Classical instruments - guitarlike oud, the flute, small drums.
Groups of Bedouin men chant while belly dancers perform
Westernstyle instruments is popular and is played with orchestral instruments
Traditional music involves the use of drums and percussion instruments
Music was developed to celebrate important events
Drumming requires great skill
The drums range from huge war drums to so-called talking drums where the drummers change the picth
The beat of the drums is accompanied by other instruments ( reed rattles, bells, horns, or types of sting instruments)
Some tribes such as the Kru have a tradition of vocal music or choirs
Christian Music
Christian music expresses has been written to express the belief of christian life and faith
themes include: praise worship and penitence
Christian music is composed and performed for many purposes, ranging from aesthetic pleasure, religious or ceremonial purposes, or as an entertainment product for the marketplace.
Before the 1979 revolution, Iran produced the Classic / Dastgahi singing stars Gholam Hossein Banan, Delkash, Marzeyeh, Hengameh Akhavan, Akbar Golpayegani(Golpa), Elahe, Parisa, Khonsari, Homayra, Mahasti, Iraj, Hooshamnd Aghili and instrumentalists like majid kiani , Abolhasan Saba, Asghar Bahari, Ahmad Ebadi, Hossein Tehrani, Faramarz Payvar, Ali Tadjvidi, Dariush Talai, Muhammad Heidari and Hassan Kassai.
The years after the 1979 revolution emerged Islamic Republic approved stars like Parviz Meshkatian, Arshad Tahmasebi, Davod Ganjeyi, Jamshid Andalibi, Kayhan Kalhor Mohammad Reza Lotfi, Hossein Alizadeh, Dariush Talai, Mohammad-Reza Shajarian, and Shahram Nazeri. The renaissance brought popularity to the genre. Even though the revolution era coincided with the music's popularity, music and Islam have not always meshed well, and many Iranian conservatives disliked even the simple melodies and lyrics of classical music. Women were banned from singing as soloists for male audience, though they were allowed to continue performing as soloists for female audience, as instrumentalists and in chorus.
Most notable living Iranian classical vocalists are: Shajarian, Shahram Nazeri,Parissa, Akbar Golpa, Iraj. Among relatively new classical vocalists we can name: Homay, Hesamuddin Seraj, Salar Aghili, Alireza Ghorbani, Homayoun Shajarian, Hamid Reza Nourbakhsh and Maryam Akhondy.
More notable Iranian progressive musicians whom at their own time have created modern and contemporary Persian classical based theories and styles include the late Ostad Parviz Yahaghi, the late Ostad Asadollah Malek, the late Ostad Mohammad Baharloo, the late Ostad Alinaghi Vaziri, the late Ostad Varzandeh, the late Ostad Hossein Tehrani, Ostad Faramarz Payvar and Ostad Bahman Rajabi whom have impacted and influenced the classical Iranian traditions with their respective innovative musical approaches.
Persian Symphonic Music has a long history. In fact Opera originated from Persia much before its emergence in Europe. Iranians traditionally performed Tazeeieh, which in many respects resembles the European Opera.[4] The first serious pieces of Persian symphonic music have been composed by Gholma-Reza Minbashian, Gholam-Hossein Minbashian, Aminollah Hossein, ParvizMahmoud and then Houshang Ostovar, Samin Baghtcheban, Emanuel Melik-Aslanian, Morteza Hannaneh, Hossein Nassehi, Hossein Dehlavi, Ahmad Pejman, Mohammad Taghi Massoudieh, etc.
There are also some growing attempts to combine Persian classical music and western classical music. Davood Azad, a renowned Iranian musician and vocalist, melded Johann Sebastian Bach's music style and Iranian classical music.
Iran's main orchestra include: National Orchestra, Tehran Symphony Orchestra and Perspolis Symphony Orchestra (Nations Orchestra).
Iran is not alien to western classical music either. Many radio stations in Tehran play Mozart's concertos on a daily basis, and many Iranians even make it to world fame and fortune. The late 20th century classical composer Kaikhosru Shapurji Sorabji was of Iranian descent. The best examples of these Iranians are perhaps Shardad Rohani (LA Symphony Orchestra conductor), Lily Afshar (world class classical guitarist and student of Andrés Segovia), Loris Tjeknavorian (principal conductor to the Rudaki Opera House Orchestra in Tehran),[5] and Hormoz Farhat (Composer, Ethnomusicologist, Music Professor). Moreover, the Indian-born Zubin Mehta, the world-famous classical conductor of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra, is of Iranian ancestry and has acted as guest conductor of Tehran Symphony Orchestra.
In 2005, Ali Rahbari, the head of Tehran Symphony Orchestra, performed Beethoven's 9th Symphony in Tehran Vahdat Hall.[6]
Also in 2005, Perspolis Orchestra (Melal Orchestra) played a piece that dates back 3000 years. The notes of this piece of music, which is believed to have belonged to Sumerians and ancient Greeks, were discovered among some ancient inscriptions and after being deciphered by archaeologists, was orchestrated by Siavosh Beizaee for Perspolis Orchestra Symphony. However, as it is demonstrated on ancient reliefs of that era, the instrumentations of such pieces probably comprised wind instruments like horn and pipe. Renowned Iranian musician, Peyman Soltani, conducted the Perspolis orchestra.[7]
The modal concepts in Persian folk music are directly linked with that of the classical music. However, improvisation plays a minor role as folk tunes are characterized by relatively clear-cut melodic and rhythmic properties. The function of each folk melody determines its mood. The varying aesthetic requirements of wedding songs, lullabies, love songs, harvest songs, dance pieces, etc., are met with transparent and appropriate simplicity. The majority of the classical instruments are too elaborate and difficult for the folk musicians. Instead, there are literally dozens of musical instruments of various sorts found among the rural people. In fact, each region of the country can boast instruments peculiar to itself. Three types of instruments, however, are common to all parts of the country. They are, a kind of shawm called Surnay (or Sorna ~ Zorna), the various types of Ney (flute), and the Dohol, a doubleheader drum.
Persian music includes a mixed Persian-Western music that functions as popular commercial music. The use of western popular rhythms, an elementary harmonic superimposition, and relatively large ensembles composed of mostly western instruments, characterize this music. The melodic and modal aspects of these compositions maintain basically Persian elements. On the whole, it would be something of an understatement to say that the artistic merit of such a melange as this is rather questionable.[8]
Iran is home to several ethnic groups, including Kurds, Azerbaijanis, Bakhtiari and Baluchi peoples. Turkmen epic poets similar to Central Asian musicians are common in Khorasan, while Kurdish music is known for its double-reed duduk and an earthy, dance-oriented sound. The most famous personalities in Iranian folk music are Pari Zangeneh and Sima Bina.
Jewish Music
dates back thousands of years
The rhythm and sound of the music varies greatly depending on the origins of the Jewish composers.
it is sometimes religious in nature
Albanian music
Albanian music displays a variety of influences. Albanian folk music traditions differ by region, with major stylistic differences between the traditional music of the Ghegs in the north and Tosks in the south.
Northern Albania
The Ghegs from north of the Shkumbini River are known for a distinctive variety of sung epic poetry. Many of these are about Skanderbeg, a legendary 15th century warrior who led the struggle against the Turks, and the "constant Albanian themes of honour, hospitality, treachery and revenge". These traditions are a form of oral history for the Ghegs, and also "preserve and inculcate moral codes and social values", necessary in a society that, until the early 20th century, relied on blood feuds as its "primary means of law enforcement".[4]
Styles of epics also include the këngë trimash/kreshnikësh (Songs of brave men/frontier warriors), ballads and Vajtims maje krahi (cries). Major epics include Mujo and Halil and Halil and Hajrije.[3]
The most traditional variety of epic poetry is the Albanian Songs of the Frontier Warriors. These epic poems are sung, accompanied by a lahuta, a one-stringed fiddle. It is rarely performed in modern Albania, but is found in the northern highlands.[1]
Somewhat further south, around Dibër and Kërçov in Macedonia, the lahuta is not used, replaced by the çifteli, a two-stringed instrument in which one string is used for the drone and one for the melody. Though men are the traditional performers (exception made for the sworn virgins), women have increasingly been taking part in epic balladry.[1]
Along with the def, çifteli and sharki are used in a style of dance and pastoral songs. Homemade wind instruments are traditionally used by shepherds in northern Albania; these include the zumarë, an unusual kind of clarinet. This shepherds' music is "melancholic and contemplative" in tone.[1] The songs called maje-krahi are another important part of North Albanian folk song; these were originally used by mountaineers to communicate over wide distances, but are now seen as songs. Maje-krahi songs require the full range of the voice and are full of "melismatic nuances and falsetto cries".
Southern Albania
Southern Albanian music is soft and gentle, and polyphonic in nature. Vlorë in the southwest has perhaps the most unusual vocal traditions in the area, with four distinct parts (taker, thrower, turner and drone) that combine to create a complex and emotionally cathartic melody. Author Kim Burton has described the melodies as "decorated with falsetto and vibrato, sometimes interrupted by wild and mournful cries". This polyphonic vocal music is full of power that "stems from the tension between the immense emotional weight it carries, rooted in centuries of pride, poverty and oppression, and the strictly formal, almost ritualistic nature of its structure".[1]
South Albania is also known for funeral laments with a chorus and one to two soloists with overlapping, mournful voices. There is a prominent folk love song tradition in the south, in which performers use free rhythm and consonant harmonies, elaborated with ornamentation and melisma.[3]
The Tosk people are known for ensembles consisting of violins, clarinets, lahutë (a kind of lute) and def. Eli Fara, a popular émigré performer, is from Korçë, but the city of Përmet is the center for southern musical innovation, producing artists like Remzi Lela and Laver Bariu. Lela is of special note, having founded a musical dynasty that continues with his descendants playing a part in most of the major music institutions in Tirana.[1]
Southern instrumental music includes the sedate kaba, an ensemble-driven by a clarinet or violin alongside accordions and llautës. The kaba is an improvised and melancholic style with melodies that Kim Burton describes as "both fresh and ancient", "ornamented with swoops, glides and growls of an almost vocal quality", exemplifying the "combination of passion with restraint that is the hallmark of Albanian culture."[1]
The ethnic Greek inhabitants of the country's southern parts, have a music very similar to the music of Epirus in Greece.
Buddhist Music Buddhist music is music created for or inspired by Buddhism and part of Buddhist art.
Honkyoku
Honkyoku (本曲) are the pieces of shakuhachi or hocchiku music played by wandering Japanese Zen monks called Komuso. Komuso played honkyoku for enlightenment and alms as early as the 13th century. In the 18th century, a Komuso named Kinko Kurosawa of the Fuke sect of Zen Buddhism was commissioned to travel throughout Japan and collect these musical pieces. The results of several years of travel and compilation were thirty-six pieces known as the Kinko-Ryu Honkyoku.
Chanting
The Chanting of mantras used in or inspired by Buddhism, including many genres in many cultures:
Repetition of the name of Amitabha in Pure Land Buddhism.
Repetitious chanting of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo and excerpts of the Lotus Sutra within Nichiren Buddhist
Shomyo in Japanese Tendai and Shingon Buddhism.
Throat singing in Tibetan Buddhist chants
Tibetan Styles
Tibetan Buddhism is the most widespread religion in Tibet. Musical chanting, most often in Tibetan or Sanskrit, is an integral part of the religion. These chants are complex, often recitations of sacred texts or in celebration of various festivals. Yang chanting, performed without metrical timing, is accompanied by resonant drums and low, sustained syllables. Other styles include those unique to Tantric Buddhism, the classical, popular Gelugpa school, the romantic Nyingmapa and Sakyapa and Kagyupa.
Shomyo
Shomyo (声明) is a style of Japanese Buddhist chant; mainly in the Tendai and Shingon sects. There are two styles: ryokyoku and rikkyoku, described as difficult and easy to remember, respectively.
http://northbysouth.kenyon.edu/1998/music/religion/religion.htm African Roots
Music throughout Western History, Ancient times.
Christian music
Buddhist music
Hindu Music
Shinto Music (japanese)
The importance of music in Different Religions
Syria ( Terri Dougherty)syrian Chant
- Traditional music plays a role in Syrian life
- Classical instruments - guitarlike oud, the flute, small drums.
- Groups of Bedouin men chant while belly dancers perform
- Westernstyle instruments is popular and is played with orchestral instruments
Traditional music involves the use of drums and percussion instrumentsChristian Music
Hindu music
Before the 1979 revolution, Iran produced the Classic / Dastgahi singing stars Gholam Hossein Banan, Delkash, Marzeyeh, Hengameh Akhavan, Akbar Golpayegani(Golpa), Elahe, Parisa, Khonsari, Homayra, Mahasti, Iraj, Hooshamnd Aghili and instrumentalists like majid kiani , Abolhasan Saba, Asghar Bahari, Ahmad Ebadi, Hossein Tehrani, Faramarz Payvar, Ali Tadjvidi, Dariush Talai, Muhammad Heidari and Hassan Kassai.
The years after the 1979 revolution emerged Islamic Republic approved stars like Parviz Meshkatian, Arshad Tahmasebi, Davod Ganjeyi, Jamshid Andalibi, Kayhan Kalhor Mohammad Reza Lotfi, Hossein Alizadeh, Dariush Talai, Mohammad-Reza Shajarian, and Shahram Nazeri. The renaissance brought popularity to the genre. Even though the revolution era coincided with the music's popularity, music and Islam have not always meshed well, and many Iranian conservatives disliked even the simple melodies and lyrics of classical music. Women were banned from singing as soloists for male audience, though they were allowed to continue performing as soloists for female audience, as instrumentalists and in chorus.
Most notable living Iranian classical vocalists are: Shajarian, Shahram Nazeri,Parissa, Akbar Golpa, Iraj. Among relatively new classical vocalists we can name: Homay, Hesamuddin Seraj, Salar Aghili, Alireza Ghorbani, Homayoun Shajarian, Hamid Reza Nourbakhsh and Maryam Akhondy.
More notable Iranian progressive musicians whom at their own time have created modern and contemporary Persian classical based theories and styles include the late Ostad Parviz Yahaghi, the late Ostad Asadollah Malek, the late Ostad Mohammad Baharloo, the late Ostad Alinaghi Vaziri, the late Ostad Varzandeh, the late Ostad Hossein Tehrani, Ostad Faramarz Payvar and Ostad Bahman Rajabi whom have impacted and influenced the classical Iranian traditions with their respective innovative musical approaches.
Persian Symphonic Music has a long history. In fact Opera originated from Persia much before its emergence in Europe. Iranians traditionally performed Tazeeieh, which in many respects resembles the European Opera.[4] The first serious pieces of Persian symphonic music have been composed by Gholma-Reza Minbashian, Gholam-Hossein Minbashian, Aminollah Hossein, ParvizMahmoud and then Houshang Ostovar, Samin Baghtcheban, Emanuel Melik-Aslanian, Morteza Hannaneh, Hossein Nassehi, Hossein Dehlavi, Ahmad Pejman, Mohammad Taghi Massoudieh, etc.
There are also some growing attempts to combine Persian classical music and western classical music. Davood Azad, a renowned Iranian musician and vocalist, melded Johann Sebastian Bach's music style and Iranian classical music.
Iran's main orchestra include: National Orchestra, Tehran Symphony Orchestra and Perspolis Symphony Orchestra (Nations Orchestra).
Iran is not alien to western classical music either. Many radio stations in Tehran play Mozart's concertos on a daily basis, and many Iranians even make it to world fame and fortune. The late 20th century classical composer Kaikhosru Shapurji Sorabji was of Iranian descent. The best examples of these Iranians are perhaps Shardad Rohani (LA Symphony Orchestra conductor), Lily Afshar (world class classical guitarist and student of Andrés Segovia), Loris Tjeknavorian (principal conductor to the Rudaki Opera House Orchestra in Tehran),[5] and Hormoz Farhat (Composer, Ethnomusicologist, Music Professor). Moreover, the Indian-born Zubin Mehta, the world-famous classical conductor of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra, is of Iranian ancestry and has acted as guest conductor of Tehran Symphony Orchestra.
In 2005, Ali Rahbari, the head of Tehran Symphony Orchestra, performed Beethoven's 9th Symphony in Tehran Vahdat Hall.[6]
Also in 2005, Perspolis Orchestra (Melal Orchestra) played a piece that dates back 3000 years. The notes of this piece of music, which is believed to have belonged to Sumerians and ancient Greeks, were discovered among some ancient inscriptions and after being deciphered by archaeologists, was orchestrated by Siavosh Beizaee for Perspolis Orchestra Symphony. However, as it is demonstrated on ancient reliefs of that era, the instrumentations of such pieces probably comprised wind instruments like horn and pipe. Renowned Iranian musician, Peyman Soltani, conducted the Perspolis orchestra.[7]
The modal concepts in Persian folk music are directly linked with that of the classical music. However, improvisation plays a minor role as folk tunes are characterized by relatively clear-cut melodic and rhythmic properties. The function of each folk melody determines its mood. The varying aesthetic requirements of wedding songs, lullabies, love songs, harvest songs, dance pieces, etc., are met with transparent and appropriate simplicity. The majority of the classical instruments are too elaborate and difficult for the folk musicians. Instead, there are literally dozens of musical instruments of various sorts found among the rural people. In fact, each region of the country can boast instruments peculiar to itself. Three types of instruments, however, are common to all parts of the country. They are, a kind of shawm called Surnay (or Sorna ~ Zorna), the various types of Ney (flute), and the Dohol, a doubleheader drum.
Persian music includes a mixed Persian-Western music that functions as popular commercial music. The use of western popular rhythms, an elementary harmonic superimposition, and relatively large ensembles composed of mostly western instruments, characterize this music. The melodic and modal aspects of these compositions maintain basically Persian elements. On the whole, it would be something of an understatement to say that the artistic merit of such a melange as this is rather questionable.[8]
Iran is home to several ethnic groups, including Kurds, Azerbaijanis, Bakhtiari and Baluchi peoples. Turkmen epic poets similar to Central Asian musicians are common in Khorasan, while Kurdish music is known for its double-reed duduk and an earthy, dance-oriented sound. The most famous personalities in Iranian folk music are Pari Zangeneh and Sima Bina.
Jewish Music
Albanian music
Albanian music displays a variety of influences. Albanian folk music traditions differ by region, with major stylistic differences between the traditional music of the Ghegs in the north and Tosks in the south.
Northern Albania
The Ghegs from north of the Shkumbini River are known for a distinctive variety of sung epic poetry. Many of these are about Skanderbeg, a legendary 15th century warrior who led the struggle against the Turks, and the "constant Albanian themes of honour, hospitality, treachery and revenge". These traditions are a form of oral history for the Ghegs, and also "preserve and inculcate moral codes and social values", necessary in a society that, until the early 20th century, relied on blood feuds as its "primary means of law enforcement".[4]Styles of epics also include the këngë trimash/kreshnikësh (Songs of brave men/frontier warriors), ballads and Vajtims maje krahi (cries). Major epics include Mujo and Halil and Halil and Hajrije.[3]
The most traditional variety of epic poetry is the Albanian Songs of the Frontier Warriors. These epic poems are sung, accompanied by a lahuta, a one-stringed fiddle. It is rarely performed in modern Albania, but is found in the northern highlands.[1]
Somewhat further south, around Dibër and Kërçov in Macedonia, the lahuta is not used, replaced by the çifteli, a two-stringed instrument in which one string is used for the drone and one for the melody. Though men are the traditional performers (exception made for the sworn virgins), women have increasingly been taking part in epic balladry.[1]
Along with the def, çifteli and sharki are used in a style of dance and pastoral songs. Homemade wind instruments are traditionally used by shepherds in northern Albania; these include the zumarë, an unusual kind of clarinet. This shepherds' music is "melancholic and contemplative" in tone.[1] The songs called maje-krahi are another important part of North Albanian folk song; these were originally used by mountaineers to communicate over wide distances, but are now seen as songs. Maje-krahi songs require the full range of the voice and are full of "melismatic nuances and falsetto cries".
Southern Albania
Southern Albanian music is soft and gentle, and polyphonic in nature. Vlorë in the southwest has perhaps the most unusual vocal traditions in the area, with four distinct parts (taker, thrower, turner and drone) that combine to create a complex and emotionally cathartic melody. Author Kim Burton has described the melodies as "decorated with falsetto and vibrato, sometimes interrupted by wild and mournful cries". This polyphonic vocal music is full of power that "stems from the tension between the immense emotional weight it carries, rooted in centuries of pride, poverty and oppression, and the strictly formal, almost ritualistic nature of its structure".[1]South Albania is also known for funeral laments with a chorus and one to two soloists with overlapping, mournful voices. There is a prominent folk love song tradition in the south, in which performers use free rhythm and consonant harmonies, elaborated with ornamentation and melisma.[3]
The Tosk people are known for ensembles consisting of violins, clarinets, lahutë (a kind of lute) and def. Eli Fara, a popular émigré performer, is from Korçë, but the city of Përmet is the center for southern musical innovation, producing artists like Remzi Lela and Laver Bariu. Lela is of special note, having founded a musical dynasty that continues with his descendants playing a part in most of the major music institutions in Tirana.[1]
Southern instrumental music includes the sedate kaba, an ensemble-driven by a clarinet or violin alongside accordions and llautës. The kaba is an improvised and melancholic style with melodies that Kim Burton describes as "both fresh and ancient", "ornamented with swoops, glides and growls of an almost vocal quality", exemplifying the "combination of passion with restraint that is the hallmark of Albanian culture."[1]
The ethnic Greek inhabitants of the country's southern parts, have a music very similar to the music of Epirus in Greece.
Albanian Musical Instruments
Buddhist Music
Buddhist Music
Buddhist music is music created for or inspired by Buddhism and part of Buddhist art.
Honkyoku
Honkyoku (本曲) are the pieces of shakuhachi or hocchiku music played by wandering Japanese Zen monks called Komuso. Komuso played honkyoku for enlightenment and alms as early as the 13th century. In the 18th century, a Komuso named Kinko Kurosawa of the Fuke sect of Zen Buddhism was commissioned to travel throughout Japan and collect these musical pieces. The results of several years of travel and compilation were thirty-six pieces known as the Kinko-Ryu Honkyoku.Chanting
The Chanting of mantras used in or inspired by Buddhism, including many genres in many cultures:Tibetan Styles
Tibetan Buddhism is the most widespread religion in Tibet. Musical chanting, most often in Tibetan or Sanskrit, is an integral part of the religion. These chants are complex, often recitations of sacred texts or in celebration of various festivals. Yang chanting, performed without metrical timing, is accompanied by resonant drums and low, sustained syllables. Other styles include those unique to Tantric Buddhism, the classical, popular Gelugpa school, the romantic Nyingmapa and Sakyapa and Kagyupa.Shomyo
Shomyo (声明) is a style of Japanese Buddhist chant; mainly in the Tendai and Shingon sects. There are two styles: ryokyoku and rikkyoku, described as difficult and easy to remember, respectively.Well-known Buddhist musicians
Beyond Singing
In 2009, the Beyond Singing Project produced an album combining Buddhist chants and Christian choral music.[[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddhist_music#cite_note-0|]]]The musicians involved were:
http://www1.teachertube.com/viewVideo.php?video_id=53077&title=Buddhist_Religion