Morteza Mahjoobi | |
---|---|
Background information | |
Born | 1900 Tehran, Iran |
Origin | Iran |
Died | March 21, 1965 | (aged 65)
Occupation(s) | composer and pianist |
Instrument(s) | piano |
Morteza Mahjoobi ( Persian: مرتضی محجوبی; 1900 – 21 March 1965) was an Iranian pianist and composer. [1] He was a piano soloist for the Golha radio programme. [2]
Morteza Mahjoobi ( Persian: مرتضى محجوبى) was born in 1900, in Tehran, Iran. [2] [3] His father, Abbas Ali ( Persian: عباسعلى), known as Nazer ( Persian: ناظر), played the Ney. His mother, Fakhr-o-SSaadaat ( Persian: فخرالسادات), played the piano. Mahjoobi's parents sent him, along with his older brother Reza, to Hossein Hang Afarin who taught Reza the violin and Morteza the piano. [3]
At the age of ten, Morteza performed a concert accompanying Aref Qazvini in Farus Cinema ( Persian: سينماى فاروس). [3] In the following years, he went on to perform with other musicians including Darvish Khan, Seyyed Hossein Taherzadeh ( Persian: سيد حسين طاهرزاده), and Hossein Esmail Zadeh ( Persian: حسين اسماعيلزاده). [1]
His first teacher was Hossein Hang Afarin, from whom he learned the preliminary studies. He was then sent to Mahmoud Mofakham to further his studies of the piano and radif. [3] He also studied with other musicians, including Darvish Khan, Hossein Esmail Zadeh, Hajikhan Zarbgir, and Seyyed Hossein Taherzadeh. [2]
Mahjoobi's performance style was improvisational. According to Navvab Safa, he never planned or prepared for his performances, and if he played a piece ten times he would play it differently each time. [4]
Mahjoobi has composed many tasnifs (ballads), pīshdarāmads (rhythmic preludes), and rengs (rhythmic pieces). A noteworthy example is his composition "Man az Rooze Azal Divane Boodam" ("I Was Bewildered From Pre-eternity"). This tasnif has been performed by Gholam-Hossein Banan. [5] While Mahjbi was unfamiliar with western notation, he devised a notation system similar to Siaaq (a set of symbols used in premodern times to note the weight of merchandise or monetary figures), which he used to transcribe musical ideas. [6]
Mahjoobi had many students the most famous of whom is Fakhri Malekpour who studied with Mahjoobi over a period of twelve years. [6]