‏Barazandih

Barazanda, ‘Abd al-Husayn (1891-1972). Tar instrumentalist and one the most eminent Persian classical composers in the twentieth century. In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, he mainly studied with Darvish Khan although he also studied with other eminent masters in his hometown Isfahan. He owed his fame to his performances on the tar, on which he was renowned for his powerful techniques, eloquent artistic expression, for writing compositions that were exquisitely and pleasantly rich, and also for his sublime interpretations of the entire repertoire of Persian classical music in all its various modes. A gramophone recording that was made of his tar performance accompanied by Adib Khvansari on vocals (1928-1929) can still be found. 

Barazandih’s lasting residence in the limited milieu of Isfahan impeded his skills from flourishing and were an obstacle to wider recognition since all the opportunities for artists in Persian society were centralized in Tehran. Consequently, few of his compositions, numbering several hundred, were performed and recorded and no solo album by him has been released. Those few albums were adjusted and orchestrated anew in the Gulha, e.g. Atash-i Dil (“Fire of Heart”) and Rangha-yi Tabi‘at (“Colors of Nature”), formerly recorded on gramophone records during the years 1924-1928 featuring the eminent Persian voclalist, Taj Isfahani, on the vocals. Although he could have served as a powerful and creative force for the Gulha programmes and their directors and organizers during the years 1955-1968, unfortunately his refined taste and skill in composition and performance on the tar were not made use of therein. He was indubitably one of the most outstanding Persian classical composers of his time.