A View from the Inside: The Anatomy of the Persian Ta'ziyeh Plays

The basic foundations of the Persian ta'ziyeh plays are poetry, music, and performance style.

Poetry

Iranians have an extraordinary poetic inclination, which is reflected in their history, art, and culture. There is a saying that every Persian is a poet; this is probably due to the fact that there are few nations that are so well acquainted with their poetic literary tradition. It is hard to find an Iranian who doesn't like poetry or who does not know by heart many verses of our great poets. Poetic verse is often used in conversation, cited according to the occasion. The verses used in ta'ziyeh are very simple and understandable. An example is the monologue of Shemr—the cruel commander of Yazid's army—in The Ta'ziyeh of Ali Akbar. Shemr addresses his army and praises the young hero Ali Akbar with eloquence. In the same ta'ziyeh, Ali Akbar's mother, Umm Laila, has a monologue in which she addresses the horse of Ali Akbar with extremely touching simplicity. Folk poetry as well as the famous verses of great classical Persian poets are found in ta'ziyeh, with the different styles complementing one other.

Music

In ta'ziyeh, both vocal and instrumental music are used. In the instrumental music, mostly reeds/flutes known as ney, kettle drums/timbrels known as naqareh, or wind instruments known as sheypur (bugles/trumpets) and karna (horns) are employed. It is easy to find these instruments in every part of Iran and it is not so difficult for those who have musical talent to master them. Another reason for the use of these specific instruments is that they do not fall into the category of musical instruments forbidden for religious reasons.¹ In certain regions, for example, Boushehr, local instruments such as the bagpipes are utilized.

Vocal music, with a wide range of Persian modes and melodies, occupies a very important place in the ta'ziyeh and is used in a specific manner for each dramatic situation. All the verses of the protagonists must be sung and vary enormously, employing all the Persian modes, including both sad and joyful melodies. Ta'ziyeh performers begin their training as children and adolescents, with experienced adults and ta'ziyeh directors. They learn to how to choose a melody for the lyrics of each separate dramatic event. Sometimes they utilize different maqams,or modes. Only the antagonists recite their lyrics without music. In the scenes of battle and epic moments, the melodies are uplifting, usually in the modes of Mahour or Chahargah. The protracted lyrics accompanying farewells, preparations of the heroes for the battlefield, or the transportation of the corpses are very sad and are sung in the Abuata, Bayat-e Turk, Afshari, or Dashti modes. When the subject of the scene is love and affection, the performer sings in the Bayat-e Esfehan mode. At the moment of the climax of the tragedy and martyrdom, the performer sings the lyrics in the mode of Husseini.

Carla Serena wrote in her book, Hommes et choses en Perse (1883) that:

the song that is sung at the time of separation was so full of sorrow and sounded like the prayer for death. Words sounded like a trumpet and a clear voice was heard in the remotest corners of the Takiyeh and in response the sound of weeping of thousands of people could be heard. The voice was like thunder that had not reached the earth. The singing began softly and gradually became louder, resembling the sound of the south wind. It was as if a ship had been caught in a terrible storm in the Atlantic Ocean, in the middle of a dark night [...].²

She added in the same section that:

[...A]t first the voice was low and gradually increased. The song became so powerful that one's soul would tremble. The most beautiful scene for the musical performance is when Imam Hossein, in a ta'ziyeh, is informed of the martyrdom of his son or brother and goes to the scene...