Thursday, 27 October 2016

Munawar Ali Khan (1930-1989) - Classical Vocal - LP published in 1980 in India


In 2011 we posted three LPs by Munawar Ali Khan. This fourth (or rather third) LP I only was recently able to obtain, funnily enough from a LP dealer on Discogs in Kazakhstan. Soon we will post also a cassette from EMI Pakistan, recorded live in Pakistan.
Many music lovers lack justice toward him by comparing him to his incomparable father, Bade Ghulam Ali Khan. Munawar Ali Khan created his own style and one has to appreciate him in himself. I have to say, that I always, from the first LP till today, was very fond of his very relaxed and beautiful way of singing. Even his so-called light classical performances. See his wonderful LP of Punjabi songs: Pahadi & Kafi





Note the mistake the label made by naming the Raga on Side 2 also as Raga Bairagi, though giving the names of the compositions correctly (I guess).

Saturday, 22 October 2016

Three Illustrious Brothers: Pandit Maniram (1920-1985), Pandit Pratap Narayan (1918-2002) & Pandit Jasraj (born 1930) - LP published in India in 1976


This is an LP which I was very fond of for a number of years when I bought it in Southall near London in the second half of the 1970. I liked very much the soaring voice of Pandit Maniram. And also the accompanists: the wonderful Sultan Khan on Sarangi and the outstanding Nizamuddin Khan on Tabla. There was a time when I was so fond of the playing of Ustad Nizamuddin Khan that I bought every LP on which he played, regardless of the main musician.




Thursday, 20 October 2016

From Iran to India, back to Iran and beyond






After this long and ardeous journey through all these provinces of Iran is completed, passing places where foreigners normally never get to, we will spend some time in India in the next couple of weeks, before passing again through Iran for some classical Dastgah music and then getting to some other places.


Mirror and Song - A collection of 28 cassettes of regional and religious music of Iran published in Iran, recorded in 1994 - The last (or perhaps rather the first) cassette with the number zero


This cassette with the number zero serves either as an introduction to the series 
or a resumée, containing short excerpts from the other cassettes.

Side A: 
18 tracks

Side B:
17 tracks




Mirror and Song - A collection of 28 cassettes of regional and religious music of Iran published in Iran, recorded in 1994 - Cassette 27: Music of the Qashqai (Fars) & from Hawraman (Kurdistan)


Side A:
Music of the Qashqai - Ashiqi Music
Singer accompanying himself on Kemencheh  and a Tombak player

Side B:
1. Music of the Qashqai - Sarbani Music (that's what I read)
A singer accompanied by a Ney player
2. Music from Hawraman - Kurdistan
Vocal 




Note: The Qashqai are a nomadic tribe of Turkish origin living mainly in the province of Fars.

Monday, 17 October 2016

Sunday, 16 October 2016

Mirror and Song - A collection of 28 cassettes of regional and religious music of Iran published in Iran, recorded in 1994 - Cassette 25: Music from Hormozgan & Bushehr


Side A:
Music from Minab - Hormozgan
1. Songs from the Zar Ritual
2. Vocal

Side B:
Music from Minab - Hormozgan
1. Molud-Khani
Two singer who accompany themselves on the Samma (Daf)
Music from Bushehr
2. - 5. Call & response singing with handclapping and several drums




We had already music from Hormozgan on volumes 12 to 16.

Tuesday, 11 October 2016

Mirror and Song - A collection of 28 cassettes of regional and religious music of Iran published in Iran, recorded in 1994 - Cassette 23: Music from Kermanshah & Hawraman (Oraman)


Side A:
Music from Kermanshah - Sahneh
Tanbur Music
Seyyed Khalil Alinezhad (Alinejad) (1968-2001) - Vocal & Tanbur

Side B:
1. Music from Kermanshah - Guran
Tanbur Music
Ali Akbar Moradi (Tanbur) & Taher Yarveysi (Vocal)
2. Music from Hawraman (Oraman)
Vocal




Seyyed Khalil Alinezhad  was a famous musician of the Ahl-e Haq sect, in which the Tanbur and its music is sacred. See our post http://oriental-traditional-music.blogspot.de/2013/01/seyed-jalaleddin-mohammadian-seyed.html
For infos on the musician see: 
Ali Akbar Moradi is the most famous Tanbur player of Kermanshah. He has many CDs. Taher Yarveysi is an excellent younger Tanbur player and singer. CDs by all these musicians can be obtained from: info@raga-maqam-dastgah.com

Sunday, 9 October 2016

Mirror and Song - A collection of 28 cassettes of regional and religious music of Iran published in Iran, recorded in 1994 - Cassette 21: Music from Kurdistan


Side A:
Music from Kurdistan - Sanandaj
Dhikr (Zikr) Ritual of the Qaderiyye Khaneqah 

Side B:
1. Music from Kurdistan - Sanandaj
Dhikr (Zikr) Ritual of the Qaderiyye Khaneqah (continuation)
2. Vocal - I can't decipher what and from where in Kurdistan this is




Friday, 7 October 2016

Mirror and Song - A collection of 28 cassettes of regional and religious music of Iran published in Iran, recorded in 1994 - Cassette 20: Music from Kurdistan


Side A & Side B:
Music from Kurdistan - Sanandaj
Qaderiyye Khaneqah Ritual
Khalife Haj Mirza Aqa Ghowsi




This cassette has been published on CD in 2015 with a good booklet in English and Farsi by Mohammad-Reza Darvishi:


Khalife Hâj Mirzâ Âqâ Ghowsi (Vocal & Daf) & Qâderi Sufi Music Ensemble of Kurdistan - Qâderiyye Khaneqah Rituals, Sanandaj, Kurdistan - Regional Music of Iran 56: The Zekrs of Qâderiyye Khâneqâh in Sanandaj - The group of Great Dervishes from Sheykh Mohammad Kasnazâni’s Qâderiyye (59:13), MAHOOR, M.CD-433
"Qâderiyye, one of the most important Sufi orders, is ascribed to Abdulqâder Gilâni (Jilâni) and has many followers in Iran, Iraq, Turkey, Syria, and a vast area from India to North Africa and even Eastern Europe. Their main center is in Kurdistan, Iran. Their followers in Iran are in Kermânshâh, Baluchestân, and several other places.
Zekr ritual takes place on Monday and Thursday nights in Khâneqâh. Dervishes enter the place after having Vozu (partial ablution); they perform a two-Rak’at prayer called Tahiyyat (in order to respect the place), they kiss the flag and the Qurân of the Khâneqâh (in order to consecrate themselves); they shake hands with the khalife, who is the conductor of the ritual, then sit down, and start reciting the rosary . After half an hour panegyrists begin to play the daf and sing songs praising God, Prophet Mohammad, his descendants and other saints. At this moment the dervishes go into trance and they all get enthusiastic, this takes almost half an hour. Then they say a Salavât (prayers for praising God, Prophet Mohammad, and his descendants) and they all sit on their knees in a circle and start saying Zekr or Tahlil. At this stage, all the dervishes and the khalife repeatedly say the following zekrs: Lâ elâha ellallâh, Astaqfirullâh, Yâ Hu, Yâ Hayy, Yâ Qayyum, Yâ Dâ ’em.This step also takes half an hour. Then it’s time to say Qiyâm Zekr (prayers while standing up) or Samâ’ when the dervishes uncover the heads to let their long hair swirl from one side to the other, and along with the daf and tâs music they start saying Zekr-e Hayyallâh , and gradually reach the state of ecstasy. While saying Qiyâm Zekr, the dervishes ask for the khalife’s permission to do some extraordinary things, such as eating glass, blade or stone; pricking their bodies on daggers, skewers, or any other sharp metals, etc. This part ends with praying and reciting Fâtehah.
Qâderiyye followers also perform Samâ’ with daf and tâs music on some other occasions, such as welcoming the Order’s sheykhs, promoting the Order out of the Khâneqâh, and performing some holy rituals like “Pir Shâliyâr” in Orâmân.
Daf: The daf is the main musical instrument for the rituals in Qâderiyye Khâneqâh in Kurdistan. Although the musical culture of Iran’s different areas is very much entangled with the daf, its association with Kurdistan -at least after Qâderiyye Order was established by Sheykh Abdulqâder Gilâni ( 471-561 Ah), and because of the Order’s followers particular use of this instrument - has been even more significant. The daf has been given the following names in different areas of Iran through time: Dap, Bâter, Dezire, Dub, Dâyere (and different altered dialectical forms like Dâriye, Diyâre, and Dayare). In Arabic language it is known as Sammâ, Qarbâl, Qarbil, Bandir, Teriyâl, and Mezhar. Doff in Arabic, Dap in Persian, or Daf as it is commonly called these days, along with all the above mentioned names, all refer to the same musical instrument that was named differently in each area and period of time.
Ritual Performers: Khalife Hâj Mirzâ Âqâ Ghowsi: leader, solo singer, and daf player, Abdorrahmân and Alirezâ Ghowsi: daf players and zâkers, Hoseyn Moshiri, Tofiq Behjuri, Azizollâh Gerâmiparvar, Abdullâh Pazhuhande, Mohammad Ahmadi, Heydar Khedri, Aziz Qassâbi, Ali Shâhpasande, Mohammad Bivâre, Rashid Balâyi, Nasrollâh Oliâyi and Sâleh Ja’fari: Zâkers." Mohammad-Rezâ Darvishi
Excellent, recorded in 1994.
Khalife Hâj Mirzâ Âqâ Ghowsi was a well-known performer already present on the double CD 'Kurdistan – Zikr et chants' by Jean During, published by Ocora – Radio France in 1994 (out of print for years), There are also two ealier CDs from Mahoor. See below. 



And one with a strong Dhikr by another Khalife:


As always, all these CDs can be obtained from: info@raga-maqam-dastgah.com