Qanun

Qanun

 

The Qanun is one of the sitar instruments family. The history of this instrument is not entirely known. Some Historians consider the inventor of  Qanun to be Plato, and others believe the inventor of Qanun to be Farabi. The Qanun instrument is in the shape of a trapezoid on which 24 triple wires are installed on its bridges. To make small changes, keys have been installed to change the length of the strings slightly. The presence of skin on the upper part of this instrument and playing it with bony plectrums have given this instrument a completely sophisticated sound. With the invention of musical instruments such as the Tar and the Santur, the Qanun instruments were abandoned for a long time.

Nowadays, with the endeavors of great music masters such as Mehdi Meftah, Simin Agha Razi, and Maliheh Saeedi, this instrument has been adapted to every part of Radif. It is now widely used in traditional Iranian music performances.