9 ms·

A record label bringing Iranian music to the world

125 points by tintinnabula 6y ago

ectocardia 6y ago
Aside: article points a finger at sanctions but doesn't mention another fascinating problem-- Iran is one of the few countries left that isn't party to a copyright treaty. As Iranian author, would have to do first publication in a treaty country-- but the legal definition of "publication" is outdated in several countries and might not include, e.g., streaming. Good on these 30M guys for doing the work.
- sidpatil 6y ago
  > Iran is one of the few countries left that isn't party to a copyright treaty Is this why many movie piracy sites are hosted on .ir domains?
  - markdown 6y ago
    I don't believe I've ever seen a .ir website in my ~25 years online.
    - sudosysgen 6y ago
      Well, if you ever need to use some software you lost the license to after legitimately purchasing it, a lot of .ir websites have very good selections of ways around that for almost any software you can imagine. That goes with sanctions; as a result the Iranian warez scene is actually vital to their economy.
      - markdown 6y ago
        I'd be wary of any such websites. Do you have a link or two so I know to avoid them?
  - smnrchrds 6y ago
    I have never seen one. Bandwidth costs are ridiculously high in Iran, so most websites are hosted outside of Iran. There are Iranian piracy sites, but they block non-Iranian IP addresses to avoid being kicked off their hosting service.
lasfter 6y ago
If you're curious about classical Iranian music, I highly recommend looking up Kayhon Kalhor. He is an extremely talented Kurdish musician (mainly playing the kamancheh, which is a sort of proto-violin) who often collaborates with Yo-Yo Ma. I particularly like Ascending Bird, in collaboration with the Brooklyn Rider. His duet performance of Morghe Sahar with Yo-Yo Ma is amazing too. Hayedeh, Mohammad Shajarian and, more recently, his son Homayoun Shajarian are also amazing singers. Chera Rafti is very popular introduction to Homayoun.
- plesner 6y ago
  I came across iranian classical music by accident years ago and keep coming back to it in a way I don't even with western classical music (I'm european). It's beautiful, highly skilled, passionate, and very much its own thing. My starting point was Hossein Alizadeh and Masters of Persian Music (which also features Mohammad and Homayoun Shajarian). Unfortunately their albums come and go a bit on streaming services.
- lioeters 6y ago
  Thank you for the recommendations of Iranian musicians. I found that the first person's name is commonly spelled Kayhan Kalhor, with an "a" instead of "o" in the first name.
- eternalban 6y ago
  “On Top of Mount Damavand Forever” has quite an extensive collection of classical music, including some gems of Persian classical music. A sample: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dv_iUYV9uIg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dv_iUYV9uIg YT channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2zlRzqMd3I9xd3g4nOVx6Q https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2zlRzqMd3I9xd3g4nOVx6Q
monocasa 6y ago
It's amusing that one of the youtube videos they've listed has already been removed for a copyright claim.
nickt 6y ago
This never seems to be a popular sentiment, but here goes anyway. A few years ago I spent a month traveling overland in Iran from Astara in the north (we started in Azerbaijan - that’s a story in itself) to Bandar Abbas in the south (and then on to Dubai). What a country. An incredible country - the history, geography and the people. I’ve been lucky enough to have lived in half a dozen countries, and visited around 80. Iran is my favourite. The historical sites alone are worth several books, and there are many. But the people are what makes a place, and the Iranians are an amazing people. Like everywhere else I’ve traveled people are have relatively simple needs, keep their family safe, be reasonably comfortable and have a laugh and a drink with your friends. In the cities, the moms pickup their kids from school in minivans and drives them to soccer matches. It seems that the majority of folks have (illegal?) sat TV and watch American and European shows. They know what’s going on in the world. Many are (carefully) very critical of their government. They are intelligent and thoughtful debaters. In mosques, churches and even synagogues, people made time for us, patiently answering our western-biased questions without judgement. There’s obviously a religious element in everyday life, though in our limited time there it didn’t get in the way. We had a run in with the Republican Guard and our friends told us, no jokes, be serious, these guys can cause real headaches. We treated it like a border crossing (be courteous, honest, and only answer exactly what’s asked) and it was no problem. We also met a guy who I suspect was secret police, but as tourists we were treated well and with respect and were invited to his house to have dinner with his family - again for another time. I’m not a naive traveler, and like to follow the twists and turns of a journey. I’ve not experienced anywhere like Iran and especially the people there. They are the most western of the eastern countries, and many of the folks I spent time with shared many of our values - unlike the current rhetoric from official channels in the US and UK would have you believe. I recommend going and making your own mind up, and yes, the music was amazing.
- nickt 6y ago
  PS while I’d wanted to visit Iran for many years, I was pushed over the edge once I read Paul William Robert’s book - The Journey of the Magi (not the TS Eliot poem, but that’s good too). https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/366942.Journey_of_the_Magi https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/366942.Journey_of_the_Ma...
- 6y ago
deleted 6y ago
[deleted]
ggm 6y ago
I recommend the music of Sima Bima. A truly wonderful voice, with a great ensemble. There is an instrument played in Iran, possibly more widely which is a huge Tambour, like the Irish Bodhran, but with chain all round, which makes a rich swoosh sound like brushes on hi-hats. I noticed it in a lot of her music. Its a Daf or Taf I think And, the Oud. Great sounds.
selimthegrim 6y ago
Pour one out for Radio Darvish.
steve19 6y ago
> I recommend going and making your own mind up, and yes, the music was amazing. Not if you are Israeli, have visited Israel or have any connection to Israel because you will be banned from entering or even transiting the country. Especially not if you are gay couple because homosexuality is illegal, or if you are a non-operative transsexual person. If you are a married gay person you would have to lie on your visa application. If you are an American businessman it would also be inadvisable, the regime is currently holding five hostage. Also avoid if you are a sailor, the regime often grabs a passing ship when they need some hostages and collateral. So a wonderful country to visit if you are not a minority or useful as a hostage /s https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visa_policy_of_Iran#Israel https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visa_policy_of_Iran#Israel https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBT_rights_in_Iran https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBT_rights_in_Iran https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_foreign_nationals_detained_in_Iran#U.S._citizens https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_foreign_nationals_deta... https://www.dw.com/en/iran-seizes-south-korean-flagged-oil-tanker/a-56126225 https://www.dw.com/en/iran-seizes-south-korean-flagged-oil-t...
- nickt 6y ago
  As I said, I recommend going and making your own mind up. That includes about going. Everything you mention can be worked around, should you chose to go down that path. I met folks from each of your classifications in Iran. True, not easy for them, but, you know, wasn't easy in the US or Europe that long ago either. Tolerance isn't equally distributed, as we all know. It's our planet, dammit, and we should be able to go where we want based on our own risk profile. None of those problems you mention are unique to Iran. Nothing of what you said takes anything away from the people of Iran. Flawed leadership and policy - yes, again, something we're all probably familiar with no matter where we're born or where we live.
- deleted 6y ago
  [deleted]
- ARandomerDude 6y ago
  > non-operative transsexual person I have no idea what this means. We're making up identities so quickly it's hard to even keep up with the jargon.

125 points by tintinnabula 6y ago

Aside: article points a finger at sanctions but doesn't mention another fascinating problem-- Iran is one of the few countries left that isn't party to a copyright treaty. As Iranian author, would have to do first publication in a treaty country-- but the legal definition of "publication" is outdated in several countries and might not include, e.g., streaming. Good on these 30M guys for doing the work.

sidpatil 6y ago
> Iran is one of the few countries left that isn't party to a copyright treaty Is this why many movie piracy sites are hosted on .ir domains?
- markdown 6y ago
  I don't believe I've ever seen a .ir website in my ~25 years online.
  - sudosysgen 6y ago
    Well, if you ever need to use some software you lost the license to after legitimately purchasing it, a lot of .ir websites have very good selections of ways around that for almost any software you can imagine. That goes with sanctions; as a result the Iranian warez scene is actually vital to their economy.
    - markdown 6y ago
      I'd be wary of any such websites. Do you have a link or two so I know to avoid them?
- smnrchrds 6y ago
  I have never seen one. Bandwidth costs are ridiculously high in Iran, so most websites are hosted outside of Iran. There are Iranian piracy sites, but they block non-Iranian IP addresses to avoid being kicked off their hosting service.

lasfter 6y ago

If you're curious about classical Iranian music, I highly recommend looking up Kayhon Kalhor. He is an extremely talented Kurdish musician (mainly playing the kamancheh, which is a sort of proto-violin) who often collaborates with Yo-Yo Ma. I particularly like Ascending Bird, in collaboration with the Brooklyn Rider. His duet performance of Morghe Sahar with Yo-Yo Ma is amazing too. Hayedeh, Mohammad Shajarian and, more recently, his son Homayoun Shajarian are also amazing singers. Chera Rafti is very popular introduction to Homayoun.

plesner 6y ago
I came across iranian classical music by accident years ago and keep coming back to it in a way I don't even with western classical music (I'm european). It's beautiful, highly skilled, passionate, and very much its own thing. My starting point was Hossein Alizadeh and Masters of Persian Music (which also features Mohammad and Homayoun Shajarian). Unfortunately their albums come and go a bit on streaming services.
lioeters 6y ago
Thank you for the recommendations of Iranian musicians. I found that the first person's name is commonly spelled Kayhan Kalhor, with an "a" instead of "o" in the first name.
eternalban 6y ago
“On Top of Mount Damavand Forever” has quite an extensive collection of classical music, including some gems of Persian classical music. A sample: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dv_iUYV9uIg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dv_iUYV9uIg YT channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2zlRzqMd3I9xd3g4nOVx6Q https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2zlRzqMd3I9xd3g4nOVx6Q

monocasa 6y ago

It's amusing that one of the youtube videos they've listed has already been removed for a copyright claim.

nickt 6y ago

This never seems to be a popular sentiment, but here goes anyway. A few years ago I spent a month traveling overland in Iran from Astara in the north (we started in Azerbaijan - that’s a story in itself) to Bandar Abbas in the south (and then on to Dubai). What a country. An incredible country - the history, geography and the people. I’ve been lucky enough to have lived in half a dozen countries, and visited around 80. Iran is my favourite. The historical sites alone are worth several books, and there are many. But the people are what makes a place, and the Iranians are an amazing people. Like everywhere else I’ve traveled people are have relatively simple needs, keep their family safe, be reasonably comfortable and have a laugh and a drink with your friends. In the cities, the moms pickup their kids from school in minivans and drives them to soccer matches. It seems that the majority of folks have (illegal?) sat TV and watch American and European shows. They know what’s going on in the world. Many are (carefully) very critical of their government. They are intelligent and thoughtful debaters. In mosques, churches and even synagogues, people made time for us, patiently answering our western-biased questions without judgement. There’s obviously a religious element in everyday life, though in our limited time there it didn’t get in the way. We had a run in with the Republican Guard and our friends told us, no jokes, be serious, these guys can cause real headaches. We treated it like a border crossing (be courteous, honest, and only answer exactly what’s asked) and it was no problem. We also met a guy who I suspect was secret police, but as tourists we were treated well and with respect and were invited to his house to have dinner with his family - again for another time. I’m not a naive traveler, and like to follow the twists and turns of a journey. I’ve not experienced anywhere like Iran and especially the people there. They are the most western of the eastern countries, and many of the folks I spent time with shared many of our values - unlike the current rhetoric from official channels in the US and UK would have you believe. I recommend going and making your own mind up, and yes, the music was amazing.

nickt 6y ago
PS while I’d wanted to visit Iran for many years, I was pushed over the edge once I read Paul William Robert’s book - The Journey of the Magi (not the TS Eliot poem, but that’s good too). https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/366942.Journey_of_the_Magi https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/366942.Journey_of_the_Ma...
6y ago

deleted 6y ago

[deleted]

ggm 6y ago

I recommend the music of Sima Bima. A truly wonderful voice, with a great ensemble. There is an instrument played in Iran, possibly more widely which is a huge Tambour, like the Irish Bodhran, but with chain all round, which makes a rich swoosh sound like brushes on hi-hats. I noticed it in a lot of her music. Its a Daf or Taf I think And, the Oud. Great sounds.

selimthegrim 6y ago

Pour one out for Radio Darvish.

steve19 6y ago

> I recommend going and making your own mind up, and yes, the music was amazing. Not if you are Israeli, have visited Israel or have any connection to Israel because you will be banned from entering or even transiting the country. Especially not if you are gay couple because homosexuality is illegal, or if you are a non-operative transsexual person. If you are a married gay person you would have to lie on your visa application. If you are an American businessman it would also be inadvisable, the regime is currently holding five hostage. Also avoid if you are a sailor, the regime often grabs a passing ship when they need some hostages and collateral. So a wonderful country to visit if you are not a minority or useful as a hostage /s https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visa_policy_of_Iran#Israel https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visa_policy_of_Iran#Israel https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBT_rights_in_Iran https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBT_rights_in_Iran https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_foreign_nationals_detained_in_Iran#U.S._citizens https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_foreign_nationals_deta... https://www.dw.com/en/iran-seizes-south-korean-flagged-oil-tanker/a-56126225 https://www.dw.com/en/iran-seizes-south-korean-flagged-oil-t...

nickt 6y ago
As I said, I recommend going and making your own mind up. That includes about going. Everything you mention can be worked around, should you chose to go down that path. I met folks from each of your classifications in Iran. True, not easy for them, but, you know, wasn't easy in the US or Europe that long ago either. Tolerance isn't equally distributed, as we all know. It's our planet, dammit, and we should be able to go where we want based on our own risk profile. None of those problems you mention are unique to Iran. Nothing of what you said takes anything away from the people of Iran. Flawed leadership and policy - yes, again, something we're all probably familiar with no matter where we're born or where we live.
deleted 6y ago
[deleted]
ARandomerDude 6y ago
> non-operative transsexual person I have no idea what this means. We're making up identities so quickly it's hard to even keep up with the jargon.