Gaming World Forums
General Category => Entertainment and Media => Topic started by: Wash Cycle on October 25, 2007, 02:01:04 am
-
Even though the last topic along these lines was pretty terrible, I was inspired to create a topic of my own. There is an artist that I think a lot of you guys would really dig, and it is likely that unless you live in NYC, San Diego or Iran that you would have ever heard of him. I am talking about the Persian master Ostad Shahram Nazeri.
Shahram Nazeri
(http://www.gamingw.net/pubaccess/30225/nazeri280.jpg)
Unlike our unfortunately deceased previous friend, this one is still alive and kicking. He is about 60 years old, and has been performing world-wide for over thirty-five years. He played a style of music in his early days known simply as 'Persian Classical Music'. Persian Classical music is an incredibly intricate and complex folk music system based upon an ironic juxtaposition of improvisation and strict adherence to established musical forms. Their instruments are not tuned or played in the same tonal system as our western instruments are, and thus their system of 'keys' and musical modes is quite different. Each key or mode is called a Dastgah, and within the Dastgah exist many Gushesh, which are akin to melodic motifs which are memorized by all Persian musicians. Where the improv comes in is in ensemble play, where the group moves collectively from one Dastgah to another, in which all the players are free to experiment with whichever set of Gushesh they choose. Percussionists are practically free to improvise at will. This is not to say that there aren't Persian Classical ensembles that play highly orchestrated pieces, and Shahram has been a part of several of these groups, the most famous of which being a family of 9 Kurdish musicians called 'The Kamkars'.
Shahram Nazeri not only is competant at the setar (not the indian sitar, a separate kurdish instrument) but is regarded as one of the most legendary vocalists to have ever come from Iran. He has been described as 'Iran's Pavarotti' and 'The Persian Nightengale'. I think the second title is apt, the man can sing like a fucking bird. You really just have to kind of hear him to understand. He sings a rich tenor, but his range extends high into the alto and down into the baritone as well. A skill that he is known for is free improvisation of vocal lines, which brings me to my next point. Nazeri was the first Persian musician to sing Rumi poems as his lyrics. Prior to this, the poems of many Sufis were used, but often lyrics were the creation of the songwriter. Nazeri is an avowed Sufi, and dedicated his musical career to spreading Rumi's message of love across the planet. He often spontaneously erupts into Rumi verse that was never meant to be sung, and improvises meter and melody as well as form.
Currently he is part of an ensemble (titled the Rumi Ensemble.. how appropriate) that is directed by his son Hafez, a virtuoso on setar, who is classically trained both in the Persian and Western music traditions. This ensemble is fairly avant-garde as far as Persian music goes, with their use of non-traditional Persian instruments such as the prominent featuring of the cello and the violin, as well as eschewing the traditional Persian Zarb drum for the Indian tablas. They still adhere partly to the Dastgah/Gushesh system but also incorporate polyrhythmic ideas as well as increased amounts of polyphony not heard elsewhere in Persian music. Hafez plays a modified setar with an extra string, and the barbat has been modified to serve the function of the western idea of a bassline. Shahram rounds out the ensemble by providing lyrics and vocal lines.
There aren't really a whole lot of websites with good information about him, most of my info comes from liner notes of albums I actually own. That said, there are a number of good videos of him on youtube, which I will link:
In the Path of Rumi - http://youtube.com/watch?v=uPkop45Y3EU
Eternal Return - http://youtube.com/watch?v=qqx7HJ47bkc
Dooram Lah Yaran - http://youtube.com/watch?v=BioCQLRlKso
Amza Amza - http://youtube.com/watch?v=k-wP8PYX-8M
Live in Tabriz - http://youtube.com/watch?v=qnoVTr2RyBw (this is up in its entirety on Youtube in like.. 6 parts or something, it is a great concert)
Place to hear "The Rumi Ensemble" - http://www.myspace.com/hafeznazeri
(http://www.gamingw.net/pubaccess/30225/nazeris.jpg)
Anyway, I have 5 or 6 albums by him, 3 or 4 of which are of good CD quality, so if anyone's interested I'll put them up on the zoo.
-
dude this shit rules. I always found that DIFFERENT SCALE IN ARABIA shit really fascinating ever since I learned about it last year. aren't there like 24 scales of notes or some ridiculous shit.
edit: snap that is tablas I thought so!
thi sis some good shit man. everyone should listen tot his first song it is like what good music tries to be.
-
I'll make sure i take a look at this even though I already know these people. I'm actually mixed with a little arabic and can speak it somewhat too :D​.
-
jesus christ this is beautiful
-
zoo plz.
Yeah this is pretty awesome, thanks. I never knew about this guy (and I'm pretty big on World Music).
-
Yeah, I'll put some stuff up on the zoo when I get home from class today
I will put up the albums that I consider to be of high quality audio and compositionwise.
-
Yeah, I'm also interested in this stuff. I'll grab whatever you decide to upload on zoo.
-
I think you'll have to remove the "Veiled". "Seda ye Sokhan e Eshgh" actually means (roughly) "The Sound of the Speech of Love". It's a bit akward, I know, but that's the best you can get from me!
Also Doktormartini, this guy is like one of the biggest names in Persian music. Pretty funny you didn't know him.
-
I think you'll have to remove the "Veiled". "Seda ye Sokhan e Eshgh" actually means (roughly) "The Sound of the Speech of Love". It's a bit akward, I know, but that's the best you can get from me!
Also Doktormartini, this guy is like one of the biggest names in Persian music. Pretty funny you didn't know him.
yeah I dont speak persian so I was just going on what I could glean from a persian language website
also it could be an archaic phrase given that most of his lyrics are from rumi and the other sufi poets like hafiz and sa'adi so yeah who knows anyway
going up on the zoo:
Mystified
Passion of Rumi
Loulian
Through Eternity: An Homage to Rumi
-
sorry for double post
but everything is up on the zoo so yeah
(and also Macubex, this isnt in Arabic, its in Parsi because he is Sufi and the Sufis are historically pretty well known for their unabashed usage of vernacular language in all religious and musical spheres becuase they wished to distinguish themselves from the rest of the Ummah who used Arabic in all religious situations (however music was technically illegal so yeah (but only because the traditionalist faction of the Ulama in the middle ages won out over the rationalists and were like hey fuck culture we must have none of that)))
-
Thanks for this topic. I am down with the sound and I'll definitely be getting this from the zoo.
You should make an [mp3] topic in the zoo forum to let people know it's up there.
-
As far as those go who dont want to listen to four whole albums to get the picture of this artist: I would rank the albums from best to not best as
Passion of Rumi***
Mystified
Through Eternity: An Homage to Rumi
Loulian