The response of the fired musicians to the interview of the managing director of Rudaki Foundation

Following an interview by Mehdi Salem, the director of the Rudaki Foundation, with the “Our Music” website, a response from the fired musicians was published in response to this conversation, which you read:
The National Symphonic Orchestra is not a place to discover talent Mr. Mehdi Salem, greetings and respect Since a few days ago, an interview with you was published by the “Our Music” website, some issues were discussed that surprised the experts and other readers and the reader’s mind goes to this side that your advisers deliberately or inadvertently knowingly or unknowingly have a wrong and misleading purpose. Therefore, we decided to accompany you as experts in this profession and art and those who have studied music in high school and university for nearly 20 years and have been present in the highest artistic degree of the country, namely the symphony orchestra, and convey some issues to your esteemed opinion: 1- In none of the orchestras around the world, salaries are paid based on position and seat, but based on the years of presence of that musician and experience in the orchestra. This is a misconception that the seat of musicians is like paying for a ticket seat and position of the audience. The musicians’ protest was based on the wrong principle of this issue. 2- Regarding the selection of musicians by the orchestra leader, it should be noted that any leader, especially the invited leader, cannot select an orchestra musician because the musicians are fixed orchestra hosts and guest leaders and incidentally this issue is reversed and this orchestra leader is first as a guest leader in one concert will be present and by the musicians and then according to the satisfaction of the audience will be selected for example selection of leader by musicians of Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra is an example in this case.

Another issue that is worth mentioning is the examination of the orchestra in the whole world, in no orchestra in the world does the main body of the orchestra change since each city in each country has several orchestras of parliament, symphony philharmonic, ballet and opera One musician from one orchestra to another orchestra based on taste or better income changes location and does not lose his job.

Also, musicians retire after 30 years of being in the orchestra, so the orchestra directors publish a call for only one or more specific positions and vacant posts in the orchestra.
Expressing the issue that the Rudaki Foundation seeks to discover
talent; In the mind of the audience, reminiscent of talent show programs, but the symphony orchestra of the countries is not a place to discover talent, but every musician must go through the difficult way of studying this art and grow from the conservatory and music conservatory under the supervision of caring and professional teachers, continue his studies at the university and then, with a single exam in front of a jury made up of the musicians of the same orchestra, get into the orchestra and enter the professional world alongside other experienced musicians.
Pay attention to the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, which is one of the most professional orchestras in the world. In a country like Germany with a population of 84 million or America with a population of 340 million people, are there no other talents that can find their way to the mentioned orchestras?

They definitely have, but the directors know that the essence of an orchestra is that the musicians playing together and the experience of playing an orchestra and ensemble and harmony between the musicians, and the main body of the orchestra has a special value.

6- Since you mentioned receiving the musicians’ salaries during the Covid era, we must inform you that, as you know, the basis of musicians’ salaries is not based on the salaries of an expert in a profession and field; Rather, it is the lowest base salary and based on labor rights, and it should be noted that in 2014, the Rudaki Foundation did not pay the salaries and insurance of the musicians in full, and this year was not counted as part of their work records. What is the orchestra like in Germany? The interview of the main orchestra player and tympanist of one of the most professional orchestras in Germany (Gwandhaus Leipzig Orchestra) explains the correct method and the rule of the orchestra that is common in the world. You know that after 6 months of trying to improve the current situation, unfortunately, we faced the narrow-mindedness of the orchestra’s management, and contrary to the respected opinion of the Rudaki Foundation, none of them were looking for blackmail, but only sympathetic and concerned about the plight of the situation. We are the Tehran Symphony Orchestra.

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Nasser Masoudi: The Voice of Gilan and a Legacy of Iranian Music

In Iranian music, certain singers have become emblematic of their homelands through their distinctive voices. Historical figures such as Eghbal Sultan, who epitomized the grandeur of Azerbaijani music, and Taj Isfahani, who conveyed the authentic essence of Isfahan, serve as notable examples from the Qajar era. Nasser Masoudi occupies a similar position; his voice emerged as a symbol of Gilan while also achieving national acclaim. Before him, Master Ahmad Ashurpur represented Gilan’s musical landscape, but his extended residence outside Iran limited his continuous engagement in the music scene. In contrast, Masoudi’s consistent presence allowed him to introduce the voice of Gilan to audiences across Iran.

Farhad Poupel: The Voice of the Shahnameh in the Orchestras Around the World

In an era when almost no trace of contemporary Iranian music can be heard in international concert halls, except (so-called!) avant-garde works that owe their existence solely to the fashionable slogans of the “pseudo-intellectual” crowd who have seized the already meager resources for performing classical music from the true artists of the field, the numerous performances of Farhad Poupel’s works shine as a ray of hope for lovers of sincere musical art. Without resorting to trendy slogans, he has kept the flame of Iranian classical music alive purely through the power of his artistry.

From Past Days…

New Technique for Playing Classical Guitar (II)

When the author was working on the piece “Playing Love” by Ennio Morricone (from the legend of 1900), he realized a failure of the Lip Technique. Needing to play a chord in the 14th position of the guitar and in order to complete the harmony, it is necessary to play a harmonic note on the 7th or 5th position; it was not possible to touch the string to play this harmonic note, because the Lip Technique is used for getting the notes and not to touch the string and producing harmonic notes. Naturally, the only possible way to touch the string was to use the nose at the required position and playing the note with the right hand, and this was the best option the author found to how to play such harmonic notes, and where the Nose Technique was generated.

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.

Iannis Xenakis’ Persephassa

Shiraz Arts Festival which was held in Shiraz from 1967 to 1977 featured many contemporary renowned artists who were commissioned by the Iranian royalty to compose or create works of art for performance in the arts festival. Iannis Xenakis (1922-2001) participated in Shiraz Arts Festival three times in 1968, 1969 and 1971. The Greek-French composer,…
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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.

Ennio Morricone’s music for Quentin Tarantino’s The Hateful Eight

After watching Quentin Tarantino’s latest movie, The Hateful Eight, everyone was excited by its novel music besides the beautiful scenes of blood and guts.
The Hateful Eight is the first collaboration between the world-famous film music composer, Ennio Morricone, and Quentin Tarantino as a famous director.

The First Saba Student Music Festival Concluded in Tehran

Preparations for Saba Student Music Festival started in the summer of 2016; the Student Music Festival will be held annually by the students of music at Arts University. The first part of the closing ceremony of the Festival was dedicated to the celebration of the life, work and strives by Maestro Hossein Dehlavi to upgrade the level of music as an academic discipline. The name of the award-winning students and ensembles were announced at the second part of the ceremony.

Quality Decline in Regional Music Festivals

Regional music festivals are organized to, firstly, introduce the music of different regions and, secondly, to support its performers. Regional music festivals are held in large cities for various reasons, including the availability of financial and executive facilities and the presence of an audience. However, the organization of these festivals has always been one of the challenging issues of ethnomusicology. The reason is that the presence of regional music performers in large cities places them in a context other than the context they would normally perform in their homes; consequently this change in situation leads to changes in the quality of their performance.

Is the Iranian National Anthem a Copy? (I)

The alleged similarity between the Iranian and South Korean National Anthems has been a matter of discussion among musicians in Iran for several years. Earlier in 2021, the issue was taken to the media again with not only claims that the anthem is very similar to another song but also the suggestion that its musical content should draw more on the Iranian national music. Some even went to the extent to suggest replacing it with the song “O, Iran” composed by the late Rouhollah Khaleghi. Before delving more into the main issue, it would not go amiss to consider some technical characteristics of the song “O, Iran” composed in 1944.

Parviz Meshkatian’s Heart Beat for People (II)

As such, the young Meshkatian reached the position of a great maestro in the Iranian music. Up until 1997, Meshkatian remained prolific and composed many pieces which were characterized by progressiveness while drawing on the music of the past Iranian musicians. In some of Meshkatian’s works, one can trace the influence of maestros such as Faramarz Payvar; however, this influence is so balanced that one can neither say that Meshkatian is a progressive and deconstructionist composer nor does he use cliché forms in his compositions.

Polyphony in Iranian Music (IV)

Two choirs alternatively perform Veŝ Tavaré Na avaz (Transcription 5). The second group starts the avaz before the first group finishes it; consequently, two different voices coincide (Transcription 5, staves 2 and 5).