Kamancheh
Encyclopedia
The kamānche or kamāncha is a Persian
bowed string instrument related to the bowed rebab
, the historical ancestor of the kamancheh and also to the bowed lira
of the Byzantine Empire
, ancestor of the European violin
family. The strings are played with a variable-tension bow
: the word "kamancheh" means "little bow" in Persian (kæman, bow, and -cheh, diminutive). It is widely used in the classical music of Iran
, Armenia
, Azerbaijan
, Uzbekistan
and Turkmenistan
, with slight variations in the structure of the instrument. In Kashmir
, kamancha is known as saaz-i-kashmir..
Traditionally kamanchehs had three silk
strings
, but modern ones have four metal
ones. Kamanchehs may have highly ornate inlays and fancy carved ivory
tuning peg
s. The body has a long upper neck and a lower bowl-shaped resonating chamber made from a gourd
or wood, usually covered with a membrane, made from the skin of a lamb, goat or sometimes fish, on which the bridge is set. From the bottom protrudes a spike to support the kamancheh while it is being played, hence in English the instrument is sometimes called the spiked fiddle. It is played sitting down held like a cello
though it is about the length of a viola
. The end-pin can rest on the knee or thigh while seated in a chair.
Famous Iranian kamancheh players include Ali-Asghar Bahari, Ardeshir Kamkar
, Saeed Farajpouri
, and Kayhan Kalhor
.
Famous Azeri kamancheh player is Habil Aliev.
The Turkish and Armenian kemenche or kemençe is a bowed string instrument with a very similar or identical name—but it differs significantly in structure and sound from the Persian kamancheh. Other bowed string instruments akin to the kamancheh, yet differing more than slightly from it, include the kemenche of the Pontic Greeks of the black Sea, the old Russian Gudok
, the Persian Ghaychak
, and the Kazakh Kobyz
.
Persian traditional classical music also uses the ordinary violin with Persian tuning. The kamancheh and the ordinary violin
are tuned in the same way and have the same range but different timbres due to their differing sound boxes.
A kamancheh is depicted on the reverse
of the Azerbaijani 1 qəpik
coin minted since 2006 and on the obverse
of the Azerbaijani 1 manat
banknote issued since 2006.
made from half a coconut
and covered with sheep hide or fish skin). The word Kamanjah comes from the Persian instrument Kamanche but It has been arabicized. This instrument is played holding it in the lap, sitting on the floor cross-legged. One to four strings pass down a long, un-fretted neck and over a small, spherical, wooden body covered with skin (sheep hide or fish skin). It is one of the predecessors of the medieval lute, and is part of the spike family of instruments (so named for the spike that originates from the bottom of the sound-box and props on the floor.). The term kamanjah may also be used to refer to the violin.
Information about this instrument appears in the works of Qatran Tabrizi
, Imadaddin Nasimi, Seyid Azim Shirvani and many other classical poets. The chagane has a pear-shaped body, a neck and a head. This reconstructed instrument was presented at a scientific symposium in Edinburgh, Scotland in 2000 and made a significant impression on the participants at the symposium.
The oblong body of the chagane consists of nine parts. It is assembled from pieces of nut wood, sandalwood and beech. The body and neck of the instrument are connected with a long iron probe that goes from the bottom part of the body and plays the role of a core. The face of the body is covered with a five-mm-thick sounding board made of pine. Resonator apertures are bored through this board. During the performance, the instrument is held in a vertical position, and the probe rests on the floor. The sound is produced with a bow that is held in the right hand.
The total length of the instrument is 820 mm. The body is 420 mm long, 220 mm wide and 140 mm tall. Its range goes from the "fa sharp" of the great octave to the "fa sharp" of the second octave.
Kamanche at The Metropolitan Museum of Art:
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
bowed string instrument related to the bowed rebab
Rebab
The rebab , also rebap, rabab, rebeb, rababah, or al-rababa) is a type of string instrument so named no later than the 8th century and spread via Islamic trading routes over much of North Africa, the Middle East, parts of Europe, and the Far East...
, the historical ancestor of the kamancheh and also to the bowed lira
Byzantine lyra
The Byzantine lyra or lira , was a medieval bowed string musical instrument in the Byzantine Empire and is an ancestor of most European bowed instruments, including the violin. In its popular form the lyra was a pear-shaped instrument with three to five strings, held upright and played by stopping...
of the Byzantine Empire
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
, ancestor of the European violin
Violin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
family. The strings are played with a variable-tension bow
Bow (music)
In music, a bow is moved across some part of a musical instrument, causing vibration which the instrument emits as sound. The vast majority of bows are used with string instruments, although some bows are used with musical saws and other bowed idiophones....
: the word "kamancheh" means "little bow" in Persian (kæman, bow, and -cheh, diminutive). It is widely used in the classical music of Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
, Armenia
Armenia
Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
, Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan , officially the Republic of Azerbaijan is the largest country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded by the Caspian Sea to the east, Russia to the north, Georgia to the northwest, Armenia to the west, and Iran to...
, Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan , officially the Republic of Uzbekistan is a doubly landlocked country in Central Asia and one of the six independent Turkic states. It shares borders with Kazakhstan to the west and to the north, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to the east, and Afghanistan and Turkmenistan to the south....
and Turkmenistan
Turkmenistan
Turkmenistan , formerly also known as Turkmenia is one of the Turkic states in Central Asia. Until 1991, it was a constituent republic of the Soviet Union, the Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic . Turkmenistan is one of the six independent Turkic states...
, with slight variations in the structure of the instrument. In Kashmir
Kashmir
Kashmir is the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term Kashmir geographically denoted only the valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal mountain range...
, kamancha is known as saaz-i-kashmir..
Traditionally kamanchehs had three silk
Silk
Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. The best-known type of silk is obtained from the cocoons of the larvae of the mulberry silkworm Bombyx mori reared in captivity...
strings
Strings (music)
A string is the vibrating element that produces sound in string instruments, such as the guitar, harp, piano, and members of the violin family. Strings are lengths of a flexible material kept under tension so that they may vibrate freely, but controllably. Strings may be "plain"...
, but modern ones have four metal
Metal
A metal , is an element, compound, or alloy that is a good conductor of both electricity and heat. Metals are usually malleable and shiny, that is they reflect most of incident light...
ones. Kamanchehs may have highly ornate inlays and fancy carved ivory
Ivory
Ivory is a term for dentine, which constitutes the bulk of the teeth and tusks of animals, when used as a material for art or manufacturing. Ivory has been important since ancient times for making a range of items, from ivory carvings to false teeth, fans, dominoes, joint tubes, piano keys and...
tuning peg
Tuning peg
A tuning peg is used to hold a string in the pegbox of a stringed instrument. It may be made of ebony, rosewood, boxwood or other material. Some tuning pegs are ornamented with shell, metal, or plastic inlays, beads or rings....
s. The body has a long upper neck and a lower bowl-shaped resonating chamber made from a gourd
Gourd
A gourd is a plant of the family Cucurbitaceae. Gourd is occasionally used to describe crops like cucumbers, squash, luffas, and melons. The term 'gourd' however, can more specifically, refer to the plants of the two Cucurbitaceae genera Lagenaria and Cucurbita or also to their hollow dried out shell...
or wood, usually covered with a membrane, made from the skin of a lamb, goat or sometimes fish, on which the bridge is set. From the bottom protrudes a spike to support the kamancheh while it is being played, hence in English the instrument is sometimes called the spiked fiddle. It is played sitting down held like a cello
Cello
The cello is a bowed string instrument with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is a member of the violin family of musical instruments, which also includes the violin, viola, and double bass. Old forms of the instrument in the Baroque era are baryton and viol .A person who plays a cello is...
though it is about the length of a viola
Viola
The viola is a bowed string instrument. It is the middle voice of the violin family, between the violin and the cello.- Form :The viola is similar in material and construction to the violin. A full-size viola's body is between and longer than the body of a full-size violin , with an average...
. The end-pin can rest on the knee or thigh while seated in a chair.
Famous Iranian kamancheh players include Ali-Asghar Bahari, Ardeshir Kamkar
Ardeshir Kamkar
Ardeshir Kamkar is a Kurdish musician from Iran.He started his music training under the supervision of his father. He came to Tehran in 1980 and continued studying traditional arrangements under Mohammad Reza Lotfi and his brother Pashang...
, Saeed Farajpouri
Saeed Farajpouri
Saeed Farajpouri is an Iranian kamancheh player of Kurdish descent. He is also a prolific Persian music composer and a lecturer at School of Music, Tehran University....
, and Kayhan Kalhor
Kayhan Kalhor
Kayhan Kalhor , born 24 November 1963, is an Iranian kamancheh player, composer and master of classical Kurdish and Persian music.-Youth and studies:...
.
Famous Azeri kamancheh player is Habil Aliev.
The Turkish and Armenian kemenche or kemençe is a bowed string instrument with a very similar or identical name—but it differs significantly in structure and sound from the Persian kamancheh. Other bowed string instruments akin to the kamancheh, yet differing more than slightly from it, include the kemenche of the Pontic Greeks of the black Sea, the old Russian Gudok
Gudok
The gudok or hudok is an ancient Eastern Slavic string musical instrument, played with a bow.A gudok usually had three strings, two of them tuned in unison and played as a drone, the third tuned a fifth higher. All three strings were in the same plane at the bridge, so that a bow could make them...
, the Persian Ghaychak
Ghaychak
The Ghaychak or Ghijak is a round-bodied musical instrument with 3 or 4 metal strings and a short fretless neck. It is used by Iranians, Afghans, Uzbeks, Uyghurs, Tajiks, Turkmens and Qaraqalpaks....
, and the Kazakh Kobyz
Kobyz
The Kobyz or kyl-kobyz is an ancient Kazakh string instrument. It has two strings made of horsehair. The resonating cavity is usually covered with goat leather....
.
Persian traditional classical music also uses the ordinary violin with Persian tuning. The kamancheh and the ordinary violin
Violin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
are tuned in the same way and have the same range but different timbres due to their differing sound boxes.
A kamancheh is depicted on the reverse
Obverse and reverse
Obverse and its opposite, reverse, refer to the two flat faces of coins and some other two-sided objects, including paper money, flags , seals, medals, drawings, old master prints and other works of art, and printed fabrics. In this usage, obverse means the front face of the object and reverse...
of the Azerbaijani 1 qəpik
Azerbaijani manat
The Manat is the currency of Azerbaijan. It is subdivided into 100 qəpik. The word manat is borrowed from "moneta" which is pronounced as "maneta"...
coin minted since 2006 and on the obverse
Obverse and reverse
Obverse and its opposite, reverse, refer to the two flat faces of coins and some other two-sided objects, including paper money, flags , seals, medals, drawings, old master prints and other works of art, and printed fabrics. In this usage, obverse means the front face of the object and reverse...
of the Azerbaijani 1 manat
Azerbaijani manat
The Manat is the currency of Azerbaijan. It is subdivided into 100 qəpik. The word manat is borrowed from "moneta" which is pronounced as "maneta"...
banknote issued since 2006.
Kamanjah
The kamānche or kamāncha is a Persian violinViolin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
made from half a coconut
Coconut
The coconut palm, Cocos nucifera, is a member of the family Arecaceae . It is the only accepted species in the genus Cocos. The term coconut can refer to the entire coconut palm, the seed, or the fruit, which is not a botanical nut. The spelling cocoanut is an old-fashioned form of the word...
and covered with sheep hide or fish skin). The word Kamanjah comes from the Persian instrument Kamanche but It has been arabicized. This instrument is played holding it in the lap, sitting on the floor cross-legged. One to four strings pass down a long, un-fretted neck and over a small, spherical, wooden body covered with skin (sheep hide or fish skin). It is one of the predecessors of the medieval lute, and is part of the spike family of instruments (so named for the spike that originates from the bottom of the sound-box and props on the floor.). The term kamanjah may also be used to refer to the violin.
Chagane
The chagane is a four-stringed instrument that was used in Iran up until the end of : the 19th century. The Russian artist G. Gagarin, who visited Iran in the first half of 19th century, depicted the chagane in his work "Shamaha Dancers".Information about this instrument appears in the works of Qatran Tabrizi
Qatran Tabrizi
Abū-Mansūr Qatrān-i Tabrīzī was a royal Persian poet.He was born in Sahar near Arrah, bihar Tabriz and was the most famous panegyrist of his time in Iran. His full name according to an old manuscript handwritten by the famous poet Anvari Abivardi is Abu Mansur Qatran al-Jili al-Azerbaijani...
, Imadaddin Nasimi, Seyid Azim Shirvani and many other classical poets. The chagane has a pear-shaped body, a neck and a head. This reconstructed instrument was presented at a scientific symposium in Edinburgh, Scotland in 2000 and made a significant impression on the participants at the symposium.
The oblong body of the chagane consists of nine parts. It is assembled from pieces of nut wood, sandalwood and beech. The body and neck of the instrument are connected with a long iron probe that goes from the bottom part of the body and plays the role of a core. The face of the body is covered with a five-mm-thick sounding board made of pine. Resonator apertures are bored through this board. During the performance, the instrument is held in a vertical position, and the probe rests on the floor. The sound is produced with a bow that is held in the right hand.
The total length of the instrument is 820 mm. The body is 420 mm long, 220 mm wide and 140 mm tall. Its range goes from the "fa sharp" of the great octave to the "fa sharp" of the second octave.
See also
- Music of IranMusic of IranThe music of Iran has thousands of years of history, as seen in the archeological documents of Elam, one of the earliest world cultures,which was located in southwestern Iran...
- Kemenche
- Silk Road ProjectSilk Road ProjectSilk Road Project, Inc. is a not-for-profit organization, initiated by acclaimed cellist Yo-Yo Ma in 1998, promoting collaboration among artists and institutions, promoting multicultural artistic exchange, and studying the ebb and flow of ideas among different cultures along the Silk Road. The...
, Silk Road Ensemble - Byzantine lira, the bowed instrument of the Byzantine Empire
- Music of AzerbaijanMusic of AzerbaijanMusic of Azerbaijan builds on folk traditions that reach back nearly 1,000 years. For centuries Azerbaijani music has evolved under the badge of monody, producing rhythmically diverse melodies. Azerbaijani music has a branchy mode system, where chromatisation of major and minor scales is of great...
- Turkish or Armenian Kemenche — also known as the Black Sea Kemenche
- List of bowed stringed instruments
External links
- About Kamanche
- Nay-Nava: The Encyclopedia of Persian Music Instruments
- Arash Dejkam's Iran Pages kamancheh section, features sound clips
- An old video of Ali-Asghar Bahari, playing Kamancheh in Hafezieh, shiraz
- Ardeshir Kamkar and Mathaios Tsahouridis (kurdish/greek)
- kamancheh.com
- The song called "Kamancha" composed by Sayat Nova
Kamanche at The Metropolitan Museum of Art:
- Kamanche, Iran, ca. 1880
- Kamanche, Iran, ca. 1869
- Video: Kayhan KalhorKayhan KalhorKayhan Kalhor , born 24 November 1963, is an Iranian kamancheh player, composer and master of classical Kurdish and Persian music.-Youth and studies:...
speaking as an ensemble member of Silk Road Ensemble, December 2008: YouTube (13 min).
(Officially released by Silk Road ProjectSilk Road ProjectSilk Road Project, Inc. is a not-for-profit organization, initiated by acclaimed cellist Yo-Yo Ma in 1998, promoting collaboration among artists and institutions, promoting multicultural artistic exchange, and studying the ebb and flow of ideas among different cultures along the Silk Road. The...
– see silkroadproject)