The reference for traditional and authentic Iranian music
The reference for traditional and authentic Iranian music
Mohammad Esmaeili (born August 26, 1934, Tehran) is an Iranian musician and tonbak player.
Biography and artistic activity
Mohammad Esmaeili, with the birth name “Mohammad Ali Esmaeili Matin,” was born on August 26, 1934, in Tehran. In 1951, he was introduced to “Hossein Tehrani” by his uncles Morteza and Mostafa Gorgin Zadeh. In 1958, he started working in the music groups of the Ministry of Culture and Art and began collaborating with national music orchestras and the Tonbak group. After 5 years, he traveled to African, Asian, European, and American countries to perform national music programs and further introduce it, performing programs. From 1964, he started teaching at the National Music Conservatory, and in 1966, he took over the leadership of the Tonbak group of the Ministry of Culture and Art at that time. In 1964, he became a Tonbak instructor at the National Music Conservatory, succeeding his teacher in teaching Tonbak.
Mohammad Esmaeili’s playing style is Hossein Tehrani’s style. Mohammad Esmaeili makes full use of the tonbak’s capabilities, such as wood and tonbak grips. Mohammad Esmaeili has a long history of solo performances and accompanying orchestras. His duets (question and answer) with Faramarz Payvar’s santur are among them.
In the 1980s, under the direction of Faramarz Payvar (santur) and accompanied by Jalil Shahnaz (tar), Ali Asghar Bahari (kamancheh), and Mohammad Mousavi (ney), he formed the Iranian Music Masters Group and traveled extensively to European, Asian, and American countries with this group. He holds a first-class artistic degree, equivalent to a doctorate. He has arranged about 15 fantasy pieces on Iranian rhythms, the most famous of which is a piece called Ronema.
The commemoration ceremony of “Mohammad Esmaeili” was held on Thursday, December 30, 2017, with the presence of a group of artists in Vahdat Hall of Tehran. In this ceremony, which was organized by the “Rad No Andish” Cultural Institute, “5 decades of effective efforts of Professor Mohammad Esmaeili in the field of Iranian music and Tonbak playing” were appreciated. Screening a short film of Mohammad Esmaeili’s artistic activities, performing the music group ” استاد پایور ” under the direction of “Saeed Sabet” and singing by “Ali Reza Fereydounpour” and performing the group “Tonbak Navazan” under the direction and playing of “Mohammad Esmaeili” and دف playing by “Ehsan Ghadami” were among the parts of this ceremony.
Majid Esmaeili is Mohammad Esmaeili’s son and a well-known cello player residing in Tehran.
The works collected from this artist are on the خصوصی site as follows:
