The sorna is played in different parts of the world from Greece to India. In Iran, the history of this instrument dates back to the Sasanid era (224-651 CE). Then, we can find the traces of this instrument in Farabi’s Musiqi al-Kabir. This Iranian philosopher of the tenth century studied the wind instruments of his time and explained them in his book. The sorna is made of wood and it is almost played in all parts of Iran. The sorna has a mouthpiece. Its length is something from 30 to 50 cm and varies in different regions. The sorna has a powerful sound and is usually accompanied by a percussion instrument mostly the dohol. In the past the sorna was always played in all kinds of ceremonies including weddings, funerals, religious ceremonies, and wars. Today, plus its traditional usage, the sorna is used in orchestras as well. This instrument in the different regions of Iran has its own timber and can be distinguished from its other counterparts. For example, distinguishing Lori, Mazandarani, Khorasani, and Kurdish sornas from each other is easy. Today, many different provinces of Iran have their own sornas. Some of these regions are: Khorasan, Gilan, Mazandaran, Kerman, Baluchistan, Hormozgan, Azerbaijan, Lorestan, and the foothills of the Alborz mountain range.

The karna is an ancient instrument belonging to the sorna family. It has a mouthpiec and is very similar to the sorna. But, korna it is little longer. The length of the present karna is something between 80 to 110 cm. The karna is made of two parts: the wooden part and the brass part. The wooden part is between 35 to 50 cm in length, and the brass part is something between 45 to 60 cm. This instrument has a very loud and strong sound, and it is usually played as an outdoor instrument. Sometimes, the karna can be heard from a distance of one kilometer. Like the sorna, the karna is used in all different kinds of ceremonies. The birthplace of the karna is the southern part of Iran, the province of Fars. Because of this fact, in many old tablets and writings, the karna is always referred as “the karna of Fars”. The oldest karna found in Iran dates back to the Achaemenid Dynasty (550-330 B.C.). It was found in 1957 from the tomb of Dariush the Third of the Achaemenid Dynasty. This particular karna which is known as the “Achaemenid karna” is preserved in the Persepolis Museum of the Fars province. The length of the metal part of this karna is 120 cm. The karna used by the Qashqayis is different both in shape and sound from the one used by the Bakhtiyaries. Also, the accompanying percussion instrument of Qashqayi karna is naqare not the dohol. The naqare was used in wars and governmental ceremonies during the Safavid period (1502-1736).

This instrument shares little similarities with the karna of Fars. The Lahiji karna is totally made of plants. It is very huge and its length is between 3 to 4 miters. An emptied squash is put on the mouth of the pipe which makes a 180 angle between the edge of the instrument and the players lip. This instrument is not able to play the melodies since it can produce only two notes. The Lahiji karna is just a ceremonial instrument played in ethnic and religious ceremonies. It is only played in a group or ensembles. Such a karna ensemble may have eight to fourteen members. The players point their karnas to the same direction and begin to play when the leader of the ensemble hints. The produced sound of such a karna ensemble is very frightening, and as the local people say in the past it was also used to frighten the invaders.

In the past this instrument was made of wood, but now it is made of metal pipes. The shemshal does not have a mouth piece, and the player just puts his lip on the pipe and begins to play. The shemshal has a special sound which can depict the life of Kurdish people living in villages. This instrument is peculiar to the different parts of Kurdistan. In the past, it was used to cure the patients. Unfortunately, these days there are not many people who can play this instrument.

This instrument is played from Qafgaz to the Iranian Kurdistan with different names. In the Armenian language, it is called the dodook. In Azeri it is called the balaban, and in Kurdish it is called the narmenay. It is made of wood and has a mouth piece. The balaban has a soft and tranquilizing sound. The length of this instrument is something about 30 to 40 cm. It is accompanied by qaval and qusha naqara in Azerbaijan and the tonbak and daf in Kurdistan.

This instrument is very much similar to the ney-e jofti. In fact, the structure of the ney-e taki is exactly similar to that of the ney-e jofti. The only difference is that the ney-e taki has only one pipe, whereas the ney-e jofti is a double piped reed. As a result, the sound volume of the ney-taki is less than that of the ney-e jofti. Also, the sound quality of these two instruments is little different. The ney-e taki is played mostly in southern parts of Iran and the Persian Gulf shores.

The laleh-va is a woodwind instrument without a mouth piece which is peculiar to the northern province of Mazandaran. It has a very special sound quality which cannot be heard from any other instrument. Because of its unique sound character, listening to the laleh-va always depicts the musical culture of Mazandaran. This instrument is made out of reeds and has a clear sound. The most well-known player of the laleh-va is Hussein Tayyebi.

This instrument is peculiar to Baluchistan. It is made out of reeds. The nal does not have a mouth piece and the player produces its sound from the flow of air against the edge. The nal’s edge is very similar to that of the flute. The donal is made of two nals. One of the nal produces a fixed note and the other plays the melodies. The playing of this instrument requires a lot of skill, and the good donal players are rare now. The most well-known donal player in Baluchistan is Shir Mohammad Spandar, living in the city of Bampoor.

The dozaleh is a double-piped wind instrument with a mouth piece. Its length is just 20 cm, but it has a very strong sound. Its usual accompanying instrument is the tonbak. The dozaleh is usually used in happy ceremonies. Hasan Mostafaur is the most well-known player of the dozaleh.

The qoshmeh is made of an eagle’s bone. It has a mouth piece and its shape is similar to the Kurdish dozaleh and the double- piped ney of Hormozgan. The qoshmeh has a very strong and touching sound and is played among the Kormanj ethnicity of the Northern Khorasan. The master of this instrument is Ali Abchuri. The qoshmeh is usually played with the dayereh and dohol. It is the instrument of the happy occasions.

The daf is a percussion instrument. It is a frame drum with the diameter of 70 cm. It is covered by the skin of a sheep or goat and is quipped with rings or small cymbals. These rings produce a special sound. The birthplace of this instrument is Kurdistan in which the daf was initially used as a ceremonial instrument. Today, the daf is present in all forms of urban music too. Also, different kinds of the daf can be seen in different regions of Iran. For example, different dafs are played in eastern Khorasan and southern Iran especially in the provinces of Bushehr and Hormozgan. All different kinds of the daf except the Kurdish daf do not have rings or cymbals. In Bushehr, the daf is used in happy occasions. But, in Hormozgan the daf is a ritualistic instrument, and the daf player usually accompanies his daf with his own singing.

The dayereh is a small frame drum with the diameter of 35 to 45 cm. Sometimes, it has some rings hanging from the inner side of the frame. The dayereh is a common instrument throughout Iran. It is usually played in happy occasions. The skin of the dayereh is originally made of lambskin. In recent years, sometimes the lambskin is replaced by plastic.

The tanbur is plucked string instrument. It has two strings and because of this it is also called dotar (“do” means two in Persian and “tar” means string). However, in the province of Kerman Shah it is called tanbur and has three strings. The best documents about the history of this instrument are the paintings and descriptions in Farabi’s Musiqi al-Kabir (950 ). In this book, Farabi mentions the two kinds of tanbur; the tanbur of Khorasan and the tanbur of Baqdad. In Iran, there are eight different kinds of tanbur with different sound characteristics. They are: The tanbur of the eastern Khorasan, the Turkish tanbur of the Northern Khorasan, the Kormanji tanbur of the Northern Khorasan, the tanbur of Eastern Khorasan, the tanbur of Turkmen Sahara , the tanbur of Mazandaran, the Taleshi tanbur, and the tanbur of Kermanshah. The tanbur of the eastern Khorasan has the biggest sound box or bowl, and the Taleshi tanbur has the smallest sound box. The style of playing the tanbur is mostly similar in all different regions, but the personal styles and techniques of the players plus the different physical shapes of the different tanburs cause some differences in the produced sounds of these different tanburs. The most well- known tanbur players are: Hussein Samandari, Abdollah Sorur Ahmadi from the eastern Khorasan. Mohammad Hussein Yeganeh, Haj Gorban Solaymani, and Olya Qoli Yeghaneh of the Northern Khorasan. Nazarli Mahjubi from the Turkmen Sahara and Mohammad Reza Eshaqi from Mazandaran. Darvish Amir Hayati, Baba Qolam, and Amrollah Ebrahimi from the province of Kermanshah. The tanbur is plucked string instrument. It has two strings and because of this it is also called dotar (“do” means two in Persian and “tar” means string). However, in the province of Kerman Shah it is called tanbur and has three strings. The best documents about the history of this instrument are the paintings and descriptions in Farabi’s Musiqi al-Kabir (950 ). In this book, Farabi mentions the two kinds of tanbur; the tanbur of Khorasan and the tanbur of Baqdad.

This instrument is not only the instrument of Persian traditional music, but also it is played with different formats in the regional music of Iran. In fact, the identities of many folk musical traditions in Iran are known by the kamanche. Some of the main cultures in which the kamanche plays an important role are: Lori, Kormanji, Mazandarani, Gilani, Komeshi, Turkmeni, Qashqa’i, and Bakhtiyari. In some of these cultures such as Lori, the kamanche plays the main role in their music. In other cultures the kamanche is less important like in the Bakhtiyari musical tradition. The kamanche is a bowed string instrument whose sound box is covered by a goat skin. It has three to six strings; depending to the region it belongs. The kamanche has different names among different ethnicities. It is called “tal” by the lors and “qejak’ by Turkmens.

The sorud is a bowed string instrument. It has more strings than the kamanche. The most common sorud is the one with twelve strings. From these twelve strings, six strings are the drone strings and the rest are the melody strings. The sorud is originally a Baluchi instrument which was later adopted by other cultures. In the Persian art music a version of this instrument known as qaychak is used in ensembles and orchestras. The sorud in the Baluchi culture is played both as a solo instrument and a band instrument which may be accompanied by the tanburak and doholak.

This instrument is a plucked stringed instrument with 12 to 18 strings. Only six strings of the rubab are the melody strings and the rest are the drone strings. The rubab has a soft and almost bass sound. It is played by a plectrum which is originally made of animal horns. In recent years, some plectrums are made of plastic.

This instrument is a wind instrument with a mouth piece. The ney-e jofti is made of reeds and is a double piped reed. Because of its two pipes, its sound is very ample and attractive. It is an ancient instrument and has been played for several thousands years in the Middle East. Farabi (d. 950) classified two kinds of this reed and depicted them in his book, Musiqi al-Kabir. The ney-e jofti is mostly played in the south and southwestern parts of Iran. Shushtar, Bushehr, and Hormozgan are the main birthplaces of this instrument. Like its counterparts in Khorasan and Kurdistan, the qoshmeh and dozaleh, the ney-e jofti is usually played in the happy ceremonies. Also, the ney-e jofti is accompanied by percussion instruments, such as damam, kaser, and dayereh.

The main birthplace of this instrument is the shores of the Persian Gulf in the southern Iran. But, today, it is played in the inland as well. The structure of the main body of the neyanban is the same as the ney-e jofti which is attached to a tank of air. This tank is made of a goatskin and provides the player with the needed air for blowing. The neyanban is usually played in the happy occasions. In the recent years, some Iranian composers have become interested in using the neyanban in orchestras, either Western or Iranian. One of the most well-known examples in this regard is the accompaniment of the neyanban and a Western orchestra experienced by Majid Entezami. The neyanban with a little difference in shape also exists in Europe especially in Scotland where it is known as bagpipe.

The dohol is a double-headed cylindrical drum which is played by two sticks, one of which is bigger and called “chogan” and the shorter one is called “tarkeh”. The dohol is sometimes played without these two sticks especially when it is played in the inside. The dohol is usually accompanied by the sorna and karna. Also, a kind of dohol which is bigger is played as a solo instrument in the mourning rituals. It is played in the central Iran in regions, such as Yazd, Ardekan, and Naeen. The Kurdish dohol has a regular size and the Bakhtiyari dohol is smaller than the Kurdish one. In some regions of Iran like Sistan the sound- box of the dohol is deeper than those from the other regions.

The damam is a double-headed cylindrical drum which has a smaller diameter than the dohol. The both sides are covered by an animal skin. The damam is either played by hand or by the sticks made from a palm tree. This instrument is also played in the southern parts of Iran specially the Bushehr province. This instrument is played in all kinds of ceremonies. However, the styles of playing the damam are different in different ceremonies. Playing the damam in the damam ensembles is an important part of religious ceremonies in Bushehr.

The senj is a percussion instrument which does not have skin. It consists of two metal pieces which look like plates. The senj player beats these two metal pieces together. A pair of the ancient senj from the first millennium before Christ was found in Ziviyeh in the province of Kurdistan. These senjs are preserved in the Museum of Ancient Iran. The senj is used just in religious ceremonies and rituals. It seems that in the Antiquity also the senj had the same function. In Bushehr, the senj is played along with the damam during the anniversary of the martyrdom of Imam Hussein, the third Imam of the Shiites. The senj is always accompanied by another instrument.

The qerneh is a member of the wind instruments with a mouth piece. This instrument has some similarities with the single ney which is prevalent in the Bushehr region. The only differences are: First, the qerneh’s mouth piece is not exactly the same as that of the single ney. Second, at the end part of the qerneh a bugle made of an animal horn has been added. Therefore, the sound of the qerneh is little different from that of the single ney of southern Iran. The qerneh is only played with the dosar kuten, a percussion instrument, in the happy occasions and ceremonies of the people of Mazandaran in northern Iran.

Although this instrument has the same name as the rubab of Baluchistan, they do not bare any resemblance. The rubab of Khuzestan is a bowed string instrument. The sound box of the rubab of Khuzestan is covered with a lambskin. It has only one string. The rubab of Khuzestan has a sad sound and is used only as a solo instrument. Its player also sings as well.

This is instrument is peculiar to the islands of the Persian Gulf. It is a member of the plucked-stringed instruments which is played by a finger. Its pitch range is very small; therefore, its ability to play melodies is not much. But, it accompanies the folk songs very well. This instrument has only religious function and is sacred for the people of the region. Its birthplace is the African continent where it still is used in the different shapes and sizes. It is to say that in the beginning of the seventeenth century, the northern shores of the Persian Gulf were invaded by the Portuguese. The Portuguese colonists brought some people from Africa as their slaves who decided to remain in Iran after the liberation of the southern parts of Iran by the Iranian army. The combination and coexistence of these African migrants’ music with other kinds of southern Iranian music have led to a sort of fusion music

The timpo is a percussion instrument of the shores of the Persian Golf. Its shape is very similar to the tombak, but its playing style and its sound quality is very different from that of the tonbak. It has a sharper sound than the damam and is played along with other percussion instruments. The timpo plays an important role in a kind of music performed in the happy ceremonies of the region which is known as “the Bandari Music” (the music of the Port).

The Turkmen people have different kinds of the ney among which two kinds are more well-known and common: the yeddeh buqum and the toy kik. The yeddeh buqum’s length is something between 80 to 90 cm and its blowing technique is completely different from any other reeds in Iran. This means that the player puts the edge of this reed inside his mouth and holds it by his teeth. In fact, the Turkmani ney is played by the teeth and the help of the tongue. This style is known as the tooth playing style. This style of playing is similar to that of playing the urban ney. Because of this similarity, many scholars believe that may be the urban ney players learned this style from the Turkmen musicians. The toy kik has a smaller length and is played by the lip of the player.

The ney is the most common instrument in traditional societies. It is a very ancient instrument which has been played for several thousands of years. Due to the existence of various ethnicities in Iran, there are more than 30 kinds of ney in Iran with their own specific characteristic. Most regional neys are played by lip. The player puts his lip on the edge of the ney and blows into the pipe. But, in the urban style of playing the ney, the instrument is hold between the teeth of the player. Since the old times, the ney-e labi has been played by shepherds and because of this it is sometimes called the shepherd ney. Sometimes, the ney player inserts his voice into the pipe as well; therefore the ney produces a kind of mixed sound. The ney-e labi is played almost in all parts of Iran. In the recent years, some of the folk musicians have tried to use the urban musical techniques to present a new musical utterance for their old traditions. For example, a new kind of the ney playing style has emerged among the Bakhtiyari ethnicity which is influenced by the urban techniques of playing of the ney, which keeps the ney between the teeth. As a result, the new produced sound has both the folk and Persian urban music flavors.

It is the instrument of the Azeri Asheqs. It is from the plucked string instrument family with nine strings. Four of these nine strings are the melody strings and the rest are the drone strings. The Asheqs not only play the qopuz but also sings and writes poetry. This instrument is mostly used as the solo instrument and sometimes is accompanied by the balaban and the dayereh (qaval).

The qaval is basically the dayereh with a little bit difference in the sound quality which is more related to Azeri music. Recently, the animal skin covering the frame of the qaval has been replaced by plastic.

The Naqara is a double-headed cylindrical drum which is held underarm. It is played only from one side. Some of the playing techniques of the Naqara are similar to those of the tonbak. This instrument is just used in the musical tradition of Azerbaijan.

This percussion instrument consists of two separate parts; the small and the large ones. One side of the instrument’s body is made of metal which is covered by animal skin. It is played by two sticks like the drum. In Mazandaran, the naqare is called dosarkotan, and it is said that the naqare is the accompanying instrument of the sorna and laleh-va, the local reed.

This instrument is pretty much similar to the naqare of Mazandaran or the dosarkotan. However, the size of the Qashqayi neghareh is larger than the Mazandarani naqare. The bowl of the Qashqayi naqare is made out of copper. It is played by the two wooden sticks and has a very loud sound. It is the accompanying instrument of the karna. The Qashqayi naqare is played in the Fars and Boyer Ahmad provinces. In the past, the naqare was a governmental instrument which was played during wars and banquets.

The tas is a one-headed cylindrical drum made of emptied wood covered by a skin. It is played by two sticks and has a very sharp and dry sound. Its sound box may be made of metal. The only usage of the tas is in the rituals of the Kurdish khaneghahs, Sufi monasteries, which is played along with the daf.

It is a long sorna made of metal which can produce only two notes. This instrument is peculiar to the minarets of the shrine of Imam Reza, the eight Imam of the Shiites Muslims, located in Mashhad. Its usage is only in the religious and national festivals and ceremonies. The length of the Razavi karna is three meters and it is played by a group of players. This instrument is usually accompanied by the Naqareh.

Using some non-musical instruments to produce musical sounds is common in most human societies. For instance, Mazandarani woman beat on the metal pans in their leisure times. This is known in Mazandaran as the tradition of beating pans, and it happens during their happy occasions. In southeastern Iran, Baluchs have a special rhythmic music which is produced by jars and pans. However, the use of a jar is common in other parts of the world including Africa where a kind of jar known as udo is very common. It is possible that the traditional of playing the jar or kuzeh might have come from Africa to Baluchistan via the Indian Ocean. Today, playing the kuzeh is prevalent among Baluchs in a limited scope. But, many Iranian ensembles seeking new experiences warmly have received the kuzeh. And, today, the use of this instrument is increasing.

The buq is an especial instrument among the Iranian folk instruments. First of all, this instrument is common only in the musical culture of the city of Bushehr located on the northern shores of the Persian Gulf. Second of all, this instrument is peculiar to the mourning ceremony of the third Imam of Shiites or other saints. The buq is an accompanying instrument for the senj and damam ensembles, and it accompanies these instruments intermittently. The buq player sometimes opens the ceremony of playing the damam and senj. In the past, the buq was made out of the horn of a mountain goat. But, today it is made of artificial materials. The buq has a very loud and scary sound and can be heard from few hundred meters without using any amplifying devices. The buq player can generate two or three notes by blowing into a small hole located on the narrow end of the instrument. Therefore, one should not expect that the buq like other melodic instruments be able to generate colorful melodies. The combination of the buq and the damam and senj create a beautiful combination of percussion and stringed sounds. Today, the buq is used sometimes in some orchestral pieces, but its main use is still in the mourning ceremonies in Bushehr.