Interview with the Makers of the New Qeychak (I)

1 November 2020 – 11:31 am Posted in Instrument & Playing, Interviews, Iranian Classical Music

Translated by Mahboube Khalvati

On occasion of the 8th anniversary of launching HarmonyTalk Online Journal on 6 April 2012, Reza Ziaei, master luthier and researcher on classical music instruments (violin family), announced that the first phase of the project to improve Qeychak has borne fruit. The new instrument would feature a bowl of ribs and the material used for the surface would be wooden. Carrying out the second phase of the project took more than 7 years engaging the new members of Reza Ziaei’s Workshop. In this phase, new researches were conducted from different aspects on the Qeychak and the modern versions of the instrument which were introduced previously by other instrument makers. The available versions of the instrument were studied in terms of their weak and strong technical features.
The second design of the new Qeychak with four soprano strings and a single-piece bowl was designed and made in 2019; the third and fourth versions of the instrument, namely, four-string alto Qeychak and five-string soprano-alto Qeychak, both featuring single-piece bowls were made in 2020.
After preparing the first versions of the instruments, Qeychak players were surveyed on the new instrument and the project entered the final stage for inauguration.
The above-mentioned phases shed light on the generalities of the project to modify and improve folk Qeychak and modern Qeychak; however, there are still a lot to be said about the design and crafting of the instrument which necessitates detailed interviews with the Workshop members involved in the project. Therefore, an interview was conducted with project members the summaries of which follow:

Reza Ziaie, master lutier and researcher on classical music instruments (violin family):

HT: What is the research background for this instrument? Why and when did you think of working on it?
RZ: With regard to the historical background of Qeychak, I should say that the sources we referred to for our research mainly consisted of open sources and literature available to the public. But the major part of our research on the instrument focused on studying the why-ness and how-ness in designing the instrument’s elements, the overall mechanism of the instrument, strong points and structural weaknesses as well as the opinions of Qeychak players.

In assessing each of these reasons and how-nesses, we have tried to make proposals to improve the overall conditions of the instrument based on scientific principles and our experience. Therefore, surveying the changes brought about in the new instrument requires a critical investigation on the same reasons and how-nesses together with a clarification on physical, mechanic and acoustic reasons which were drawn upon in designing the new Qeychak; which are however beyond the limit and scope of this interview.

Regarding the second part of your question, it can be mentioned that we started working on this instrument because we were repeatedly requested by friend artists to improve some of the historical Iranian instruments based on our expertise and knowledge. So, after conducting preliminary researches on the issue while continuing with the Workshop’s main specialized activities, we crafted the first sample of the instrument in 2012; in 2018, we put doing new researches and making new samples, with the collaboration of a group consisting of Workshop’s current and former members, on our agenda.

This entry was written by Sadjad Pourghanad
Tagged: gheichak, rzw, ziaei.

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.

Five Major Myths About Mozart’s Life

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, the renowned Austrian composer, is undoubtedly one of the greatest geniuses in the history of classical music. However, his life is surrounded by numerous myths and legends, some of which are not based on facts. This article explores five of the most common misconceptions about Mozart’s life.

Latest posts

From Past Days…

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 dismissed musicians was published in response to this conversation, which you read:

Transition to Enlightenment: Six Lectures on Mozart’s String Quartets (2)

Innovation and Creativity The Enlightenment era championed innovation, creativity, and the relentless pursuit of knowledge, values that resonate prominently in Mozart’s string quartets. Mozart, a luminary of the Enlightenment, used the quartet form as a playground for his inventive spirit, pushing the boundaries of traditional structures and harmonic progressions. Mozart’s innovative approach is evident in…
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.

Transition to Enlightenment: Six Lectures on Mozart’s String Quartets (1)

Transition to Enlightenment: Six Lectures on Mozart’s String Quartets* Basic Ideas and General Structure The Enlightenment, an epoch of intellectual fervor marked by reason, individualism, and cultural evolution, indelibly left its imprint on the arts. Mozart, a luminary of this transformative era, intricately wove these ideals into his compositions, particularly his string quartets. This article…
Read More »

A brief examination of Ardavan Kamkar’s Santour playing style

I still think of those fish in a crystal bowl for the Haft sin table and those disappointed old men who went out to sell blackfish.

Interview with the Makers of the New Qeychak (III)

In this project, my specialized responsibility was the basic drawings of the desired instrument with the help of engineering and mechanical software. I have also the carried out phases related to engineering designs, related variables, and volume and weight calculations under Mr. Ziaei’s direct supervision from the very beginning. Regarding the challenges of this work, suffice it to say that the set of designs for the instrument lasted more than 9 months in the final stage of the project only.

Developments in Iranian Music Since Qajar Era (II)

Santour:
Nine-bridge and twelve-bridge Sanours were both used until the early Pahlavi dynasty. However, as Faramarz Payvar devised new methods for playing the nine-bridge Sanour, this variety of the instrument which was hammered by felted sticks became popular.

Music education in third-world countries

Music education in third-world countries is facing many problems that limit access to it and it’s full of challenges. These rising and falling obstacles are made of the socioeconomic, cultural educational systems, etc.

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.

Principles of Violin Playing (I)

The present series of training articles, “Principles of Violin Playing”, seek to help students, to appropriately understand this field, by gradually introducing, categorizing, and teaching the myriad relevant points. One of the principles of playing violin, which must be always kept in mind, is that the selection of the most natural position for the body parts while playing is the best and most appropriate solution. As a matter of fact, any unnatural body part position which requires lots of energy or unusual stretching to maintain, is wrong.