Introduction

Museum mirror human’s endeavors and creations so that all gained through long twist of ages could be reflected to the present givig people teachings and regrets for regressions. Opening of such places is a sign of sign of gratitude toward all attempts made by scholars, thinkers and culture lovers who have laid down all they have to collect and create such collections in order to pave the uneasy and precarious way of human  beings’ elevation through time. The museum of Iranian music has made its greatest efforts to introduce those whose thoughts and endeavors have endowed this old nation with transcendence toward the highest honor.

Those of the future will never consider the hardships and challenges – esp. ones leading to the true bases – faced by such people and will never forgive any negligence or nonchalance occurred in this matter. Hence, our responsibility for upkeep of our national priceless legacy is highest and presence of this museum in the life of people who find arts as an inseparable part of their being is then more obvious.

Musical instruments are a mix of love, compassion and mastery on the part of those who have used all their craft and art to reflect greatest beauties conceivable, and leave the most precious memories to next generations.

Music and tunes of the artists who have mingled their wisdom and creativity with the most genuine of their feelings which they have gifted the present generation with, are of unquestionable importance; so, such works must always be kept from any harm done by ignorance and artlessness.

All these have made the museum the greatest responsibilities for proving eligible to this tremendous task.

Museums in Iran

For a long time, museums have played a great role in human societies due to the fact that the objects kept in these places are the authentic witnesses and evidence of cultures and civilizations whose creators have long passed away, and it is museums that could revive, commemorate and refine cultures and rites of the past in any country.

 The oldest museum in the world is Ashmolean that was built in 1679 in Oxford.

In Iran the unofficial date of the first museum’s appearance should be traced back in precious treasures found now and then by archeologists in this country. To maintain their treasures and keep them safe from foreigners, ancient Iranians stored their potteries in graves and wells.

First Museum in Iran

For the first time, the proposal of creating a museum in the country was made by Mortezâqoli Hedâyat, also known as Sani’oddol-e. The first museum consisting of a collection of objects was established in 1295 Solar Hegira under the name of National Museum in a large hall in the once Ministry of Sciences on the north side of Dârolphunun School. The museum included 270 items including bronze objects, potteries, glass objects, coins, ancient weapons, seals, wooden pieces, books, textiles, and calligraphic pieces that had been collected by staff of Antiques Department or donated by people. However, the first official Iranian museum (with a separate space adopted for it) is “The Museum of the Ancient Iran” built on an area of 2744 square meters in 1316 Solar Hegira.

Museum or Cemetery!

 One should never think of museums as a house for obsolete objects and indeed a cemetery. Museums are not restricted to exhibition of ancient and historical pieces; but rather all other collections of artifacts and scientific findings, animals’ species, galleries, libraries, archives and historical buildings could also be seen as museums. Each item or object in a museum has its own tongue by which to communicate with its visitors. Undoubtedly, through scrutiny and contemplation, one can touch this delicate language and approach it from different angles.

Connection: The Key to Success

In the past, museums were of interest only to a limited group of people. Perhaps, wrong definitions and depiction of them as highly specialized places in common culture had noticeably restricted the potential number of their visitors. Nonetheless, technological and scientific advancements of the modern world together with cultural developments, especially in developed countries, have gradually created a better picture of museums in the eye s of all people, thus making them be among the most over-popular public places of today’s world, that in turn has highly been responsible for large improvements in tourism industry world-wide. Indeed, popularity of museums among people of a society is bound up with its common culture.

Types of Museums

In compliance with advancement in number and substance of sciences, technologies, and diverse branches of humanities, museums have gained diversity too, that in the modern world could more or less be classified as historical and archeological museums, outdoor museums, anthropological museums, palacemuseums, museums of science and natural history, museums dedicated to prominent artists and historical figures, and musical museums.

Iran’s Museums

 Most museums in Iran belong to three categories of history, art, and science and technology. Such museums as Tamashậgah-e Pul, Tamâshậgah-e Târikh, Palace-museum of Sa’dâbâd, Palace-museums of Niyâvarân, Imam Ali, The Ancient Iran, and National Jewelry are all of the first type. And examples like Âbkâr, Âbgin-e and Sofâlin-e, Master San’ati, Rezâ Abâsi, Iran’s Cinematography, Farsh [Rug], Contemporary Arts, and National Arts are of the second category. Finally, there are places like Bank Museums, Telegraph and Post, Natural History, Wild Life, Doctor Hessâbi, Power Industry in Iran, and Military that fall in the third category above.

Museum of Music in Iran 

So far, there has been so much talk of establishing various musical museums in Iran, that include such places as Museum of Tones and Tunes of Shirâz, Tabriz Musical Museum, Alâsht Museum of Mâzandarân, Museum of Maqâmi Music of Khorâsân that were never brought into service following their opening, except for the first which had only a short lifetime too. 

Museum of Sabâ could be conceived of as the first musical museums in Iran. Originally the house of the great master Abolhasan Sabâ, this museum was first founded in 1974 by Aliakbar Shahnazi.

Since then it has been closed up and reopen for different reasons. Nevertheless, it officially started its work since this summer again.

Cancluding Remark 

Today, museums constitute a necessity in human beings’ life. Regarding complications of modern urban life and the importance of the new generations’ knowledge about their cultural and artistic heritages, museums have come to play a more remarkable part in such respects. In case there occurs sympathy and connection between visitors and objects in museums, they can obtain their rightful status as a center for study and research. 

Museums have always to face the risk of turning into a cemetery. However, their dynamics and tangible presence in people’s ordinary life along with communication of relevant knowledge to all people can eliminate this threat.

 We must promote and encourage culture of visiting museums and the likes and heighten their true popularity by use of mass media, broadcasting educational programs on these places. In addition, we can even utilize a variety of accompanying facilities and amenities, like speech halls, movie theaters, auditoriums, amusement parks, etc., right beside museums to raise people’s motivation to visit them. At last, the cultural relations between different museums could serve as a means on which to study cultures more effectively, thus alleviating the risk of their falling into oblivion.

The Museum of Music (Ali, Moradkhani)

Built on a land area of nearly 3650 square meters, with a building area of 1400 square meters, in three stories of basement, the first and the second floor, the museum of music is located in Namazy alley, Maqsudbeyg Street, Tajrish, Tehran, Iran. 

It was first established in close collaboration with Cultural Spaces Development Co. and Organization for Art and Culture, both affiliated with Tehran’s Municipality and started as a non-governmental and non-profit institute.

Such are the most predominant goals of the museum, stated in its articles of association:

• Preservation of national musical heritage of the country
• Presentation of productions and works by masters of the past to future generations
• Respect and deference to masters of the past and dignitaries

You can find in details all about these aspects in the section for introduction of the museum’s activities.

Departments

Despite all difficulties and hardships since its beginning, the museum of music has never been deprived of means and equipment it naturally requires, thanks to endeavors of proponents and artists. And fortunately, these efforts, directed toward either increase of land area and all relevant facilities or enrichment of the museum’s treasury including instruments and documents, are still being made. At present, the museum of music encompasses these departments: 

Hall of instruments, the museum’s treasury, visual and audio archives, performance hall, recording studio, specialized library, workshop for demonstration of instruments’ production, a specialized warehouse for upkeep of instruments, writings’ collection, coffee shop, and audio-visual department.

Hall of Instruments

 Aimed at better recognition and identification of the present instruments, this hall has classified the instruments into three categories of wind instruments, string instruments, and percussion.

 In regard of the aforesaid categories, the hall is then divided into three respective sections, introduced below, within which visitors could witness prominent examples of the instruments kept in this place. Another modern facility in this museum is the “narrator” system which is broadcast of information concerning the whole place during visitors’ presence, offered to them through wireless earphones.

The Section of Regional Wind and String Instruments

This section is situated at the first floor. It contains two groups of instruments: wind instruments and string instruments of Iranian regional music.

 In the section under the title of wind instruments, one could find a large variety of idiophones, aerophones, Neys, Neylabaks, and Sutaks.

The section of string instruments provides the visitors with various plucked and bowed chordophones.

These instruments all come from different geographical areas in Iran.

The Section of Percussion 

Again situated at the first floor, this section introduces various types of percussion instruments consisting of one- and two-sided membranophons from the diverse geographical regions of Iran.

The Section of Traditional Instrument 

This section is located on the second floor of the museum. Here, one can observe numerous examples of plucked and bowed string instruments together with some percussion instruments like types of Tombak. Walking through this section, visitors witness the priceless items belonging to master instrument makers and virtuosos of the past whose tone is still alive and held in high esteem in souls of music lovers.

Instruments of the Museum

 With regard to its cultural priorities and policies adopted, the museum of music as its first stage of development has only considered collection of Iranian regional instruments and national instruments, including the traditional examples.

 Considering recency of its establishment, the available collection and variety of this museum are not so extensive; however, it is hoped that there will be great improvements both in quality and quantity via official’s assistance, higher budget, and contributions made by community of musicians and art lovers in the years to come.

Now, the collection of the museum consists of 240 items with a variety of 200 types from various near and far regions of the country.

From the standpoint of quality, the instruments are divided into two general groups: first, the invaluable instruments – collectors’ examples – that are of highest value and reputation; second, the instruments that are collected here in order to serve in education and research. 

Provision of the present collection has been the result of either purchase or donation made by numerous donors whose names no doubt are registered and mentioned along with the instruments.

Treasury 

A part of this museum is dedicated to instruments, works and belongings of great players, musicians and scholars which the museum seeks to gradually enhance in future. Up to now, this section has gathered works, instruments and some personal possessions of such masters as Ahmad Ebâdi, and Haj Qorbân-e Soleymâni, and also the prominent audio collection of Golshan-e Ebrâhimi. From among the instruments of master Ebâdi, gathered here, one should mention Setâr of Mirza Abdollâh, Mofatehossoltân, Eshqi and Hâshemi.

Audio and Video Archives (Audio Collection of Golshan-e Ebrâhimi)

To consistently enhance the possessions of the museum, an unparalleled collection of tunes and performances of the greatest masters of the past has also been added to the properties of the museum. This collection includes over 12000 hours of performance in the form of 4167 reels, and 4442 cassettes, along 1826 accompanying texts. Moreover, there are 2000 pieces of photographs of timehonored artists of the past, donated to the museum now and then.

Hall of Performance and Recording Studio 

The most important activity of the museum, now in construction and implementation stages, is completion of the hall of performance and recording studio together with provision of all the facilities and systems  needed there. 

Neighboring the museum’s main premises, the building adopted for this purpose is a two story property with an area of 600 square meters. Right in front of it, there goes another outdoor arena for performance with a capacity of an audience of 70. The recording studio is a substantially specialized and modern section of the museum. In near future, by the help of the advanced recording systems being installed there, it will provide musicians with its services.

Specialized Library 

This library is on the second floor. It embraces 3000 titles in nearly 6000 volumes. Currently, specialized books in diverse fields of art and especially music are kept here; and it is expected that in future the number of books in this library increase many folds. Nature and breadth of services given here to the visitors are in full accordance with objectives and policies of the museum. 

With such internal divisions as references, publications and magazines, study lounge, take and return and registration desk, computer, and non-written sources, this department attempts to present the visitors and researchers in different fields of music with several facilities and sources.

Workshop for Demonstration of Instruments’ Production 

On account of the fact that production of various instruments and its varied methods have always been considered crucial processes in the history of music, founders of the museum decided to incorporate this department. Here, getting more familiar with tools and workshop equipment, visitors could observe different steps involved in instrument production through photos and footage.

Music shop

Right at the entrance of the museum, there is a small store at which visitors could buy a range of products such as books, magazines and various publictions, post cards and compact discs.

Coffee Shop

 Neighboring the main building, the museum’s coffee shop lies at the corner of the yard. Glass windows of this place allow visitors enjoyment of the view along with a cup of coffee or tea in peaceful surroundings. following their visit from the museum.

Prior Enterprises 

As well as furnishing and developing technical and artistic facilities needed for the opening of the museum, while it has already given some services, the museum has also corresponded with several European and Islamic countries well-known for their knowledge of instrument making and repair Further, the museum took part in a festival in Rome last year to display along part of the collection of Iranian instruments, its capabilities in instruments maintenance and repair.

In that three-week festival, named Instruments of Peace, 27 Iranian instruments were put on display in three different sections of wind, string and percussion; and at the same time. a workshop for instruments production was held under master Bayyaz Amir-atái.