Iranian Classical Singing

The classical singing of Iran, similar to its instrumental music, follows the Radif. Often in an intimate question and response format, these different types of Radifs intermingle and dance together with a complementing flow. From the earlier days of its conception until now, the form has evolved and interacted with its surroundings and contexts. There are different styles to these vocal radifs as we refer to them today. One of these radifs which has been nicely documented, recorded, and notated is that of Mahmood Karimi. He has been the vocal mentor of other well known Iranian classical singers including the world renowned female vocalist, Parissa. You can easily find his entire radif to listen to on the internet including on the webpage of Foundation for Iranian Studies, here. Finding the notation has proven a bit more difficult. Your local university library may have a hard copy of this book. It is a tremendous bilingual aid (English and French) in visually following the recordings and the details are extremely accurate. It is highly recommended for those familiar with notation (able to read music) and interested in learning a Persian vocal radif on their own time. Good news is, we are starting our Persian vocal lessons here at Rhythmitica very soon! so you will also be able to take online music lessons here! Stay tuned as we offer more and more exciting classes!   

Persian vocal lessons