Nay-Nava

Welcome to Ney-Nava

nay-nava — Wed, 22 Mar 2006 05:00:13 GMT

Welcome to Ney-Nava, the encyclopedia of Persian(Iranian) musical instruments

To start:

To view a list of instruments click on the link below:

Instrument list

To se the definition for all instruments in one page click the link below:

All instruments

By: Amir Mousavi

Instrument List

nay-nava — Tue, 21 Mar 2006 22:28:13 GMT

Instrument List

Click on instrument name to view its definition

Plucked Strings : Barbat - Setar - Taar - Dotar
Robab - Tanbour - Chogur - Chang - Tambireh
Percussive & keyboard Strings: Santour- Benju

Bowed Strings :    Gheychak   -   Kamancheh

Wind Instruments : Sorna - Balaban   - Ney

Ney-anban -  Dunali - Dozaleh

Percussion Instruments: Daf - Tombak - Dohol

Dammam - Udu - Tas - Naghara - Zang -Tabla

Dotable  - Other percussion instruments

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Qeychak / Qichak

nay-nava — Thu, 02 Mar 2006 21:41:13 GMT

It is one of the ancient Iranian classical instruments. The oldest sample instrument still remaining is comprised of a dual box and the surface of the lower one is covered by a hide. The produced tune is first transferred from the lower box to the upper one, from where it is broadcast through two wide openings. This part of the instrument is very interesting from the scientific point of view, since a second box has been added on its surface in order to amplify the tune. This makes the instrument much richer in producing a great variety of tunes. It has 4-6 cords, which similar to conventional Kamancheh, have been extended on a wooden box. It is played by a bow of particular shape, while the musician simultaneously creates the desired tune by plucking the cords by his/her left hand. The instrument's box is made of berry wood.

listen to gheychak

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kamancheh

nay-nava — Wed, 01 Mar 2006 21:33:13 GMT

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.

listen to kamancheh

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Sornay / Surna / Zurna / Zurla (oboe)

nay-nava — Tue, 28 Feb 2006 21:52:13 GMT

It is commonly played almost across the country in accompaniment to kettledrum and timbale in special traditional occasions. For instance, in Kurdestan, western Iran, the demise of people is announced by playing sorna along with kettledrum. Once the public is gathered around the grave of the deceased person, some verses pointing to the unstable material life are sung in accompaniment to the exciting tunes played by sorna and tambourine. Then to rise the spirit of the participants and to divert their attention from the sad event the musicians switch to fast tempos. In northern Iran the instrument is played in accompaniment to some special sports events including tightrope walking. Also a special tune is commonly played by sorna during a wrestling game.

listen to surna

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Balaban (Narmeh-ney)

nay-nava — Tue, 28 Feb 2006 21:49:13 GMT

Also called Duduk by the Armenians. It is one of the tongues wind instruments marked by its high potential of producing exciting melodies. Today, it is commonly played by the Kurds in western Iran and the Turks in northwestern Iran, which is usually accompanied by tambourine. The instrument is made either from wood or bone and its body is covered by a total of seven holes.

listen to balban

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Barbat / Oud / Ud / Lute

nay-nava — Tue, 28 Feb 2006 21:46:13 GMT

In Persian the word "bat" means duck, while "bar" is the duck's breast. Lute is one of the most ancient Iranian instruments. It is called "roud" by the Persians and Arabs call it "oud". Some believe that lute has either come from Hairah to the west of the Euphrates river near Mada'en, the education center of the Sassanid princes, or from a city known as "Bab". It has also been referred to by many other names including "oud", "mozhar", "motar" and "keran". Lute is considered to be of Persian origin and playing it has been quite common in Iran since the ancient times. Once the Iranian lute was taken to Saudi Arabia, the Arabs, likewise, started making it from wood and called it "oud". Its bowel is very large and pear-shaped. It has an extremely short handle, so that the cords mainly extend along its bowel. It has 10 cords or five pairs of cord and is played by a plectrum. A chicken or peacock feather serves as plectrum. Lute produces a dull, soft and melancholy tone.

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Barbat

One of the branches of guitar is called Barbados or harper. With the advent and growth of Islam this genuine Iranian musical instrument traveled around the world and is being now used from China up to Italy. Statues unearthed from Shush and dating back to 1500 years ago as well as those excavated in Haft Tappeh are proof of the genuine Iranian origin of this ancient instrument.

listen to barbat

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DAF / Daff

nay-nava — Tue, 28 Feb 2006 21:44:13 GMT

Daf is the large Persian frame drum, is used in Khangah (temple of dervishes) during the zekr (spiritual chanting) ritual. Its Pahlavi (pre-Islamic Persian language) name is Dap and Daf is the arabicized version of Dap. Many Persian poets have alluded to the Daf in their works; perhaps the most famous one is Molana Jalal-al-Din Rumi. It has become very popular these days and is now integrated into other styles of Persian music. Indeed, the Daf is becoming more popular around the world.

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Daf

The antiquity of daf, with the Pahlavi name dap, goes to pre-Islamic ages. Persian literature shows us the importance of this Persian frame drum in Persian Sufi music. Daf was considered a spiritual drum played in khanghahs of Iran, particularly Kurdistan. It should be mentioned that similar frame drums with similar names are played in some other countries such as daf in India, tef in Turkey, duf in Arabic countries and dap in Uyghuristan of China. Thanks to some famous daf players, daf integrated into Persian art music and it became the second national drum of Iran. The chief national drum of Iran is tonbak (the Persian goblet drum). Today daf is used in all genres of music in Iran and in this article I will give a brief description of different daf-s used in different genres of Iranian (Persian) music.

listen to daf

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Tombak

nay-nava — Tue, 28 Feb 2006 21:43:13 GMT

It is the chief percussion instrument of Persian classical music. It is a one-headed drum carved from a single piece of wood. It is placed under the player's arm and held in-between the fingers of his two hands. Its body is made from wood, ceramic or light metals. But wood is the most convenient material. Tombak is comprised of various sections including the hide, a big mouth and a small one. It is the only percussion instrument in the world that might be played by making full use of all the fingers of both hands. It became known as Tombak during the reign of the Sassanids. It is placed horizontally on the player's leg and is played by two hands in a special way. The tune played by Tombak has no definite pitch, but as far as its playing technique is concerned, it is one of the most advanced instruments which its structure contains hide.

listen to tombak

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Dohol /Davul

nay-nava — Tue, 28 Feb 2006 21:42:13 GMT

It is a big drum covered by a piece of goat hide. It is usually played in accompaniment to sorna in the villages, agricultural areas and plains and is made in various sizes. Its greater version is commonly played in Baluchestan. Dohol is played by a rather long wooden or osseous rod on one side, while on the other side tunes are produced by plucking the instrument with a few small bones tied to the fingers of the player's other hand. The dohols played in southern Iran are cylindrical in shape and their two bases are covered by goat hide. Dohols commonly played in Fars province (Fasa) are different in form and quite similar to the western instrument known as timpani. Its body is metallic and made from copper, while its goat hide is fastened by leather band.

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Dohol /Davul:

A Davul is a large double-skin drum. It varies in sizes. One side is made of goat skin, the other side is made of sheep skin. The thin skinned is hit with a light wooden stick or twig, and the thick side is hit with a tokmak(a heavy stick used to play bass sounds). The Davul is generally played outdoors accompanied by a Zurna.

listen to dohol

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