Kamancheh

This article is about the Iranian kamancheh. For the related but different Pontian Greek, Turkish or Armenian instrument, see Kemenche.
Kamancheh
Persian Kamānches, ca. 1880
String instrument
Other namesKamancha, Kamanche, Kemancheh, Kamanjah, Kabak kemane
Classification Bowed strings
DevelopedIran
Playing range
g3-e7
Related instruments
Musicians
Builders
Sound sample
Kamancheh music
Kamancheh Improvisation Played by Kayhan Kalhor – Silk Road Project
Art of crafting and playing with Kamantcheh/Kamancha, a bowed string musical instrument
CountryAzerbaijan and Iran
Reference01286
Inscription history
Inscription2017 (13th session)
ListRepresentative
Kamancheh

The kamancheh (also kamānche or kamāncha) (Persian: کمانچه, Azerbaijani: kamança, Armenian: քամանչա, Kurdish: کەمانچە ,kemançe) is an Iranian bowed string instrument used in Persian,[1] Azerbaijani,[2] Armenian,[3] Kurdish,[4] Georgian, Turkmen, and Uzbek music with slight variations in the structure of the instrument.[5][6] The kamancheh is related to the rebab which is the historical ancestor of the kamancheh and the bowed Byzantine lyra.[7] The strings are played with a variable-tension bow.

In 2017, the art of crafting and playing with Kamantcheh/Kamancha was included into the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists of Azerbaijan and Iran.[8]

  1. ^ Global Minstrels: Voices of World Music. Elijah Wald. 2012. p. 227. ISBN 9781135863685.
  2. ^ "Kamancha". UNESCO. In the Republic of Azerbaijan it constitutes a major element of classical and folkloric music, and performances occupy a central place in a wide number of social and cultural gatherings.
  3. ^ Dowsett, Charles (1997). Sayatʻ-Nova: an 18th-century troubadour: a biographical and literary study. Leuven: Peeters Publishers. p. 4. ISBN 90-6831-795-4.
  4. ^ "Iranian Kurdish musician wins prestigious award". Kurdistan24. 19 August 2019. Retrieved 24 March 2020.
  5. ^ "Pastimes of Central Asians. Musicians. A Man Practising the Kamancha, a Long-necked Stringed Instrument". World Digital Library. 1865. Retrieved 14 May 2014.
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference abc was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ "Iranian string instrument 'Kamancheh' to be inscribed on UNESCO list". 11 April 2015. Retrieved 1 May 2015.
  8. ^ "Art of crafting and playing with Kamantcheh/Kamancha, a bowed string musical instrument". UNESCO.