s most pressing challenges – from reimagining healthcare in conflict zones to advancing safer AI technologies, navigating canoes across the ocean to medical mythbusting using social media. To watch the films go to go.ted.com/fellows24.
We invite you to join us and dive into the inspiring and innovative world of TED Fellows. Enjoy!
Sahba Aminikia retweeted
Happy Birthday to our dear friend Sahba Aminikia! It’s been such a joy to work with Sahba over the years - here are just a few photos:
1 - 2017 - our Kronos Festival Artist in Residence
2 - 2018 - planning meeting
The beauty of #ForoughFarrokhzad captured in my piece for dear Ava Shadmani open.spotify.com/track/3rTiV…
Sahba Aminikia retweeted
With the many years of support we’ve received from you, our dear family, we have been able to hold and organize our Flying Carpet Festival on the Turkish-Syrian border for five years. Please support us again! donate.flyingcarpetfestival.…
Sahba Aminikia retweeted
There are some who understand that the future doesn’t just happen — it’s made. Among these are the TED Fellows: innovators, activists, artists, inventors and dreamers. Meet the class of #TED2024. blog.ted.com/meet-the-2024-c…
Sahba Aminikia retweeted
Our March/April 2024 cover story features Iranian-born SF-based Sahba Aminikia @sahbakia — the first composer to receive a residency through 836M, a nonprofit arts organization and gallery space at 836 Montgomery St. in North Beach.
sfarts.org/story/unity-and-t…
Sahba Aminikia retweeted
We cannot wait for the children to experience what we have been planning for them!
Many thanks to the @USEmbassySyria for their generous sponsorship.
You can still support us: donate.flyingcarpetfestival.…
Sahba Aminikia retweeted
just released: Darde Moshtarak (Shared Pain):
in solidarity with the protesters in Iran, Kronos joins with Shiraz Choir and Ensemble to perform this arrangement by @sahbakia
youtu.be/v53XE_RxYTE