Dastgāh-e Abuatā
About this Dastgāh
Dastgāh-e Abuatā (sometimes Āvāz-e Abuatā) is one of the extensions of Dastgāh-e Šur. Abuatā is mainly used in Iranian religious music, such as the call to prayer (Azān) or recitation of the Quran, usually in the (Guše: sub-mode) of Hejaz.
Some hints:
The Sequence tab below contains an annotated example of this Dastgāh. The second degree/tone of the scale (D in this case) is the finalisThe finalis or foroud is a pitch that functions as a melodic cadence's goal or destination tone and creates a sense of conclusion. The term "tonic" is also sometimes used, but some authors avoid using it because it is associated with Western music theory.Visit the link to learn more. The third degree/tone of the scale (E koronA koron is an accidental that lowers the pitch by a quarter-tone. The koron was designed by Ali-Naqi Vaziri (1886-1979).Visit the link to learn more in this case) could serve as the aqaz("beginning") The pitch with which a Dastgah, Avaz or Gusheh is usually initiated. In some Dastgah, it is different from the Foroud, while in others they are the same pitch.Visit the link to learn more and istIst ("stop") is a pitch that often serves as the ending note for phrases, other than final cadences.Visit the link to learn more. The fifth degree/tone of the scale (G in this case) could serve as the aqaz and shahedShahed ("witness") represents a remarkably prominent pitch during music creation in a specific mode.Visit the link to learn more. The dotted line shows the area of melodic motion.
Learning more
Here are some resources to learn more about this tuning.
- Mohammad-Reza Shajarian The Abu-Ata Concert (musical example)
- Alizadeh, H. (2012). Theoretical foundations and structure of Persian classical music. (H. Asadi, M. Oftade, M. Bayani, A. Pourtorab, & S. Fatemi, Eds.). Ministry of Education. (in Farsi)
- Farhat, H. (2004). The Dastgāh Concept in Persian Music. Cambridge University Press.
- Khaleqi, R. (1938). A Glance at the Theory of (Persian) Music. Safi Ali-Shah Publication (in Farsi)
- Samimi Mofakham, I. (2023a). A Rational Intonation Approach to Persian Music. Živá Hudba/Living Music, 14. Prague: NAMU.
- Samimi Mofakham, I. (2023). Holographic composition technique: Revisiting the medieval treatises on Iranian music (p. 140) [Ph.D. Dissertations / Research Exposition].