The Music of Medieval Iran : An Introduction to Middle-Eastern Music Theory
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- čas přidán 24. 06. 2024
- This is an introductory overview of the most general aspects of Medieval Iranian music; it also serves as an insight into Middle-Eastern, Near-Eastern, and most historical Greek musical traditions as a whole, so even though the concepts here are described using a Medieval Iranian lens and terminology, they also apply broadly to much of the Arab world, the Turks, Greeks, etc, both their medieval music as well as much of the current music.
Sources:
The Modal System of pre-Dastgāh music, Arya Kabiri
The Modal System of Arabian and Persian Music, 1250 - 1500: An interpretation of Contemporary Texts, Owen Wright
Music Theory in the Safavid Era: The Taqsim-al-Nagāmat, Owen Wright
Theory and Practice in the Music of the Islamic World: Essays in Honour of Owen Wright, multiple authors
00:00 Intro
04:06 The Road to the Middle-Ages
08:50 The Octave Division
15:35 The Maqām
24:00 The Dāng - Tetrachordal Conscience
30:17 The Notation System
40:40 Conclusion - Hudba
DISCLAIMER: Like an idiot I kept saying Safi-ad-din Ardabili but I meant to say Safi-ad-din Urmawi, who is the music theorist, whilst the former was a Sufi mystic, sorry about that!
This is an introductory overview of the most general aspects of Medieval Iranian music; it also serves as an insight into Middle-Eastern, Near-Eastern, and most historical Greek musical traditions as a whole, so even though the concepts here are described using a Medieval Iranian lens and terminology, they also apply broadly to much of the Arab world, the Turks, Greeks, etc, both their medieval music as well as much of the current music.
Sources:
The Modal System of pre-Dastgāh music, Arya Kabiri
The Modal System of Arabian and Persian Music, 1250 - 1500: An interpretation of Contemporary Texts, Owen Wright
Music Theory in the Safavid Era: The Taqsim-al-Nagāmat, Owen Wright
Theory and Practice in the Music of the Islamic World: Essays in Honour of Owen Wright, multiple authors
00:00 Intro
04:06 The Road to the Middle-Ages
08:50 The Octave Division
15:35 The Maqām
24:00 The Dāng - Tetrachordal Conscience
30:17 The Notation System
40:40 Conclusion
Mr Farya would you consider making a video about Byzantine musical notation? Just a thought. Keep up with the great content.
@@pankats1222 Great suggestion! I’m studying the theory of Byzantine Chant right now and I’ll produce explanatory videos once I know enough :)
No need to be hard on yourself, sir! You are anything but an idiot!
Simply, me too.
As a 48 year-old white dude from podunk USA (but a lifelong musician and historian, semi-pro on both), I am absolutely loving your channel.
You've answered a lot of questions old professors couldn't (as best as you could), you've simplified a bit of stuff that I always wondered about, and you isolate and destroy the bullshit a lot of us "trained" and semi-trained Euro-theory-oriented musicians grew up with about musical traditions from Central Eurasia.
I especially love your mythbusting of the "pedants;" It was a battle I fought with instructors a number of times regarding music from non-Euro cultures, and glad to see my my old efforts being vindicated.
Respect for all Persian and Iranian people from Italy 🇮🇷❤🇮🇹
As a person knowing Persian language I can assure you the translation is very accurate.
including the use of a word spelled "dephts" ?
@@magister343 That’s just pedantic.
I am really curious as to what he is saying, though if I reverse the subtitles I am sure I can get a pretty accurate idea.
@@magister343 As it was already said, that's just pedantic.
@@faberofwillandmight8758 Basically.
Also just a general thank you for giving us content on Iranian history. It's so hard to find any information on Iranian history in general so this channel is truly a gem
😎💖💖💖💖😎
I had no idea that Persian and Iranian were not interchangeable terms. Thank you, Farya, for helping me look like slightly less of a moron the next time that comes up.
As an Iranic person who isn't Persian (I'm Ossetian), I'm glad you understand the difference know. If you're interested in an example of such a people, look into the Ossetians, they're unique in the way that they're in fact the only Iranic people native to Europe
@@kathrinat9824 Ещё есть ясы в Венгрии (Jasz people) и у них тоже аланское происхождение, но они язык утратили и частично ассимилировались
Honeslty same I’m ashamed as a history buff to only find out recently.
@@kathrinat9824 Iranic and Iranian also isn't the same though! There is a similar issue with Turkish and Turkic (this problem is exacerbated by Turkish language and education system). These naming conventions can be really confusing but at least English has this part figured out*, now the issue of Farsi and Persian opens a whole new Pandora box!
*it unfortunately doesn't have a distinction between adjectives for modern Russia and ancient Rus, much like Russian by the way :v And we can't avoid it by saying "rusyn" because there is a modern language (unrelated to ethnonyms at least) called Rusyn which is very distinct despite some Russian and Ukrainian scholars' opinions :v
PS I wish there were some good Ossetian learning sources, at least like a B1 level would be nice ;_;
@@Sk0lzky The issue of Farsi and Persian isn't a Pandora's box at all, the only reason you might believe it is, is because everyone does such a poor job explaining it, so I can't blame you.
Persian and Farsi refer to the exact same concept: the mother language spoken by the Persian ethnicity. One is simply the word in the Persian language, transposed directly onto English usage, the other is the word in English inherited from a long line going back to Greece. Farsi is the Persian word, Persian is the English word. It's not more complicated than that.
In other words, saying Persian or Farsi is equivalent to saying "Allemand" or "Deutsch." In both cases, you're referring to the exact same thing: the same language, one is simply the French word for that language, and the other is the native German word for that language.
22:38 Love the paradox between your emotional reaction in Farsi and your rational explanation in the subtitles 🤣
Thank you very much
I would like to add these hints and insights:
1. The Arabic word for tethrachord is _Jins_ (جنس) , etymoligically derived from the greek word _Genus_ . Its plural is _Ajnas_ (أجناس).
2. To say Maqam, Safiyuddin used the word _Dawr_ (دور) which means rotation or loop.
3. Using the word Maqam was the idea of Abu Is'haq al-Shirazi, a physicist and friend of Safiyddin, both studied in Baghdad under Nassiruddin al-Tussi.
4. Abu Is'haq al-Shirazi was also a Sufi, he got the name Maqam (spiritual state) from Sufism literature
5. The names of the Maqams are also from Abu Is'haq al-Shirazi: He used ethnical and geographical references such as Ajam (Persians), Koord, Nahawand (Kurds), Bayati (a Turkic tribe that inhabited west Iraq), Hijaz (to no say Arabs)
6. Abu Is'haq kept some technical Persian words such as Ségah (third place) and Rast (Right, equal)
7. Since the Arab Music Congres of Cairo 1932, Arabs from Iraq to Morocco use the 25 intervals divided Octave system, developped by Dr. Mikhaeil Petraki (died in 1888), aka Mikhaeil Meshaqa (ميخائيل مشاقة), a doctor, polymath, diplomat, politician and free-masson born in Tripoli Lebanon to a greek catholic christian family in 1800, studied medicine in Egypt, converted to Anglicanism and worked as consul for the US in Damascus. He revived the system of Abu Nasr al-Farabi dividing the octave into 25 equal sounds.
Wow! Thank you for this! There's a lot of contradictory information on this subject. e.g. I saw some news report with a syriac priest claiming the words "rast", "bayati", "hijaz" are from their aramaic language and got modified to arabic. I read elsewhere that there was an effort by an ottoman sultan (i forgot who) that tasked two kurds living in palestine with the task of collecting this musical knowledge. Just all kinds of contradictory info. I know about the Arabic Music Conference and the collection and standardization of this music, but what do these names mean and where do they come from seems obscure, at least to the general public. Even in these old books you find them refering to nonexisting maqams (at least in Arabic) such as nawruz and usshak and in the footnotes you see the comment this is known as rast or bayati today. Again, thank you for spreading this knowledge, and please let us know of any books or reference you recommend. ☺️
When I look up "Abu Is'haq al-Shirazi" I only find a well-known religious scholar who lived at an earlier period. Could it be an error?
@@jkllkj3481
The error is mine, I apologize, please check Qutbuddin al-Shirazi
@@HamzaBaqoushi thank you!
Rast a man😉🐬🫧
Iran is a world in and of itself that I will eventually explore culturally, anthropologically, musically and linguistically, someday. Great talk, as always. Kheyli mamnūn!
Chad Farya is in the house. Very informative, as always, man.
ευχαριστώ my friend!
I just love being taught about medieval persian music by Darius himself on CZcams. Truly best time to be alive
Facts 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
That doesn't make sense since Darius was pre-Islamic not medieval
@@alinaqirizvi1441 You clearly missed the joke
And you didn't seem to have learned anything
I had to jump in and say i really appreciate your frustration in trying to have these conversations! I grew up hearing bouzouki and lyra music, my grandparents are from greek villages, but in school (new york city in the united states) i was taught that "music" is western european music. I remember trying to ask "music teachers" where the rest of the sounds were, hahaha. I found the "important" scales really unfulfilling, and i found the descriptions of music "theory" really odd and unable to help me build what my ears wanted.
I was a kid being told by authorities that "This Is Music Theory" and i was completely at a loss to get anywhere with them. Invariably would say "well these are the notes on the piano and - " , i would say "NO WHERE ARE THE REST OF THE SOUNDS and why dont you play them in the PRETTY patterns" ... and i was not allowed to take music class anymore.
Now im 30 and finally it clicked that i live in western european music land but my ears grew up with a totally different tradition
You may be surprised to hear that I had a very similar experience, and I was born and raised in California. I gave up after two years of piano lessons, and started playing what was in my head 🎶☮
Just wanted to let you know that as a Gilani Iranian who lives in Montréal and shares the same passion for music as you, it always puts a bright smile on my face whenever you make these kinds of informative videos or create wonderful music of variety of different cultures. Keep it up Farya!
I just love the fact that you're showing Iranian culture like this! your channel isn't only focused on Iran, it's very international and I think that's what makes it so great! Keep doing the grand work.
Can this man be cast for documentaries, series or movies please?
Got my vote❤
The past tense of "cast" is "cast".
@@horsemumbler1 Thanks!
Love Iranian literature! So cool to learn a little about historical Iranian music!!
As a French person, I can confirm that we talk the exact same way about French Canadians (at least Quebeckers, we barely know about Acadians). Funny duck-sounding people.
Also your European French impression was a spot on Paris accent.
I fear ever using my Ontario school taught French in France, hahahaha
Damn, this guy knows a lot. Can't stop watching. Thank you!
Farya you’re the best content creator on CZcams. It’s actually stunning the quality and frequency of your videos.
0:10 you nailed the iranian english so hard 😂 time-tereveler
Thank you for the explanation on Iranian/Persian and the differences between the two. I look forward to watching the rest of the video tomorrow. (Also I do love the long-form content you do, explaining the history of regional music. It's doesn't make the most sense to me because I'm not the most musically inclined, but it's really fascinating. Can't wait for more!)
Thanks so much for that clarification about Persian vs. Iranian -- I've frequently heard them used interchangeably, and I also assumed Persia was the "older" civilization and Iran the state was newer. Learning so much from your channel: music, culture, history, logical fallacies. You're fantastic!
Came for the tutorial and got a whole documentary. This was probably the best explanation of Iranian music and you look so good in the traditional outfit. Great job!
thank you . your attire, your content and the presentation is fantastic. i thoroughly enjoyed it and learned a lot
Yes, finally! I've been waiting a long time for this. Thank you!
Always a pleasure to watch your musical lectures. Informative and entertaining!
Take care brother
The way you described the intervals of music has me thinking of a sin wave in trigonometry. Which I guess makes sense given that each pitch would produce a different wave. Please correct me if I’m wrong. But in terms of wavelengths, it’s really really cool how music and math relate 😄 just thought I would share my observation 😊
Really wonderful video, I was looking forward to this topic for long! Would love to see more content on maqams. Being an Indian, I would really like to know more about the similarities and differences between maqams and ragas, haven't really found good content on this!
I'm so glad polymathy recommended your channel, I'm loving it, I always learn something, thank you very much for the content
I am from Brazil, I loce iranian music, been looking for videos like this for a while, thanks for sharing you knowledge!
You are one of the best things that I've found on youtube, and definitely the best one when it comes to music. I've never seem someone so dedicated to teach and show music online like this, thank you.
Best regards from Brazil.
“Music doesn't lie. If there is something to be changed in this world, then it can only happen through music.” - Jimi Hendrix
YES! I’ve been waiting for you to cover this! I’m a Tar player myself, thank you for discussing this topic
Would love to see you do something with Qawwali. It's perfect meeting between India and Iran!
Daddy is literally our most blessed✨ middle eastern primary source in the past 2~3 years 😍
You are making ancient music mainstream in ways that are impossible to fathom!
Love your videos man!
Just found your channel, and gotta say....Great work my friend! Texan here who has traveled quite a bit, and I love your explanation of accents. Simply traveling from south Texas to Chile the Spanish accents range wildly. I am geographer/GIS/geologist by day, but musician (amateur historian) by night. Excellent channel!!
Just enough whackiness to get us through! Thank you for all the knowledge.
How have I never been aware of your channel?? I thoroughly enjoyed this sir, thank you for making it!
Yay! Thanks a lot for your work, one of the coolest channels I've seen on this platform!
Bro, holy shit! Firstly, as a long time re-enactor and student of history, let me say your outfit and backgound setting are amazing! I honesty think it added a great deal to the video, so thank you for that. Of course, the content of the video was extremely informative . You have given me a great deal of info to use as starting points for deeper dives into middle eastern music, as well, of course, as presenting a ton of information that most of us brought up solely in western music traditions were not aware of. You also provided no shortage of laughs, well done, good sir! Please keep up the great work! And thank you again!
This sounds soooo good. Another excellent video!
Thank you for explaining - I learned things today that I've wondered about for years.
Fascinating as always ✨️❤️😊
Thank you for sharing your knowledge. 🙏🏻🙏🏻
I really love your channel! I love historical music and folk music!
Fascinating and very learned! THANK YOU for your work!
What an enthralling, beautifully well researched, lecture.
I have never even heard of eastern music theory until I came across youre video and you have blessed me with new knowledge!!! I am greatful to you for this.!
I can't stress enough how much I randomly found this and I'm fully engaged with it and this is awesome
Loved to learn about Iran beyond its music. Thank you!
Love this! Really stoked to have found your videos. Especially the road analogy which is super useful!
Tonnes of information, and you are a fantastic, engaging presenter. Extra points awarded for your eye makeup : )
Thank you so much for this video! Especially taking the time to explain the difference between Persian and Iranian, cheers! Liked, subbed and shared!
Dude's got some epic wisdom about the nature of pedantry.
Thanks so much for posting.
Very good informational video. Thank you so much
That is the absolutely coolest thing that we get to see your Grandfather in action. Thank you. You are blessed, Farya.
My Grandfather used to sing Apo Xeno Topo. :)
Dude, this is wicked awesome! Thank you so much!
Hey! I'm currently writing my bachelor thesis on "microtonality" (which honestly is a misleading and just very eurocentric term) and I'm currently working on a section on Iranian musíc. I just wanted to say thank you for this, this is really helpful for an unknowing westerner like me. This is really great, I enjoyed this a lot. Keep it up! :))
This was the coolest video I've seen in a long time. I'm just a typical Irish/Welsh-Canadian dude who loves exploring music in all it's majesty. I started listening to Anatolian Rock a few years back, and it's been a game-changer. Along with King Gizzard and other groups doing microtonal stuff, my musical palette is becoming more refined, and I love it. You do a great job at explaining things and this video was captivating. Thanks!!
Great thanks that you mentioned the terminology of Iran and Persia. And your effort about to convey the music in ancient time.
I am so glad this video was suggested to me! Subscribed immediately.
Very interesting. Thank you for sharing.
To plug a "f-- Saint-Jérôme" in a video about the music of Medieval Iran is an accomplishment in an of itself. Bien joué!
Hehe merci!
So happy I found your channel 😄 💕
Yaaay. I love to learn about Iranian music!
great video been looking for info like this thankyou
Beautifully explained🙏🏻🙏🏻❣️i have learned a lot😄
I love your work keep going it's amazing to listen to
22:50. I don't know Persian, let alone Classical Persian, but this is so hilarious!
I can confirm that the translation is 100% accurate for sure 😮😅
This IS great, many thanks for your excellent introduction...
This channel is gold
My guy got ripped out of the Shahnameh
Mind utterly and thoroughly blown! I have always loved anything about different cultures musical knowledge, thanks for giving us the utterly beautiful Cistine Chapel of Central Asia music talking about the maqams and so on.
Fit & presentation are goated
Thank you so much for this detailed video! I am a Fan of this channel now :)
This is such an amazing breakdown, and I appreciate so much your passion (and well-placed ire).
I’ve always been fascinated by how different cultures break down their scales, and the ways musical understanding changes with a culture over time.
I read a thing once a long time ago about how one of the most destructive things to the remnants of regional tonality, microtonality, and relative tuning in the west was the invention and subsequent ubiquity of the mass-produced accordion. Lots of semi-isolated ethno-cultural musical traditions in Europe (and Eastern Europe particularly) changed near-instantly as they were forced to adapt to the standardized divisions and temperament of the incredibly popular instrument. Apparently a lot of unrecorded traditional folk scales were lost, which is wild to think of, as the accordion was invented in the 1800s.
love seeing the weapons collection in the background
I have no musical educaion outside two and a half years of middle school band, so while I am extremely lost in all this, as a student of history, these are very entertaining and very educational. You're a great historian!
Thank you very very much for this video!
Fantastique vidéo! Claire, intéressant, drôle et j'en passe... tu as cocher toute les cases!
Awesome channel, man c: I came for the history/theory and then found out your amazing music as well!! I'm looking forward to watching your other video essays on history and theory as well :3
So cool, love this!
I actually clicked on this, because I wanted to listen to music. But this lesson was really interesting. I learned a lot. Thank you. :D
Thank you so much for showing more about less represented historical cultures!
Thank you! I learned so much from this video. I knew about Western modes but this really opened by mind at what a brilliant system the tetrachord combinations are. And how much more fun it would be to be free of the standardized notation. You can make the music fit your vocal range. And you are hilarious and fun to watch!
love your style and dedication. your vids are both very educating and entertaining. gotta get myself an oud finally! :D
Would be interested to see more in depth analysis of sounds used in Persian speaking lands outside Iran, like Afghanistan, Tajikistan or Southern Uzbekistan, and how that could show the development that is perhaps distinct or shared? Something I'd love to learn more on! Not sure if my language is correct in descriving these things :)
Excellent video man thanks!!!
that section about pedants was something else :D great content, once again, though :O learned quite a bit
This was one of the FUCKING BEST videos on the topic I've ever seen. Your presentation and explanation are so good, that even a person with absolutely no knowledge can learn. Thank you, thank you.
that pulp fiction tune reference was mind blowing
This is excellent background for someone who knows a few tunes from this tradition but doesn't quite grasp the theory quite yet. Might also be the thing that convinces me to buy a baglama. The commentary on Canadian vs European French is hilarious as well XD
Seriously, thank you so much for this video, the way the octaves function and how they utilize it in middle-eastern music is outstanding 👌 ❤
So good, lovin it
Thank you so much for this lesson, not just in music theory, but also in culture, I’m learning how to make orchestral music and I’m starting with music theory, so thank you very much, and side note, I have to agree 100% with Arab accents being diverse in English and in their original accents, and that it’s important to distinguish Persians and Iranians (which is the entire reason Persia changed to Iran in the ~30’s
I found this fascinating! 🔥
Thank you for this creative video essay, it was really instructive both music history and theory-wise. I play modal jazz music and this idea of thinking an octave as two tetrachords is interesting and fresh for me, will try it next time.
Hi. I watched your music theory carefully. I am blues/rock guitarist but also play phrygian mode for my interest in mystic eastern mode of playing music (me, using 12 western tones on my guitar within a western octave of 12 tones 😃). I am a Balkanian (Bosnian) but live in Australia half of my life. Thank you for your precise introduction into Iranian/Turkish style of music. I was laughing when you explained symplifying the middle east music modes and scales by average western musician for i understand that the scale in an middle eastern music within a octave is wider and makes that middle east music mystic/exotic. Also i watched many videos on Utube about Iran and i understand Iranian/Persian history, culture and music and yes, your Iranian food is very yummy. I did eat in Iranian restaurants here in Australia. Thank you for your video. Cheers.
Before seeing videos on your channel, I had a basic idea of how a lot of Middle-Eastern music was fundamentally based around having a far more subdivided octave, but I did not really know what it sounded like or what exactly the flavor and other ideas applied to this created. Now I have a better understanding (far from perfect) that has lead me to a far greater appreciation of Middle-Eastern music, and it seems like one of the most interesting musical traditions out there, from what I can tell now