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Persian
/ Iranian Music Instruments
| DAF |
 The
DAF is a type of frame drum that is
depicted in many Persian miniatures and has reliefs from centuries
ago. Although it appears at first sight to be a relatively simple
instrument, the daf has the potential of producing intricate
rhythmic patterns and sounds. The daf is equipped with metal rings
on the inside which add a jingle effect to the sound. The frame is
covered with goat-skin.
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KAMANCHE
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Derived from the Persian words
kaman, 'bow' or 'arc', and cheh, 'little' is an ancient
spiked fiddle which is ancestor to most modern European and Asian
bowed instruments. It can now be found throughout the area
stretching from North Africa to China. The instrument's name
varies from region to region (e.g. kamange, saz-e
Keshmiri, joze, ghiczak), as does its shape (it
can be spherical or cylindrical and have an open or closed back).
 The
Iranian classical kamancheh has a spherical shape, its bridge
resting on the surface of a soundbox covered by a membrane of
animal skin. The soundbox has no standard size and can be made
entirely from one piece of wood or from many ribs. Its rounded
body, made from different kinds of wood (e.g. mulberry, walnut,
oak, or maple), has a spike on bottom to support the instrument.
The kamancheh's four metal strings are generally tuned in fourths
or fifths. The instrument is held vertically and the bow, made of
horsehair, moves horizontally, with the performer rotating the
instrument when he or she moves from one
string to another.
Ardeshir Kamkar playing the kamanche
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NEY |
 The
Ney, which is probably the oldest pitched instrument known to man,
is an oblique rim blown reed flute with five finger holes in front
and one thumb hole in the back. One of the principle instruments
of Traditional Persian Music, the ney has a range of two and a
half octaves. The upper end is covered by a short brass cylinder
which is anchored in the tiny space between the upper incisives of
the player. Sound is produced when a stream of air is directed by
the tongue toward the opening of the instrument. In this way,
sound is produced behind the upper teeth, inside the mouth, which
gives the ney a distinct timbre than that of the sound produced by
the lips on the outside of the mouth.
Majid Andalibee playing the Ney
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SANTOOR |
The Santoor is a trapezoid-shaped hammered
zither, which is struck with light wooden hammers. Originating in
Persia, it has traveled the world from North Africa to Spain,
throughout Eastern Europe, and to China, Korea and Japan.
The santur has seventy-two strings which are arranged on
adjustable tuning pegs in eighteen sets of four. The strings are
made of bronze (9 in the low register) and steel (9 in the middle
register). Each set of four strings creates one single tone. There
are a total of 27 tones available covering approximately three
octaves. The body of the santur is usually made of walnut but can
be made of various types of wood depending on the desired sound.
The santur is played with two very fine wooden hammers, sometimes
covered with felt, and held with 3-4 fingers. In contrast to the
playing technique of the similar Turkish or Indian instruments,
where heavy hammers create tremolo by "falling" on the strings,
with the Persian santur, tremolo is created and directed by the
musicians wrist.
The Santoor can be made from various kinds of wood (walnut,
rosewood, betel palm, etc.) depending on the desired sound
quality.
The front and the back of the instrument are connected by
soundposts whose positions play an important role in the sound
quality of the instrument. Although the santoor is very old, it
was neither depicted in miniatures, nor presented in any other
medium until the nineteenth century. The secret of making the
trapezoid-shape sound box lies in the quality and age of the wood,
as well as in the arrangement of the soundposts which connect the
table of the instrument to its back
Faramarz Payvar playing the Santoor
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SETAR |
 The
ancestry of the setar can be traced to the ancient
tanbur of pre-Islamic Persia. It is made from thin mulberry wood
and its fingerboard has twenty-five or twenty-six adjustable gut
frets. Setar is literally translated as three strings;
however, in its present form, it has four strings and it is
suspected that setar initially had only three strings. Because of
its delicacy and intimate sonority, the setar is the preferred
instrument of Sufi mystics.
Jalal Zolfonun playing the Setar
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TAR |
 Belonging
to the lute family, the tar appeared in its present form in the
middle of the eighteenth century. The body is a double-bowl shape
carved from mulberry wood, with a thin membrane of stretched
lamb-skin covering the top. The long fingerboard has twenty-six to
twenty-eight adjustable gut frets, and there are three double
courses of strings. Its range is about two and one- half octaves,
and is played with a small brass plectrum.
Mohammad Reza Lotfi playing the Tar
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TONBAK |
 The
Tombak is a goblet-shaped drum carved from solid mulberry wood and
covered at the wide end with lamb or goat skin. It is held
horizontally and played with both hands. The finger technique is
extremely elaborate and consists of rolling and snapping the
fingers in various ways which allow for a great variety of sounds.
The rich variety of tones and
textures on this instrument allows the player to punctuate and
ornament the melodic phrases as well as create rhythmical
patterns. Tom and bak are onomatopoeias for two
basic strokes, one low (tom) in the center, and one high (bak) on
the side of the membrane.
Listen to playing the Tonbak |
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