Nowruz Songs

Nowruz is a symbolic display of creation of man and nature. It is a revival of various songs and melodies which have remained among people throughout history. The Iranian artists have preserved Nowruz through various methods.

For several centuries Iranians, as a sign of gratitude to God, have expressed their happiness at the rejuvenation of the nature. One of the ways to express happiness was the ceremony of “Nowruzkhani”, meaning singing on Nowruz. Although this ceremony has somehow been forgotten, one can find traces of it in different texts and in some regions people practice it. This kind of songs dates back to pre-Islamic era. However, after the advent of Islam, it was mixed with Islamic beliefs and concepts. Nowruzkhani was common till recent decades but, due to the spread of urbanization and migration of villagers to cities, it can be found in rural areas especially in the remote villages of the provinces in Alborz Mountains.

Nowruzkhan was the itinerant singer who would give the tidings of coming of spring. This ceremony was accompanied with physical performance. Sometimes, it was displayed with symbolic plays to expel winter and welcome spring. This ceremony was called by the names like Kuse barneshin or Bahar Jashn. The way and time of performing these plays and the songs differed in different regions due to the geographical and cultural diversity. The songs and poems of Nowruzkhani were quite simple as the singers were amateur villagers rather than professional musicians. The poems were in Farsi with the local dialect. These poems were comprised of different parts and each part had its own special melody. Nowruzkhan would often start the song with the glorification of God and the praise and veneration of the Prophet and the infallible Imams.

Nowruzkhani band was composed of three people. The first one was called Sarkhan. Sarkhan would read poems on Nowruz and the other two would repeat after him. Then one of them gathered the gifts of people in his backpack. To end the song, they might narrate accounts of Adam and Eve or Prophet Abraham. This section sometimes included comic pieces or praise and eulogy. The next section was a description of spring and Nowruz. This description was done either separately or in the course of Nowruzkhani ceremony. The singers of Nowruzkhani would gladden people and then give twigs of box tree to the residents of villages and pray for them. People, in turn, would take the coming of singers as a sign of blessing and offer them rice, pastries, egg and even money. The melody of Nowruzkhani ceremony was made up of simple and short phrases so that everybody could repeat it.

Nowruzkhani was usually characterized by a form of question and answer. Nowruzkhani was not accompanied with any music and the topics were so broad. The singer (Nowruzkhan) would even embark on political and social woes of people in a metaphorical and satirical manner. He would act as media.

In addition to Nowruzkhans (singers of Nowruz), there were minstrels who played a significant role in transferring of the culture of Nowruz and spring. These minstrels were engaged both in playing musical instruments and guiding people’s thoughts. They would orally memorize, narrate, and transmit national-religious traditions from one generation to another. These minstrels had a number of features such as improvisation both in recitation and playing, narration of different accounts and a high influence on the public. This would give them credit and repute. Some of the minstrels would narrate just national myths and epics. Others were good narrators of the Islamic leaders and saints. In the old days, when Nowruzkhani was not common, these people would recite poems on spring and Nowruz in the form of songs and melodies. Since the minstrels would perform their program professionally, they had special pieces of melodies which were composed with various instruments.

RM/ME