On Oct. 8, beloved Iranian singer Mohammed Reza Shajarian passed away at the age of 80 from complications related to kidney cancer.

Ali Shirazi, the vice-president of the Victoria Iranian-Persian Cultural Society, is reflecting back on a memorial held by the society on Nov. 5 over Zoom to celebrate his life. Shirazi spoke about the impact Shajarian had on Iranians and the reason to hold a memorial, even if it was virtual.

“I'm not an exception. There's so many Iranians who love him. And actually, a lot of us spent a lot of time listening to his work and he was a great vocalist and probably the biggest singer, I personally think of all time,” said Shirazi.

Shirazi decided to hold the online event after members of the community reached out and he deemed it a “general need” due to the meaning Shajarian’s life and music had to many.

Born in 1940 in Mashhad, Iran, Shajarian began singing at the age of five. Having rose to prominence in 1959, Shajarian is widely hailed as the master of classical Persian singing.

Shirazi touched on Shajarian’s love for learning and elaborated that it was one of the qualities that gave his career longevity.

“He was a great, great student, or learner, and whatever available, he just tried to observe it for years and years, for maybe decades," Shirazi said.

Shirazi added that this quality carried over to the later years of his career when he was already considered successful.

“At this stage, Shajarian was already a master. So his thirst for learning was always there and because of that, he never stopped learning,” he said.

Shajarian was also known for humanitarian efforts — Shirazi spoke on his philanthropic efforts in response to the Bam earthquake that occurred on Dec. 26, 2003 in the southeast Iran. The earthquake killed 30,000 people and injured another 20,000.

“His reaction was amazing. He got into the street, he got into these offices and asked everybody like his fans, to contribute, to put money down so that they can help people who were affected by this earthquake," said Shirazi.

Shajarian further showed his compassion when he held the Bam benefit concert that raised funds for the victims of the disaster.

“And right after that he had this amazing concert, it was a very sad concert for that purpose, but all of the money that we are making for the series of concerts are going to go to help people who were affected from earthquakes. And right there, people started to love him even more.” said Shirazi.

During the 2009 presidential elections in Iran, Shajarian also voiced criticisms of the Iranian government. Shirazi states that if Shajarian had not been politically outspoken, he could have prospered much more in his career but his choice to do so in spite of that is what made him a beloved public figure.

“If Master Shajarian wasn't vocal about the situation, he would have a better living, for sure. Because imagine you're a musician, you're a singer and they ban you from having any concerts in the country. Whenever he had the concert, his tickets were sold out immediately. So the first thing is a hit on your income, for example. And they won't let you meet people, they won't let you do your work. So, I won't say what he did was sort of a sacrifice of his career. If he was going with the government, I think It would be a lot like an easier life for him, but he chose people,” said Shirazi.