Tar (lute)

Tar
A Persian tar
String instrument
Classification Plucked string instrument
Related instruments
Setar, Dutar, Tanbur

The tar (Persian: تار) is a plucked string instrument used in Iranian music. It has a long neck and a body made from two connected wooden bowls. The Persian tar is an important instrument in Persian classical music. It is played alone, with a singer, or as part of a group.

This instrument should not be confused with a frame drum that is also called tar. Forms of the long-necked tar are also played in Azerbaijan and other nearby regions, but their construction and playing styles are not always the same.

Construction and playing

The body of a Persian tar is carved from wood. Its front is covered with a thin skin instead of a wooden soundboard. A small bridge stands on the skin. The instrument normally has six strings arranged in three pairs. Its neck has tied frets which can be moved when a musician needs a different tuning system.

The player holds the body against the chest and uses a small metal pick to strike the strings. The thin skin helps to give the tar a clear and powerful sound. The fingers of the other hand press the strings against the frets to change the notes.

Place in Persian music

Tar players have had an important part in teaching the radif, the collection of melodies used as a basis for Persian classical music. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, musicians such as Mirza Abdollah and Aqa Hosaynqoli passed different versions of the radif to their students.

Morteza Ney-Davoud was another well-known tar player. His recordings preserved hundreds of melodies from the Persian classical system.

Museum examples show that the modern Persian tar was already in use during the 19th century. The Metropolitan Museum of Art says that the instrument developed around Shiraz and that related forms later spread to the Caucasus and Afghanistan.

References

  1. 1 2 "Iran xi. Music". Encyclopaedia Iranica. Retrieved 30 August 2026.
  2. 1 2 "Tār (تار)". The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Retrieved 30 August 2026.
  3. ↑ "Abdallah, Mirza". Encyclopaedia Iranica. Retrieved 30 August 2026.
  4. ↑ "Ḥosaynqoli, Āqā". Encyclopaedia Iranica. Retrieved 30 August 2026.
  5. ↑ "Ney-Dāwud, Morteżā". Encyclopaedia Iranica. Retrieved 30 August 2026.

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