The Structure of Kurdistan Daf (VI)

1 October 2022 – 8:52 am Posted in Articles' List, Contemporary Music, General Information, Instrument & Playing

Researcher:
Mohammad Tarighat

Translator:
Fatemeh Alimohammadi

Hooks and attached rings: The junction of the ring to the arch is about 3 centimeters from the skin. The ring with its side rings should be as far as the diameter of a ring (about one and a half to one and eight centimeters) to make a proper arrangement and less interference of rings and clearer sound, it also helps to the lightness of the instrument (Mogharab Samadi, 2008: 79).

It is mentioned elsewhere that the distance of each hook from the skin is about three and a half centimeters and from the adjacent hook is about three centimeters. In each hook, there are four rings that the first and second rings are connected from above as a single and the next two rings are connected to the second ring in pairs (Tohidi, 1998: 83).

Khaktinat also mentions the position of the rings:

“We nail around the frame at a distance of three and a half to four centimeters from the opposite edge of the Avazeh. The distance between the nails is one to one and a half centimeters” (Khaktinat, 2005: 64).

To ensure the correct position of the rings, we put one of the fingers on the last ring, which is in pairs, and we move it towards the skin in an oblique shape; of course, the Daf should be standing and vertical. If only the lower pairs of rings hit the skin, they will be in the proper place and the sound will be of high quality. But if, in addition to the lower pair of Malilehs, the middle Malilehs normally come in contact with the skin, they are misplaced and cause excessive contact with the skin (same: 71).

Mohammadi says: “The distance between the hooks is one and a half centimeters, which one centimeter can be added to this distance, but the weight of the Daf will increase. The distance between the hooks and the skin is calculated as follows: Consider half of the width of arch and add half a centimeter from the skin side to it to be the exact location of the hooks “(Mohammadi, 2021). In the past, the diameter of the rings was two centimeters and their thickness was one to one and a half millimeters and they were made of brass and steel. Today, the rings are made of iron wire with a diameter of one and a half to one and eight centimeters and a thickness of about one millimeter.

Skin: Old, fat-free, clear and transparent skin of animals such as ewe and sheep, which put less elastic pressure on the arch and they are also very good (Mogharab Samadi, 2009: 79). Naqib Sardasht believes that the skins of animals such as sheep, goat, yeanling, lamb, ewe, mountain goat and deer are used and deer skin has been introduced as the best one (Naqib Sardasht, 2007: 295), but today due to the high cost and scarcity of deer skin, this skin is less used.

It should be noted that sheep skin is thicker and lighter than goat skin. The thickness of the skin used in Daf, is about one to two millimeters (Tohidi, 1998: 81). The most suitable sheep skin, which is called ” Kavor” in Kurdish, is a female, healthy, one-year old, and lean sheep (Hosseini, 2021). Today, the skin of animals such as sheep and goat with a thickness of less than one millimeter are used. The skin of fish and deer are useless due to their high cost and scarcity.

In terms of the type of sound produced, skins can be classified from tenor to bass sound in the following order:

Fish skin;
Goat skin;
Deer skin;
Ewe skin;
Sheepskin;
Calf skin;
Camel skin (Khaktinat, 2005: 72).

The natural skins mentioned above change according to different weather conditions; due to heat, the skin becomes more elongated and so-called firmer, and in cold and humidity, it becomes free and so-called looser. For this purpose, some manufacturers use a kind of artificial or plastic skin in making Daf, and in some cases they use fibrous skin, which is consists of natural fibers and is stable in different weather conditions. This has caused changes in the structure and components of the Daf, including the removal of studs, changes in the strength and narrowing of the arch width, changes in the Avazeh of Daf, and etc.

Strap: When the duration of playing Daf is long, a strap is installed on the inner edge of the Daf, which the musician wraps around his wrist to reduce hand fatigue.

This entry was written by HarmonyTalk
Tagged: .

Jamshid Andalibi passed away!

Jamshid Andalibi, one of the most famous ney players in Iran, passed away on the fifteenth of Esfand, 1402, at the age of 66 due to a heart attack at his private residence. Andalibi was a member of a family that had a significant presence in the field of Iranian music in the sixties and…
Read More »

Homayoun Rahimian & Iran’s National Orchestra

The Roudaki Foundation presented the permanent conductor of the National Orchestra (Orchestr Melli), Homayoun Rahimian, in a ceremony, and finally, after four years, the national orchestra found a permanent conductor. Homayoun Rahimian is the fourth permanent conductor of this orchestra after Farhad Fakhreddini, Bardia Kiaras, and Fereidoun Shahbaziyan. He, who has previously had experience of conducting concerts besides being Meister’s concert of this orchestra, performed the concert “Autumns” on the 20th of Tir, performing works by Rouhollah Khaleqi, Javad Ma’roufi, and Hossein Dehlavi.

Latest posts

From Past Days…

Rouhollah Khaleghi Artistic Center established in Washington DC

Golnoush Khaleghi (1941-2021), a Washington-based Persian musician and the daughter of the contemporary Persian (Iranian) composer and theoretician Rouhollah Khaleghi (1906-1965) founded a musical center called RKAC to keep the name and the work of her father alive.

Is the Iranian National Anthem a Copy? (II)

In response, it should be said that it is better for the national anthem of a country to use the musical material exclusive to that country; however, some problems might come up in doing so the most important of which include: lack of familiarity of other countries’ music performer with the concerned country’s specific music intervals and special musical technique; and secondly, the strangeness of that music to the foreign listener.

Ali Rahbari & Recording Iranian Symphonic Compositions

In the few days prior to the New Iranian year (March 2015), the news of the revival of Tehran Symphony Orchestra under Ali (Alexander) Rahbari’s conductorship was announced. Ali Rahbari, who served as assistant to Herbert von Karajan in Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra at a very young age, was also invited to conduct Tehran Symphony Orchestra in 2005; however, the election of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s government put an end to his collaboration with this Orchestra. Recently, it was announced that Rahbari is invited to conduct an orchestra in the U.S.

Polyphony in Iranian Music (I)

Despite the fact that Iranian folk music (regional music of Iran), like the Radif of Iranian traditional music, is monophonic and follows heterophony in principal, we experience polyphonic forms, albeit, majorly unconscious.

About Davoud Pirnia, the founder of “Golha” radio program

Davoud Pirnia, writer and musicologist was the founder of “Golha” (Flowers of Persian Song and Music) programs on Tehran Radio (1956-1966). He received his early education from his father, Hassan Pirnia (Moshir al-Douleh), and several tutors of the time (Taraghi, interview, July 1989) and continued his studies at Saint Louis School in Tehran and then in Switzerland and graduated in law. While studying law, Pirnia got acquainted with European classical music. Upon returning to Iran, he was employed by the Ministry of Justice and founded the Lawyers’ Guild. Then he was transferred to the Ministry of Finance and established the Department of Statistics in this ministry. Later, he became the head of the state inspection office at the Prime Ministry; he was, then, promoted to the position of the Deputy Prime Minister (Navab Safa, interview, August 1999)

Polyphony in Iranian Music (VI)

Torqeh or jal is the same bird (Bimaculated lark) and is the name of a muqam which is well-known in Torbate Jam and those areas. Jal muqam is called Torqeh in Esfarayen and Bojnourd. This muqam which was used to be played by Bakhshis/Bagşies (dutar-players) in the past is seldom performed today.

“Pledge of Love”

The “Pledge of Love” is the first album in a series composed based on the tasnifs by the renowned Iranian tasnif-maker Mohammad Ali Amir Jahed and recorded by Sahba Kohan Ensemble with Ramin Bahiraie as signer.

Iranian Fallacies: Iranian Chords

Finding a way to harmonize the Iranian music has been the subject of controversy among Iranian musicians for a long time. Some believe in the creation of harmonies for Iranian music based on a method which is similar to the tierce harmony; while others have either selected or invented some other methods. There are also some musicians who do not basically agree with the harmonization of the Iranian music.

Principles of Violin Playing (VII)

4.3.1.3 Regarding the great linear distance and the unusual distance between the first and forth fingers, the first finger while playing the doubles of ninth and tenth interval, can be twisted in the knuckle area and the point mentioned in 3.1.2.5 paragraph in relation to the way first finger is placed indicating that the first joint of this finger in back of hand must be in line with the direction of forearm and left hand is not true here.

Principles of Violin Playing (X)

Creating sound continuity between two notes in the source and destination positions when left hand position changes and “two different finger numbers” are involved is called portamento. Portamento can be performed on single string or two neighboring strings and with hand moving on fingerboard either upward or downward.