Teaching the Setar

My Setar teaching method is based on 20 years of experience. I've extensively tested and refined this approach over time. You can read about some of my research on Setar teaching in my book, Si Pāre. This book includes a range of educational topics, such as the theoretical basics of Dastgāhi music education, analyzing the student's learning process, the philosophy of Iranian music, advanced playing techniques, the creation of learning materials, and the technical and psychological preparation for improvisation.

Distance education is nothing less than close education, if the teacher with skill can meet all the needs of the students with all precision and accuracy. Today, Iranian music education is not happy and is going through bad days. And the result is what we see: the art of improvisation and the creation of powerful musical worlds are very much in the shadow and weak, and there is a fear that they will disappear completely. All this great damage should be taken into account in the way students are educated.

Distance learning is equivalent to in-person learning when a skilled teacher can accurately meet the students' needs. Nowadays, the state of music education in Iran is lacklustre. Nowadays, the state of music education in Iran is lacklustre. As a result, improvisational art and musical expression are underrepresented and weak, and there is a risk that they will vanish entirely. Nowadays, the state of music education in Iran is lacklustre. Consequently, we must consider this significant loss when educating students.

In every session, the teacher analyzes the student's work thoroughly and quickly, giving around twelve instructions that become the student's work schedule until the next week. These instructions may cover finger pressure, finger position, and finger angle on the Setar fretboard, as well as tips for listening and avoiding fatigue.   Self-learners may find various types of commands and analysis methods in Si Pare helpful.

The setar student then practises at home and can send any questions they have, along with a short sample of their playing, to the teacher for guidance. The learning scheme is devised based on the time available for practice.   A customized training course can benefit pupils whether they have ten hours or half an hour a day.

Additionally, the instructor updates the pupil on their development and anticipates their future assignments, ensuring they are aware of their progress and expected attainment. The key priority of this instruction is to acquire the fundamental skills for playing Dastgahi music, referred to as Radif, which has been handed down by predecessors.   The book features the recitation of the Radif, edited by me. By mastering this text, students will be equipped to advance to the subsequent stages, including improvising and applying the skills acquired. With time, they will gradually cultivate their unique musical style, which represents our ultimate objective in education.

My approach aims to free students from ineffective learning methods that have trapped and hurt many graduates and students.

Education, to me, means offering a multitude of solutions for students' many technical issues. It's not only about dictating what and how to do something. What I consider education is teaching students how to acquire the skills to play rather than just giving instructions on what and how to play.

• Be ready five minutes before the meeting time. And leave a message that you are ready. However, a student's right to delay is permitted.

• Try to avoid noise and commotion for half an hour before your training session. To reduce fatigue, it is recommended to use that time for rest instead of practicing lessons at an accelerated pace. Additionally, consider drinking a small teapot of light lavender tea (with a teaspoon of lavender) for further relaxation.

• In any season, an absence from a meeting is permissible without charge. However, every absence (apart from sick days) will be charged as one training session.

• The duration of each meeting ranges between thirty minutes to a maximum of sixty minutes, depending on the requirement.

• Send your queries and sample exercises to the instructor. You will receive a response on the same day, as soon as possible. Keep your recordings brief and focus solely on the challenging aspect of the task. Typically, these recordings should not surpass thirty seconds in length.

• Do not send questions and sample exercises to the instructor more than twice daily, unless requested. 

• Take note of the instructions given in each meeting and remember them until the next session. Your weekly training plan will consist of up to twelve commands. If you fail to execute the exercises correctly, or if you forget any of the tips, your training plan will be affected. Not practicing each point will lead to a negative grade, and the maximum number of such grades each season is forty. If this score exceeds forty, your admission will be revoked. Nonetheless, re-admission is possible, but it necessitates re-registering and being subjected to a practice penalty.

• The assessment of our training programme is paramount to your advancement. Therefore, we will adhere strictly to your work.

• It is part of the elective training curriculum for the triennial Setar course, where the Setar students embark on biannual trips to the mountains, plains, and deserts to play their instruments at camp.

• Participation in workshops on the philosophy of Iranian music is optional for students enrolled in the education program. These workshops may be conducted online, periodically.

The educator is accountable for the advancement of their students. When appraising education, the educator must consider both the methodology employed for instruction and the resulting progress of the student. They are tasked with imparting knowledge and assessing the effectiveness of their teaching. 

Today, Dastgahi music education often suffers from a lack of organization and structure. A key issue is the absence of original thought. Teachers may focus on dedicating time, energy and effort to students, yet these efforts alone may fall short. It is possible that teachers' motivation and efforts are admirable and appropriate, but the execution of the teaching method may be inadequate. Until a teaching method has been considered, evaluated and trialed, a teacher cannot truly understand their own work. Without such understanding, effective teaching cannot be accomplished.

I believe that the current methods do not achieve the desired results despite the efforts put into them. In my opinion, these shortcomings stem more from insufficient consideration and observation rather than errors in thinking.  If there is no question, how can there be an answer?

These are the questions that you should think about in providing the training method:

• What are the requirements in a student's soul that urge them towards music? Do these requirements differ when it comes to foreign musical styles? If a teacher has not acknowledged and experienced these requirements, can they assist the student in satisfying them?

• What is Dastgahi music education? and before that: what is education?

And then:

• How is teaching done?

• Dastgahi music education cultivates skills in four categories of students: improviser, composer (piece player), group player, and composer. Shouldn't the training provided for each category be tailored to their specific needs?

• What are the objective standards of proficiency, accuracy, and aesthetic excellence for performing Dastgahi music? What are the precise standards for measuring technical proficiency, accuracy, and aesthetic quality in instrumental music performance? Or in simpler terms, what does it mean to possess instrumental technique?

• What are the clear and successive steps or the program for a student to progress from a novice to a professor?

• What impact do individual student characteristics have on the method and content of their educational programme, including personality traits and their inner and outer life experiences?

• If Dastgahi music is a form of artistic expression, can it exist without content? How can the content be developed?

Addressing, resolving, and finding solutions to the aforementioned inquiries, and many others, forms the foundation of the teaching approach. The method may vary depending on varying perspectives; nevertheless, aside from this divergence, the educator should not commence their pedagogy without a meticulously planned strategy.  To do otherwise would imply an unwise disregard for their profession. To execute this work, or teach it proficiently, one must possess prior awareness and comprehension.

To access further insights on personal responsibility and self-improvement, please refer to the chain analysis titled: Forty points about duty".

This method has been gradually developed over the last twenty years, and its shortcomings have been continuously reduced to this day.

The student benefits from our daily support. Whenever he has a question or a problem, he gets the answer the same day in the shortest possible time. Also, when he sends us the example he has played, he hears the improvement points very quickly, so if there is a shortcoming in his work, he will find it the same day and at the same time instead of next week.

In my teaching method, the teacher's role is to guide the student on how to play correctly, rather than simply pointing out what they did wrong and telling them the correct way. For instance, if a student struggles with understanding the rhythm of a melody and finds it meaningless, the teacher would provide exercises to help them grasp the essence of the melody. Similarly, if a student plays a passage too quickly, simply instructing them to slow down would not suffice. Instead, the teacher would suggest techniques for the student to gauge their playing speed and easily make adjustments. To illustrate, imagine a doctor advising a patient with high cholesterol or obesity on what foods to avoid and what to consume, as well as portion sizes. In contrast, another doctor takes a different approach by suggesting actions the patient can take to resist certain foods and eat adequately. The distinction between these two doctors' methods is what sets this teaching approach apart from others.

By the second month: the right and left hands forming a foundation, and playing the right and left hands without getting too stuck on the strings.

By the fourth month: pouring out the songs played.

By the sixth month: completion of the first corners of passion up to 12 Gushes.

By the 1st year: completion of the Shour Dasgah.

By this time, the student's playing is audible to a certain extent and can please the listeners of close acquaintances.

By the second year: completion of the other two Dasgahs.

By this time the playing has become much smoother.By the fourth year: completion of seven Dasgahs and six Avazes. By this time, the player has become agile and fluid, and the student can begin to improvise, gradually building and improving the player's depth. And it is from here that he will make his special way more and more special.

One of the advantages and simplicity of distance learning is that the student does not lose time before and after the training session in commuting in the heat and cold, etc.; for example, in a city like Tehran, this time sometimes lasts several hours. This time is valuable in itself, and on the other hand, going back and forth causes a lot of fatigue and the student's psyche is scattered. There is also the cost of commuting and the noise pollution on the roads. The disadvantage of distance learning is that the student does not hear the teacher's instrument closely; the solution to this is to have face-to-face training from time to time, for example once a month. However, if this is not combined with a few tricks, this shortcoming will also disappear.

It is not the case that whoever plays a piece in Dastgahi music creates the atmosphere of the Dastgah. The Dastgah is an internal phenomenon. Dastgah is not built until the sounds are perceived as a special atmosphere. Dastgah is not the sound itself; it is a deep mood, a Gahan (1), which is evoked or reminiscent of sound.

The trio's goal is to create the atmosphere of the Dastgah. Therefore, playing becomes pointless until that atmosphere is established. The purpose of playing is to enhance and deepen that atmosphere. Even if the musician's fingers move smoothly and the melody is played correctly, it can still be a futile task if the atmosphere has not been created.

You might argue that it is unnecessary to state that the musician's job is to create the atmosphere, and everyone knows this! However, it must be acknowledged that most of what we hear from Dastgahi musicians today is evidence of forgetting this principle. They themselves are aware of what I am saying. Their playing lacks depth, meaning, and sometimes it is not their primary objective. Much of what we hear today is a collection of sounds that do not embody the essence of the Dastgah, rendering the music lifeless.

(1) - Gahan: now, time, mood.