Ancient Persian Music to Broaden Russia’s Cultural Boundaries

The Association for Contemporary Music of the St. Petersburg Composers Union will present “Concerto for Baluch (for six instruments)” composed by the Iranian-born composer Mehdi Hosseini. The six instruments of the composition are alto flute, contrabassoon, horn, xylophone, violin, and violoncello.
Ancient Persian Music to Broaden Russia’s Cultural Boundaries
A wall painting of musicians performing from 17th century Persia. (Courtesy of Mehdi Hosseini)
Kremena Krumova
6/8/2009
Updated:
10/1/2015
<a><img src="https://www.theepochtimes.com/assets/uploads/2015/09/Mehmooni2.jpg" alt="A wall painting of musicians performing from 17th century Persia.  (Courtesy of Mehdi Hosseini)" title="A wall painting of musicians performing from 17th century Persia.  (Courtesy of Mehdi Hosseini)" width="320" class="size-medium wp-image-1827989"/></a>
A wall painting of musicians performing from 17th century Persia.  (Courtesy of Mehdi Hosseini)
Music that will take you to the driest places of Iran; that will unveil for you the mysticism of ancient Persia; and that  will broaden your cultural perspective to the limit—this is what the latest “Concerto for Baluch” by composer Mehdi Hosseini aspires to do.

The Association for Contemporary Music of the St. Petersburg Composers Union will present “Concerto for Baluch (for six instruments)” composed by the Iranian-born composer Mehdi Hosseini. The six instruments of the composition are alto flute, contrabassoon, horn, xylophone, violin, and violoncello.

The world premiere of the Concerto, which will be staged on June 11 in St. Petersburg, is inspired by Persian folk music. It will endeavor to uplift the audience’s souls and “create an atmosphere of openness to the plight of others.”

The music will be performed by selected soloists from the St. Petersburg State Conservatory and the St. Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra. Brad Cawyer, an American musician currently establishing a career in Russia, will be the conductor.

“My composition was selected for inclusion in this program by Association Director Georgy Firtich. Through this performance, he hopes to foster cultural understanding,” composer Mehdi Hosseini shared with The Epoch Times.

On Baluch and Iranian Folklore

In a special online interview, composer Mehdi Hosseini explained that Baluch is a name for a Persian ethnic group that inhabits a region in Southwest Asia. They speak their own Balochi language. The  source materials for the composition are folk songs from two of the driest provinces in Iran—Sistan and Baluchestan.

Mehdi Hosseini began the Baluch compositional process by transcribing a recording made by a veteran dunali (doneli) player, Master Shir Mohammad Spandar from the region of Baluchestan.

The dunali is an end-blown flute which is usually played solo. It is said that some people go into a trance when exposed to the sound of this rare musical instrument. In this particular recording, Spandar made use of a number of Magam: Liku, Delgani, Zuljalal-Guati, and some other famous songs from the region.

Magam (also spelled as a Mugham or Mugam) is very closely linked to the Persian musical tradition and represents a monodic music system, similar to an Indian Raga. It is not limited only to Iran but is used widely in the Middle East and Far East.

“I started to work on the Concerto in February this year and finished it just three weeks ago—on the whole it took about four months. But I have to say that it took so long because I was working on two other projects at the same time.”

‘Persian music is like a Persian carpet, with solid form and structure, and great intricacy’

The most common belief about Persian music is that it is based on modal systems. However, on closer examination of the functional organization and sound materials of the music itself, this is not absolute.

“At the heart of my work is the question of how Persian regional music relates to a monodic structure that can be perceived as both functional within itself and, at the same time, connected to modal and macro-/microtonal systems. By ’monody' I mean a system where context is determined from note to note, as opposed to the harmonic system where context is developed from chord to chord. The aspect of modal and macro-/microtonal systems is most easily heard by Western ears as an “out-of-tune” scale sound.”

Throughout Persia regional folk music differs from Western music in that it is based on unequal temperament. Western music uses an equal temperament system which was developed in Europe in the 18th century. Equal temperament gives equal space between each of the twelve chromatic tones that comprise an octave.

Persian folk music, like most folk music worldwide, is built on non-regular intervals. To many people this is noticeable as the “out-of-tune” playing that they hear in Indian, Arabic, or Chinese music.

In his music, Mehdi Hosseini strives to explore the intersection of traditional Eastern music and neo-contemporary musical language. He believes that a monodic system can be generally understood as an experimental type of composition that proposes a new view towards folk music—a view that emphasizes the importance of the multiple sound forms used in this system as well as the rich heritage of regional music.

“When I compose, my task is to find the instruments which can be designed to use microtones as real function, not just as effect. For me, instrument means color, and I need all possible colors in my search.

My compositions use a wide range of instruments—typically orchestral instruments which I sometimes incorporate in non-classical combinations. I have composed for string quartets, something even Haydn was composing for, and also for a sextet which included an alto flute and contrabassoon. These instruments are typically only used within the context of really large orchestras.”

Persian classical music, collectively known as the Radif (row) consists of many ancient pieces that are called “Gusheh.” The Radif is fundamentally a repertoire of melodies collected by different people and added at different times. This repertoire is not like Western art music which is composed and intended to be played exactly as written.

Instead Gusheh is made up of traditional melodies, many of which are derived from popular and folk sources. The Radif is organized into twelve groups, seven of which are known as basic monodic structures called “Dastgah” (system). The five remaining are accepted as secondary or derivative Dastgahs and are called “Naghmeh” (chant) or “Avaz” (song).

“Persian music is like a Persian carpet, with solid form and structure and great intricacy. Yet, for the most part, it has remained unknown in the West,” Hosseini added.

From Iran to Russia

Before going to Russia, Mehdi Hosseini was already working as a composer with Iranian National TV and other media corporations in Tehran. To broaden his experience, the 30-year-old composer moved to the St. Petersburg Conservatory. He was very satisfied with his studies and formed strong relationships with his teachers.

He also came into contact with many foreign musicians—some who had come to study at the St. Petersburg Conservatory and others, to give concerts. Thus, Mehdi became friends with many skilled foreign musicians who regularly organized concerts in the city and in other countries. In St. Petersburg, the cultural program is quite rich with concerts every day. Many of the performances are presented by highly accomplished musicians.

“However, I have to say that I have never limited myself concerning my compositional style. I always try to be myself. I have adopted neither the style of the Russians nor that of any other national music system. I still depend greatly on Eastern culture for comprehending the reality which my music attempts to explain.”

’The responsibility of the composer is to strive for the highest human values’

Mehdi Hosseini concludes that the role and responsibility of the composer—and  of all art as a whole—is to strive for the highest human values. It is to remain focused on the real purpose of art.

“Art does not give birth to morality, but, rather, the opposite—only  by adhering to high ethical standards are people capable of creating art—the art of the good word, good act, good thought, etc.”

“People of all nations—of  any philosophical or religious perspective—should  not forget that all these schools of thought are simply paths to high ethical standards. It is these standards which form the moral paths that lead humanity to spiritual fullness. A composer is no exception to this truth.”

More about Mehdi Hosseini: http://mehdihosseini.net/

Kremena Krumova is a Sweden-based Foreign Correspondent of Epoch Times. She writes about African, Asian and European politics, as well as humanitarian, anti-terrorism and human rights issues.
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