Iranian tar virtuoso JalilShahnaz laid to rest in Tehran

TEHRAN,June 22(MNA) -- Iranian tar virtuoso JalilShahnaz was buried in the Artists Section of Tehran’s Behesht-e Zahra Cemetery on Thursday. JalilShahnaz died of natural causes last week. He was aged 92. Titan of traditional music MohammadrezaShajarian, setar virtuoso HosseinALizadeh, vocalist AlirezaQorbani, conductor FarhadFakhreddini, and veteran ney player Mohammad Musavi along with a crowd of hundreds of mourners attended the funeral service, which took place at Vahdat Hall. Alizadeh’s short speech reminded the crowd of the eternity of Shahnaz and his music. “The entire Iranian nation was saddened by the loss of the master, and we are here to remind every individual of Shahnaz’s eternity. Shahnaz will remain in our hearts and will never be forgotten,” Alizadeh said. Fakhreddini called Shahnaz a brilliant figure in the world of traditional music who held a great treasure of Iranian music in his heart. Shajarian also expressed his gratitude to the crowd who came to attend the funeral of the master, the one they loved. In addition, KiumarsShahnaz, the son of the master, thanked all the participants who attended his father’s funeral ceremony. Shahnaz was born in Isfahan in 1921. His father, Shabankhan, was a music enthusiast and their house was a gathering place for musicians. He developed an interest in music at an early age and learned how to play from maestro AbdolhosseinShahnazi and his elder brother HosseinShahnaz. He later got to know Hassan Kassaii when he was young. They later became close companions for years. Kassaii (1928-2012) later turned out to be a master of the ney (reed flute). Shahnaz next moved to Tehran when he was 24 and began his collaboration with Radio Tehran, giving solo performances on the tar. He also gave numerous performances in different concert halls in the capital Tehran in former times. Over the years, he collaborated with the great masters of music such as Shajarian, Musavi, HomayunKhorram, ParvizYahaqqi and FaramarzPayvar. Shajarian founded a classical Iranian music group in 2008 and called it the Shahnaz Ensemble after the name of the master. Shahnaz was also keen on violin, santur and tonbak. In 2004, Shahnaz was honored as Iran’s eternal figure in the art and music category. He also received a Lifetime Achievement Award the same year.