The Naghma-Ye Kashdl of Afghanistan John B
The Naghma-Ye Kashdl of Afghanistan John B
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Ethnomusicology
John Baily
I The research on which this paper is based was conducted between 1973 and 1977. For
background information, see my monograph Music of Afghanistan: professional musicians in the
city of Herat (Baily 1988); frequent reference to that work is made in what follows. At the time
of writing (1998), musical instruments and the music associated with them are completely
banned in the 95% of Afghanistan under the control of the Taliban militia, which includes both
Kabul and Herat. Nevertheless, I write mainly in the present tense because despite the ban there
are no doubt musicians active in Afghanistan today, whether clandestinely in areas under Taliban
rule, or publicly in other parts, not to speak of the many refugee musicians, professional and
amateur, in Pakistan, Iran, India, Tajikistan, Europe, North America, Australia and elsewhere.
The musical transcriptions in this paper are copyright ? John Baily 1998.
2 Details of these kinds of performance context can be found in Baily 1988, Chapter 8.
3 I have discussed aspects of the naghma-ye kashdl in several other publications, such as Baily
(1987) and Baily (1988:66-74, and Examples 2-3 on the cassette accompanying that publication).
Further audio examples of the genre can be found on recordings by Essa Kassimi, Gada
Mohammad and Rahim Khushnawaz, see Discography.
117
As a musical form for solo instrument the naghma-ye kashdl has three main
stages: shakl, astdi and antara. Let us examine them in turn. (1) The shakl is an
exploration of the melodic possibilities of the mode, in free rhythm (approxi-
mately equivalent to an ctlacp or taqsim). (2) The aistc2i consists of a fixed composi-
tion in Tintdl (16-matra metric cycle), often composed over two cycles of the t0l,
played with drum accompaniment provided by tabla or dohol. The dstcai composi-
tion is played many times over, with rhythmic variations. (3) The antara consists
of a series of short compositions, also in Tintcl, played at a fast tempo, which can
be repeated and sequenced at the discretion of the musician. Overall, the naghma-
ye kashall is a vehicle for rhythmic rather than for melodic improvisation. Played
as a solo piece a naghma-ye kashal generally lasts for 5-10 minutes, but can be
extended for longer: Essa Kassimi's recording of a naghma-ye kashail in Rag
Bairami runs for 23 minutes (Kassimi 1979). When played as a group instru-
mental piece the shakl is much attenuated, and consists of little more than the
various instrumentalists getting in tune with one other.
The origins of the naghma-ye kashacl are obscure. It has many obvious
connections with North Indian instrumental art music-in terminology, concepts
of rag (melodic mode) and tal (metric cycle), note names and drum mnemonics.
However, compositions of this kind are not played outside Afghanistan, except by
members of the Afghan diaspora. According to one authorative musician source,4
the naghma-ye kashal comes originally from India, where it was used for a type of
classical dance long since abandoned. This might explain its otherwise curious
association with dancing boys in Afghanistan. The naghma-ye kashail was
cultivated at the court of the Amirs of Kabul from the 1880s to the 1930s, and is
closely linked to the Afghan rubab, the double-chested plucked lute which is
regarded as the national instrument of Afghanistan (Fig. 1).5 The genre lies at the
heart of the rubab's traditional repertoire.
In the 1970s the naghma-ye kashal was already perceived as part of an "old"
repertoire, strongly connected in musicians' minds with the great ustads ("master
musicians") of the Kabul court such as Ustad Kasem. These were singers of
ghazals and Hindustani music who also cultivated the rubab for their Pashtun
patrons. The total repertory of naghmaha-ye kashal (plural of naghma-ye kashal)
is small, no more than about 20 compositions, in different racgs. In the 1970s some
of these compositions were widely known and were recorded in performance from
many musicians, either as solos (with drum accompaniment) or as group instru-
mental pieces. Those that were widely known were surprisingly consistent from
musician to musician. Some examples of naghmahac-ye kashdl were already rare.
Some I never heard performed in context: they were given to me in the form of
4 This information was supplied by Sufi Lali, the maternal uncle of Ustad Sarahang. Sarahang
was Afghanistan's foremost singer of khydl in the later part of the twentieth century.
5 The Afghan rubdb is a short-necked double-chested plucked lute. It has three main strings,
tuned in 4ths, 2-4 long drone strings, called shdhtar ("king strings") and a set of (usually) 15
sympathetic strings, tuned to the pitches of the mode being played. The shortest sympathetic
string is raised by a protuberance on the bridge so it can readily be struck in isolation and used as
a high drone.
J-
skin belly
4 frets
notation. Now, more than 20 years later, after two decades of a civil war w
continues to this day, and with the strongly anti-music Taliban militia controllin
95% of the country, these pieces are even rarer. In that sense they have bec
even more precious.
It is my aim here to put the naghmaha-ye kashal on record, and to provi
prescriptive source for a new generation of amateur and professsional Afg
musicians, and for other interested parties to study, analyse, and perform
fulfill this prescriptive role the pieces are notated here in romanised sarg
notation, as well as in slightly modified Western staff notation. Details of t
notational systems are given below. My paper concludes with a brief analysi
the naghma-ye kashdl as a musical form, with some comments on perform
practice.
The data are derived from two musician sources, Ustad Mohammad Omar of
Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan, and Ustad Amir Jan Khushnawaz, from the
provincial city of Herat. Both are now dead. They were rather different and
contrasting sources. Ustad Mohammad Omar was the foremost rubab player in
Afghanistan, a household name through his frequent radio broadcasts; Amir Jan
was a Kabuli-trained singer in a provincial city who also played the rubab (and
other instruments) and had learned these naghmaha-ye kashal from a Kabuli
musician in the 1930s. As singers trained in Kabuli art music both men were
Ustad Mohammad Omar became one of the best known and most highly
esteemed of Afghan musicians. Perhaps this was because his instrumental music
transcended the cultural barriers inherent in whether song texts were in Persian or
Pashto. His rubab became the distinctive voice of Afghanistan as received by the
radio audience. Amongst musicians he was known and respected for his
knowledge of art music, of which the naghma-ye kashal was a part. He became in
due course an official, government-appointed, ustad, a "master musician". Rather
few audio recordings of his playing are to be found, possibly reflecting a
disinclination to commit his work to posterity, and easy emulation by others.
I met Ustad Mohammad Omar in July 1973. Mohammad Daud had just
deposed his brother-in-law, Zahir Shah, the King of Afghanistan, the first step in
the tragic sequence of events which led to 20 years of civil war. I had a letter of
6 By "Kabuli art music" I refer to the art music performed in Kabul, consisting of two types: (a)
Hindustani (art) music of the khyal (kldsik) and naghma-ye kldsik genres, and (b) Afghan art
music, consisting of the Kabuli ghazal and naghma-ye kashdl genres (Baily 1988:ch. 5). Sargam
is a form of Indian music notation adopted in Afghanistan from the Indian Sub-Continent, and is
used as both written and oral notation.
introduction from a journalist in Herat whose father had been Ustad Mohammad
Omar's student. I went to find Ustad at Radio Afghanistan,7 his place of
employment, and he took me by taxi to the house of Joma Khan Qader, the rubab
maker, who was in turn sent off to his workshop in the old city to bring an
instrument for me to purchase. Joma Khan' s son Musa was also a student of Ustad
Mohammad Omar's, and he spoke some English, too. This was a great help
because my Dari (Afghan Persian) was quite limited at that stage of my work.
I came to this music with some knowledge of the rudiments of North Indian
music theory, such as sargam and tabla bols, rags and tdls. Music theory for the
rubab was clearly rooted in this system. My initial lesson, given to me that first
day at Joma Khan's house, was to write down the note names with reference to
the instrument's fretboard. I was told to familiarise myself with the names and
positions of the notes so that I could immediately find any note on the fretboard
when Ustad Mohammad Omar said its name. His was a slightly modified version
of the Indian sargam system, with 12 semitones to the octave: Sd Rd Ra Gd Ga
Ma Ma Pa Da Da Nd Ni Sd. Figure 2 shows this notation in Persian script mapped
out on the fretboard of the rubab.
4 c
R 9 Ma
(, ;
lo a 4pa-
7 The name of Radio Kabul was changed to Radio Afghanistan in the 1960s, when the radio
station was moved from-the old city to new premises built near the airport by the USSR; see
Baily 1988:31.
let svc~rl"
R~w 1?- A. je
S- k - - -. Dieis r
RaL 4A C4 t- b N.. IX .. . w
I received nine lessons from Ustad Mohammad Omar ove
(25.7.73 to 29.8.73). Usually I attended his class for amateur
Kucheh Kharabat. Most of his amateur students were m
young men, university students, minor government officials,
method of teaching was through the medium of written notat
system, written in Persian script. "Ustad's method is first
piece, then to write it out for you, then to play it with you w
it. No tape recorders here" (fieldnotes 1.8.73). He would atte
turn for 10-15 minutes, while others present watched, lear
seeing another's difficulties. Often Ustad Mohammad Omar would play two
rubdbs with a student, sometimes trying to throw the tyro off with complex cross-
rhythms.
astai. What Ustad Mohammad Omar labelled the bhog and sanchari are rather
stereotyped compositions which occur in one form or another in nearly all
naghmahd-ye kashcil.
The first step was to show me that Bairami has an ascending and a descending
scale, called in Afghanistan the arui and amrui. These terms (derived from groh
and avroh) and the concepts they label are further proof of the close links with the
Indian concept of rag. He then taught me the astai, and the antara, structurally
closely related to the dstai. He also showed me transformations of these,
described as du lai, "double tempo". It is not the tempo that changes, but the
rhythmic density, generally increasing to two notes per matra rather than one. He
also dictated to me two paltas, rather standardised melodic variations. These were
to be sandwiched between statements of the antara. Some days later he showed
me the bhog and sanchari, the 3rd and 4th sections of the naghma, and then a
final palta which concluded the piece. In writing out these pieces I used the
symbol - to indicate an extension of the proceeding note by a half-matra or
matra.
sanchari Ge Ge Ge Ge Ma Ma Pe Pe
Ma Ma Ga Ga Re Re Sa Re
Re
Astdi
antara
Astdi - du lai
palta 1
palta -2d
t) ? U U
Ssanc I I I ari i
sanchari
S (0 K-,m[- I
palta 3
L i f11 1 1 ' I M| I I i i
I A .1 1 I I II
I t- W ".
Brui Sa Re Ge Me Pe De Ni Sal
amrui Sa1 Ni De Pe Me Ge Re Sa
10to Ustad Mohammad Omar spent several months at the University of Washington as an art
residence, an appointment facilitated by Dr Lorraine Sakata, then a professor of ethnomusico
at Washington who had conducted extensive resdearch in Afghanistan and been a stude
Ustad Mohammad Omar. A unique event, this concert has passed into Afghan musician folkl
"Bootleg" cassettes of the Washington concert crop up from time to time. They pro
originate from cassettes of the concert that Ustad Mohammad Omar gave out to his friends
return to Kabul.
11 It is significant that in his recordings for the cassette company Afghan Music in Kabul, U
Mohammad Omar had dohol rather than tabla for his drum accompaniment. There coul
various reasons for this choice, one of the most obvious being the dohol was argua
distinctive Afghan instrument, while the tabla was acknowledged to have been literally imp
from India. Thus dohol with rubab added a distinctly nationalistic ambiance to the recordin
palta 5
NiSal DeNi PeDe MePe GeMe ReGe SaRe Nil Sa
NiSal DeNi PeDe MePe GeMe ReGe SaRe Nil Sa
Alrui amrui
0 9
fiUfilD
tasttU
antara
A I. ., A .[ .... 10l
I f UU ~' P F I N II
bhog
A,
ofI I Ii ili I
1. I1 I
1 1 doom In
sanchari
,io ,, 'l],
UJ W J- !iT,.l'
, i m 'i
i
palta1
f(M1i I Ilt
. Rf---
palta3 I .l
II,o
-- -,
-,Fi
F-- - -I .I "pool
..1
I I 1F ..I .,,I F
! Ii1! I I .-- I1 IJ
Apalta 2
I
A
',.dO I
F I I
I
i!--J
PRO
I ,F"I ,o i pI uI-
Apalta 5 po ampo3I
pai~a 3 awl .0m~
Ar I Mao"-Na
I~JVC? I I l. . I'iI
palta 4
, , , m I m I--L
WPM
0)- -P~. ]k-- - -40.d - -
palta 5
TII I l6,-ad w _
I ,". I
In November 1973 I moved to Herat to work on the dutdr. I saw little of Ustad
Mohammad Omar, and although I had further lessons from him he did not teach
me any more compositions. He did not approve of the dutdr, which he considered
the domain of opium smokers (i.e. associating it with Iran). "The rubab," he told
me, "requires lots of stamina. You have to drink whisky to play the rubab!"
rrua'.
During my first year of fieldwork in Herat, 1973-74, I met Amir Jan only a few
times. I was not working much on the rubab at that stage, though I did make a
number of recordings of his son Rahim, an outstanding rubab player.12 It was also
at this time I began to realise the importance of the naghma-ye kashal. During a
six-week visit to Herat in 1975 I began having lessons with Amir Jan on rubab.
He concentrated on teaching me naghmas and paltas for naghma-ye klasik
13 The nature of shakl is discussed at length in Baily (1981), where shakls for most of the
naghmas given here can be found.
sar az i naghma, "A blessing on this instrumental piece!" He told me many times
how in previous days (1920s) they would play the appropriate naghma-ye kashdl
at the start of each set of ghazals and other songs in a single rag, to warm up the
instruments for subsequent fine adjustments to the tuning (especially of sympa-
thetic strings), and to warm up musicians and audience alike. This practice had
become largely discontinued, and it was now customary to play a single naghma-
ye kashdl at the start of an evening's performance of urban music. The only
musician I observed to play more than one naghma-ye kashdl in the course of an
evening's performance was Ustad Rahim Bakhsh from Kabul, whose band played
a second naghma-ye kashcl after the interval in their Ramazdn concerts in Herat
in 1974 and 1976.
This was the first naghma-ye kashal that Amir Jan taught me. Bihag gave us a lot
of trouble because Amir Jan felt he had to revise the composition as originally
dictated after hearing comments about Rag Bihag from Ustad Sarahang on the
radio (see Baily 1988:44). The notation presented here combines elements from
the several slightly different versions he gave me over the months. The naghma-
ye kashdl in Rag Bihdg was widely known but I only ever heard it played as a solo
piece. Amir Jan often suggested a small modification to the last line of a composi-
tion to facilitate moving to the next section. Such a modification would only be
played once. Many such examples will be found in the compositions that follow.
drui Sa Ge Ma Pe Ni Sa1
amrui Sal Ni De Pe Ge Ma Ge Re Sa
antara 3 (20.4.77)
Sa' Sa' Sa' Sa' Sa' Sa' Sa' Sa'
Ni Ni Ni De Pe PeGe -Pe De
Ni Ni Ni Ni DeNa DeNa Pe Pe
Na De Pe Ma Ge GeMa -Pe Ni
antara 4 (20.4.77)
Pe Pe Pe Pe De Ma Ge Ge
Ma Ma Ma Pe Ge Re Nil Sa
(or Ge GeRe -Ni1 Sa)
antara 5 (20.4.77)
Sa Sa Sa Nil Sa Ge Ma Na
De Pe Ge Ma Ge Re Sa Ni1
(or Ge GeRe -Sa Ni1)
seh Sa Sa Sa Nit Ge Ge Ma Na
MaPe -Ni Sa' MaPe -Ni Sa' MaPe -Ni
Sa
1 :
dstdi
Aantara 11 . o2 TOan,,r,2
anara 2I
antara 2
,*
antara 3
antara 4 or
antara 5 or "
seh
A 10
IfF~ I I I I , I. '1 / .. . FI , I I l
)! 44~
Naghma-ye k
The naghma
group instru
naghma-ye k
by Ustad Moh
Ustad Moham
of both Me an
supposed to
two composit
bhog
sanchari
I I 01. - j
Amir Jan did not recognise the terms bhog and sanchari, and called these two
sections antaras 2 and 3.
This naghma-ye kashdl is well known. I found that it was regularly played by the
Kabuli musician Ustad Rahim Bakhsh and his group for their Ramazcdn concerts
in Herat after the interval, to introduce the second half of their concert. Amir Jan,
somewhat gleefully, criticised Rahim Bakhsh's performance of this naghma-ye
kashadl because he did not play antaras 4, 5, 6 and 7: "One should play the com-
plete naghma," he said.
drui Sa Ge Ma Na De Ni Sal
amrui Sal Na De Ma Pe De Ma Ge Re Sa
antara 2 Sa Sa Ge Ge Ma Ma Pe De
Sa' Sa' Na Pe MaDe PeMa GeMa Ge
No seh given.
arui amrui
PO
antara 5
.,", I I r " I y r / F
antara 6 (once only)
antara 7
No seh given
Sa Sa Re Re Ge Ge Ma Ma
Na Na De Pe Ma GePe MaGe Ma
antara 5 Ma Ma Ma Ma Ge Ma Pe Sa1
Na De Pe Na De Pe Ma Ge
seh Ma Ma Ma Ma Ge Ma Pe Sa1
SaGe -Ge Ma SaGe --Ge Ma SaGe -Ge
Ma
Grui amrui
antara 1
antara 2
arntara 2oceony
antara 5
seh
I Add w
' - - 1-- ,L,
I [ I
Ad.
cirui Sa Ga Ma Pe Ni Sal
amrui Sal Na De Pe Ma Ga Re Sa
antara 4 (3.2.77)
Ni Ni Ni Ni Sa' Sa' Re' Re'
Sa' Sa' Na Na De DePe Ma Pe
antara 5 (3.2.77)
Re' Re' Re' Re' Re' Re' Sa' Re'
Ga' Ga' Ga' Ga' Re' SalNi --Sa Re'
Ga' Ga' Ga' Ga' Re' Re' Sa' Sa'
Na Na De De Na Na Re' Re'
antara 6 Ge Ge Ge Ge Ma Ma Pe Pe
Ma Ma Ga Ga Re Re Nil Sa
seh Ge Ge Ge Ge Ma Ma Pe Pe
MaPe -Ni Sa' MaPe -Ni Sal MaPe -Ni
Sa
or (3.2.77): Ga Ma Pe Ni Sa' - Ga Ma
Pe Ni Sa' - Ga Ma Pe Ni
Sa
arui amrui
a'I IUD
antara 1
antara 2
OMEN% -4
antara 3 I 2. To antra
antara 4 [ 7 T T o ~TOa s5
1.-rI ......
UM I : F i
I'IIo I I Toatr6
antara 6
se)
ii __ , i
A
IIi i
id
!iI op
IIIIiI14I0I1
o
lte
antara 6
seh
I IJi rA ,
I dO _ 1 1i.I I I
l l I i I I i N
A '.J I .I J i | i i . . , , ." I Il I
Antara 5 of Pilu is a little odd because it consists of 212 cycles of Tintdl and ha
be played twice or a multiple thereof in order to come out correctly with refe
to the tal.
dcrui Sa Ge Ma Pe De Na Sal
amrui Sal Na De Pe Ma Ge Ma Pe
dstai Pe Pe Pe Pe Pe Pe Pe PePe
Ma Ma Ma GeGe Ma Ma Ma NaNa
De De Pe Pe Ma Ma Ma NaNa
De De Pe Pe Ma Ge Pe Me
(must return to
antara 1 Pe Pe Pe Pe Pe Pe Pe Sa'Sa1
Ni Ni Ni Ni Sa' Sa' Re' Rel
antara 2
seh-type figure
Pe Pe Pe Pe PeNa DePe --Ge Ma
MaDe -Na Sa' MaPe -De Na SaGe -Ma
Pe
Concluding seh
drui amrui
anlara i
Il 'I
U . I I I I I. , .F
antara 1
I 0 I rk
ftt Ir k I- F , H "
antara 4
anoIher I -O tpe r- a t a 2
se type3figure retrnstoantara2
Aagoi."iMOO
concluding seh
Ar 3
40 mi P, doC~f~cF
I L I a IL
r - Ad
acrui Sa Ra Ga Ma Pe Da Na Sal
amrui Sal Na Da Pe Ma Ga Ra Sa
Na Na Na DaDa Pe Pe Ga MeMe
Ma Ma GaRe Ga Ra Ra SaNa1 Sa
Da Da Pe Pe Da Da Sa' Sa'
Na Na Da Da Pe PeMa Na Na
antara 5 Re Re Re Re Ga Ga Ma Ma
Ga Ga Ra Ra Sa Sa Na Sa
(Da Na
to antara 6)
antara 6 Sa Sa Sa Sa Ra Ra Ma Ma
Ga Ga Ra Ra Sa Sa Da Na
seh Sa Sa Sa Sa Ra Ra Ma Ma
GaMa DaNa Sa' GaMa DaNa Sa' GaMa DaNa
Sa'
arui amrui
A
I BI" I I11 I 1 I I i ! IP ii i
I Vgrl , I i 1 i 1 . i i i i I I i I" P t 1 / i I! I - i 1 i I F i l
i i I il l I N I , ,
antara 3
S B I 112 ooantara2
AL
antara 4 (once only)
A antara!5Ian-aI
Repeat antara 1
arui amrui
Adstidi
i '.. . -...,
A antaraPo 1. I I I 1 112. 7b . i i2
il
antara 2 1 12 o arm 3
antara 3
I M I
E? 1F2. To antara
I r r r' ' -- r r I-F
antara 4 (once only)
,I I..
1, I I lI
Naghma-y
This is a r
collected fr
three anta
entire com
drui Sa Re Ma Pe De Sa1
amrui Sa1 Ni De Pe Ma Ge Re Sa Re Ge Sa
Ni De Pe Ma Ge Ge Re SaSa
Re Re Ma Ma Pe Pe De De
Return to antara 1
dstdi
I irf a I I I I II I T. r!v
anlrarpm7
I At
ra 01- IM I
II
l [I I
m,2.
.I, I lTola
I
J J J l
I I I I I
a 22antara 3
I11IW L L"
antar ~I
antara 3 (returns to antara 111
i~i OP.. . I, A&l ,
seh
A I i woo" L;FFF~
I I FR M
drui Sa Re Ma Pe Da Sa1
amrui Sa1 Na Da Pe Ma Ga Re Sa
Na Da Pe Ma Ga Ga Re SaSa
Re Re Ma Ma Pe Da Ma Pe
Pe Pe -Na Da Na Na -Pe Da
Pe Pe -Na Da Na Na -Pe Da
(Pe Pe Pe Pe
to antara 3)
dstdi
I 0r ,Irr 2r io ror , 31
antara 4
I AI I
antara 2
antara 4
seh
arui Sa Re Ma Pe Ni Sal
Na De Pe De Ma Ge Re NilSa
Re Re Ma Ma Pe Pe Ni Ni
(Ni NiSal
to antara 2)
antara 5 Re Re Re Sa Re Ma Pe Sa'
Na De Pe De Ma MaGe -Nil Sa
seh Re Re Re Sa Re Ma Pe Sal
am" eal
astdi
A7 7 2. Towutara 2
IAt
A
oil II I
l
I i I"
,
antara 3
!:II
, 0 . ...12. To
antara 4 (once only)
antara 5
rI JL.
seh
arui Sa Ga Ma De Na Sal
amrui Sal Na De Ma Pe Ga Re Sa
antara 2 Ma Ma Ma Ga Ma De Na Sa'
Na De MaPe De Ga Re SaNa Sa
seh Ma Ma Ma Ga Ma De Na Sa'
MaDe -Na Sa' MaDe -Na Sa' MaDe -Na
Sa1
x
ifrui amrui
all
an
1 Id I I I
antara 2
III M "
selh
w do
Naghma-ye kashcl in
While the naghma-ye
played with one or ot
antara 1 notated here
the time that this com
arui Sa Re Ge Me Pe De Ni Sal
amrui Sal Ni De Pe Me Ge Re Sa
astdi Pe Pe Pe Pe Pe Pe Pe GeRe
Ge Ge Ge MaMa Ge Ge Re NilNil
Sa Sa Re Re Ge Ge Ge MaMa
Ge Ge Re Re Sa Sa Ge Re
antara 1 Pe Pe Pe Pe Pe Pe Pe MeGe
Me Me Me PePe Me Me Me ReRe
Ge Ge Me Me Pe Pe Pe Sa' Sa'
Ni Ni De De Pe Pe Pe NiDe
Pe Pe De De Ni Ni Ni Sa' Sa'
Ni Ni De De Pe Pe Me GeMe
(antara 1 must return
antara 4 Ge Ge Ge Re Ge Me Pe Ni
arui amrui
TI C ''
Ostdi
F1~I El... .. 1 40 = I I I I I
I tr~I 1
V. I iI. II
antara 2
antara 4
I o se given
No sedO given
The stdi
14 I have discussed elsewhere this "scalar movement framed by the octave" characteristic of
rubdab music, in contrast to the melodic movement of dutdr tunes (Baily 1995). While in terms of
melodic movement the latter also procede stepwise, they are not framed within the octave and are
not scalar in the same way, but emphasise the principle of sequencing.
6e O
1 Id
II I I 2..
SI I 2.
1 2. 3
T I 2. 1 I 1 6
S3 2.
2 6 4- L .5 q 4. 3 - 4- 51
a
I It3 II S 3 2 4 '%
5 - Z5 4-23 3 a&
666
L7 a
3 /
One w
4 go
3 go
1 goe
2 go
1 goe
1 goes from Sa to Sa (Kumdj)
With regard to these melodic contours, two distinct patterns emerge. The four
that go from Sal to Sa follow the contour shown in Figure 6. They stress the area
of the upper tonic (Sal or Ni) for 12 matras, then their precise structure varies. It
is evident that Yeman has a similar contour, despite starting on Pe rather than Sa1.
The three dstdi compositions that go from Sal to Sal have the contour shown in
Figure 7. The upper tonic Sa1 is stressed for 8 matras, then there is a descent to
the lower part of the upper tetrachord, then a return to the upper tonic, and then a
descent to the lower tonic and a return to the upper tonic.
The antara
The term antara has two meanings. As a section of the naghma-ye kashdl form as
a whole, it describes the third section of the piece (shakl, astai, antara). The
antara as a structural section consists of a series of short compositions, each an
individual antara. These are repeated at the discretion of the performer, who can
also return to an earlier antara and repeat again the sequence from that point.
It is evident that there are a number of antara types which crop up from one
naghma-ye kashal composition to another. These prototypical structures will be
referred to as Antara-Patterns (APs), and designated AP-I, AP-II, AP-III, AP-IV
and AP-V.
and Yeman Kalydn, antara 1 is closely related to the cdstcdi. Yeman and Kumnj are
the best examples, where the dstdi and antara 1 differ only in the first 8 (of 32)
matras. Ustad Mohammad Omar's composition in Bairami also has an antara
which is closely related to the dstdi. This kind of antara really belongs to the dstdi
section of the naghma. After statements of the antara one returns to the dstdi
composition. A further justification for this view is that when one replaces a 32-
matra "double-gat" stdi composition with a 16 matra one, one does not play the
cstdi-related antara, but would pass directly from astdi to antara 2.
Antara-Pattern II (AP-II) corresponds to Ustad Mohammad Omar's bhog, and
can take a number of different forms.
The compositions are notated here in their basic forms, as dictated verbally by my
teachers. The notations constitute, at the very least, "underlying models". In
performance these pieces become greatly elaborated, through rhythmic improvisa-
tion of the acstdi and the selective repetition of antara patterns. There is also some
scope for the interpolation of improvised melodic passages (paltas), though these
are more typical of the naghma-ye kldsik, the "classical instrumental piece" (Baily
1988:76-8).
A detailed examination of how the underlying models are transformed into
performance is beyond the scope of this paper, and would require the analysis of
numerous recorded performances, both solos (mainly for rubdb) and group
instrumentals. Two examples are given in Baily 1988:69-74. But an outline of the
procedure can be given to help aspiring performers, which, together with listening
to the suggested recordings, will provide much of the knowledge required to
Kesturi, Kumaj, Yeman and Yeman Kalyan, then that composition will be
interpolated within the astdi, followed by a return to the dcstdi composition itself.
The antara section proper follows the astai. Here there is a marked change of
rhythm and tempo. Although most antara compositions are 16 matras in length,
they are accompanied by tabla or dohol played du lai, double tempo, reckoned to
be two cycles of Tintal, or 32 matras. Often the drummer, unable to sustain Tintdl
at this fast tempo, switches to Geda, an Afghan version of the tdl called Kerawa,
8 matras in length. The structuring of the antara is very much at the discretion of
the peformer, and one might distinguish between a short version and an extended
version. In the short version one might play AP-II 4 times, then AP-III 4 times,
and AP-IV twice. In some compositions it is necessary to return to AP-III after
AP-IV (AP-III to be played 2-4 times), while in others it is not so. Finally, one
moves on to AP-V, the concluding section, where again the tempo may increase
markedly. The piece may or may not conclude with a seh.
In a long version of the antara one might play each separate antara composi-
tion more times, and one has the possibility of going back to patterns already
played. Thus, after AP-IV one might return to AP-III, then on to AP-IV again.
Having reached AP-V it is possible to return to AP-III, and round again. Kassimi
(1979) shows the possibilities very clearly. This flexibility in presenting short
melodies in various sequences is found in other genres of instrumental music in
Afghanistan, such as Logari dance tunes (Baily 1988:92-4). The various antaras
are usually played in slightly varied rhythmic form each time, using different right
hand stroke patterns, and, particularly in the later stages, employing the high
drone string on an instrument such as the rubab or dutdr.
5 Afterword
The aim of this paper is to document an important genre of Afghan music, at a
time when this genre, along with other kinds of music, has been banned for
religious reasons. This is not intended simply as an exercise in "conservation
ethnomusicology", though that has its place in our discipline, but to encourage
others to play these pieces, by reminding them of, and in some cases teaching
them for the first time, versions as played by musicians of the past. It is possible
to use the recurring melodic models and other elements of rule-bound structure
embodied in this collection of pieces to compose new examples of the genre. This
I have done myself, with some degree of success, as judged by the response of
Afghans to whom I have played them.
In addition to the pieces notated, I am aware of traditional naghmahd-ye kashal
in four modes not considered here: Bhimpalasi, Talang, Beiru and Bhupali.
Bhimpalasi is recorded on CD by Rahim Khushnawaz (Khushnawaz and
Mohammad 1995), and less readily available recordings of the others also exist.
These have not been included here because I do not have comparable dictated
notations for them. There are also many other 16-matra compositions in the
modes considered above which can be used as dstdi for a naghma-ye kashdl.
Their publication will follow in due course. The genre, far from being moribund,
has the potential for future growth.
REFERENCES
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Silver, Brian (1976) "On becoming an ustad: Six life sketches in the evolution of a gharini".
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DISCOGRAPHY