Tajik musical culture was born in ancient times.
The traditional music is devided into three styles – northern (Sogd region), central (Gissar, Kulyab, Garm) and Pamir (Gornobadakhshansk region).
The national Tajik music includes epic, labour, custom (calendar, wedding, funeral and others), lyric songs, and instrumental pieces.
Tajik professional music of the oral tradition raised on the base of folk art constantly cooperating with city culture. In cities there were different musical studios, in which mavrigikhons, makomists as well as women – musicians – sozands joined. Their syncretic art united the melodious voice and dance.
Although the traditional art was developing as folklore tradition. The manuscripts also remained, they show us the existence of musical notation (advor) in the East, particularly in 10-13 centuries tablature for recording the instrumental music was used.
The pinnacle of the classical music of the Tajik people is shashmakom - a series of 6 makom, common in the 11-18 centuries. Makoms include vocal and instrumental sections. Makoms use poetry of such poets as Rudaki, Khafiza, Khilola, Jami, Zebunisso, Mushfiky, Bedil. When performing makoms, tanbur and doira and sometimes ensemble of folk instruments are commonly used.
Tajik music is based on diatonic scale, vocal - one-voice.
Musical instruments are different: stringed – dutar, rubab, tanbur and others; bow – gijjak, violence; wind – nay, karnay, sunray; cymbal – chang; percussion – tablak (clay litavrs), doira (tambourine), kayrok (stone castanets).
Dutar literally means "two strings". It is a traditional two-stringed musical instrument among the peoples of Central Asia and South Asia. Usually dutar’s length is from 1 to 2 meters with a pear-shaped resonator and a highly elongated neck with a fingerboard.
Dutar appeared in about XV century among the shepherds. At the beginning the strings for dutar were made of animal guts. Later, thanks to the development of trade along the Silk Road, the strings were made of twisted silk. In the producing of modern strings silk or nylon is also used. The body of dutarIt is made of mulberry wood, and is encrusted with a bone.
Surnay - Uzbek national wind instrument in the form of a tube, broad at the base. Its length is about 450-550 mm. In the narrow upper part of the instrument there is a small wooden pipe, which carries a thin metal tube inside. This small metal tube is made of bamboo plates, surrounded by a metal ring. There is a small plate below the metal pipe, which is called sadat. Musicians firmly press their lips to the little plate.
The methods used for playing on surnay include melismathics and frequent forschlags with jumps and relatively wide intervals. These jumps are used not only at the beginning of melodic declines but also in the middle.
Gijjak is a stringed bowed instrument of the peoples of Central Asia (Uzbeks, Uigurs, Tajiks, Turkmen). The body of the instrument is spherical (made from a gourd, a large walnut, wood or other materials) and covered with skin. The number of strings is inconstant, often - three. The pitch of the three-stringed gijjak is quart. The diapason of the instrument covers about one and a half octaves. When playing gijjak is held vertically, it is played with a bow in the form of a bow. The instrument is put on the knee, and not on the shoulder. It makes a special sounding and strongly marked ethnic flavour. Modern gijjaks have four strings.
Gijjak is a very wilful instrument. As it is made of leather, it can be damaged if the temperature drops. The instrument, like a voice should express any feelings, because it is the most perfect musical instrument. Gijjak in skilled hands sounds sincerely and incorruptibly.
