Musique de l'époque qajare

Description

Persia was a major crucible of maqâm, this learned musical universe whose influence spread along the Silk Roads to the far reaches of China and India. But it was in the middle of the 19th century, under the reign of the Qajars, that Persian musical art reached its peak. The radif, that is, the learned repertoire, was entirely rethought and reorganized, without breaking with tradition, however. It was enriched with new forms such as the pishdaramad prelude or the chaharmezrab interlude, and singing took on an importance it had not had before, contributing to a revival of poetry. Until then, female musicians had been confined to the female sphere. They began to appear in public. The most remarkable was Qamar ol-Molouk Vaziri, whether for the range of her register, the speed and flexibility of her vibrato, or the delicacy of her ornaments. 80 years later, Pantea Alvandipour revives this inimitable vocal style with her astonishing breaks in the voice that magnify the dramatic expression of the singing. She is accompanied by the Delgosha ensemble, a small instrumental group led by Siamak Jahangiry, a young master of the ney flute who embodies the future of Persian musical tradition and to whom we owe the arrangements of the two suites on this album: Avaz Afshari and Avaz Dashti, made up of preludes, free or rhythmic vocal pieces, interludes and instrumental improvisations.