Sorna
Encyclopedia
Iranian musical instruments
Persian musical instruments can be broadly classified into three categories, namely classical, Western and folk. Most of Persian musical instruments spread in the former Persian Empires states all over the Middle East, Caucasus, Central Asia and Southern Asia...
.
Etymology
The word sorna is a Pahlavi derivative of sūrnāy (literally "strong flute"), which is a compand of 'sūr-' (strong) and '-nāy' (flute). Possibly it was called "strong flute" due to its double-reed-construction rather than usual nāyNey
The ney is an end-blown flute that figures prominently in Middle Eastern music. In some of these musical traditions, it is the only wind instrument used. It is a very ancient instrument, with depictions of ney players appearing in wall paintings in the Egyptian pyramids and actual neys being found...
, which was made of a single tube of cane. Also it is suggested that the first part of word of sorna, is from sūr- again from Pahlavi and New-Persian
Persian language
Persian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...
, meaning the "banquet, meal and feast", thus the "banquet-flute".
It is also suggested that "Sorna" is a cognate of "Horn", as "Sorna" simply means horn. This is a result of the Centum-Satem isogloss
Centum-Satem isogloss
The centum-satem division is an isogloss of the Indo-European language family, related to the different evolution of the three dorsal consonant rows of the mainstream reconstruction of Proto-Indo-European:...
, and later Grimm's Law
Grimm's law
Grimm's law , named for Jacob Grimm, is a set of statements describing the inherited Proto-Indo-European stops as they developed in Proto-Germanic in the 1st millennium BC...
. Even in Persian there is another wind instrument whose name appears to be a cognate of both "Sorna" and "Horn", called "Karna
Karna
Karna or Radheya is one of the central characters in the epic Mahābhārata, from ancient India. He was the King of Anga...
" (کرنا); this may stem from a re-borrowing from another language.
History
The instrument's history dates back to the Achaemenid Dynasty (550-330 BCE), and was used to play at the end of the day from the city gate or from the local administration building. This custom persisted in EnglandEngland
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
until the 19th century, the town waits playing shawm
Shawm
The shawm was a medieval and Renaissance musical instrument of the woodwind family made in Europe from the 12th century until the 17th century. It was developed from the oriental zurna and is the predecessor of the modern oboe. The body of the shawm was usually turned from a single piece of wood,...
s to mark the hours. The instrument was mainly played in outdoors in regional music of Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
in the festive ceremonies (the Persian poet Molana Rumi mentioned the sorna and dohol in his poems).
The Achaemenid sorna was a large trumpet-like instrument, but in later dates was reduced in size, and became more like (shrill oboe
Oboe
The oboe is a double reed musical instrument of the woodwind family. In English, prior to 1770, the instrument was called "hautbois" , "hoboy", or "French hoboy". The spelling "oboe" was adopted into English ca...
), or dozale (double oboe), which is characterized by a turned wood body of simple shape, with a heavily flared bell. The earlier was categorized as a trumpet
Trumpet
The trumpet is the musical instrument with the highest register in the brass family. Trumpets are among the oldest musical instruments, dating back to at least 1500 BCE. They are played by blowing air through closed lips, producing a "buzzing" sound which starts a standing wave vibration in the air...
, but this was a mistaken idea based on the bell of the oboe and the freeblowing embouchure that often gives a superficial resemblance to a brass embouchure
Embouchure
The embouchure is the use of facial muscles and the shaping of the lips to the mouthpiece of woodwind instruments or the mouthpiece of the brass instruments.The word is of French origin and is related to the root bouche , 'mouth'....
, particularly if the oboe is fitted as so many are with a lip ring.
According to the Shahnameh
Shahnameh
The Shahnameh or Shah-nama is a long epic poem written by the Persian poet Ferdowsi between c.977 and 1010 AD and is the national epic of Iran and related societies...
, it was King Jamshid
Jamshid
Jamshid is a mythological figure of Greater Iranian culture and tradition.In tradition and folklore, Jamshid is described as having been the fourth and greatest king of the epigraphically unattested Pishdadian dynasty . This role is already alluded to in Zoroastrian scripture Jamshid (Middle-...
who devised the Sornā. Except the literary evidences, there are also number of artefacts from Sasanian dynasty
Sassanid Empire
The Sassanid Empire , known to its inhabitants as Ērānshahr and Ērān in Middle Persian and resulting in the New Persian terms Iranshahr and Iran , was the last pre-Islamic Persian Empire, ruled by the Sasanian Dynasty from 224 to 651...
(224-651 CE), depicting Sorna, such a silver dish, currently in Hermitage Museum
Hermitage Museum
The State Hermitage is a museum of art and culture in Saint Petersburg, Russia. One of the largest and oldest museums of the world, it was founded in 1764 by Catherine the Great and has been opened to the public since 1852. Its collections, of which only a small part is on permanent display,...
.
Function
A small amount of air is forced under pressure through a small metal tube called the staple which serves to hold the reed and match it to the bore. This requires the player to make sure, as in oboe playing, that one also empties the lungs of stale air when taking a new breath.Often sornas were played in pairs, with a melody and a drone player. This drone may move to different notes during a piece of music, changing at prescribed places in the composition.
Several other names, such as dohol, davul, tavel, and so on have been applied to the sorna. Since dohol
Dohol
A dohol is a large cylindrical drum with two skin heads. It is generally struck on one side with a wooden stick bowed at the end, and with a large thin stick on the other side, though it is also played by the bare hands. It is the principal accompaniment for the sorna...
is a double-faced drum sometimes it is called do-rūyeh in Persian language, in contrast to ghaval and daf, which are yek-rūyeh (one-faced).
Popularity
The Sorna is mostly played in Loristan, Chaharmahal and BakhtiariChaharmahal and Bakhtiari Province
Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari Province is one of the 31 provinces of Iran. It lies in the southwestern part of the country. Its capital is Shahrekord.It has an area of 16,332 square kilometers and a population of 842,000 .- People and culture :...
, Kurdistan, Sistan and Baluchestan Province and Iranian Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan (Iran)
Azerbaijan or Azarbaijan , also Iranian Azerbaijan, Persian Azarbaijan is a region in northwestern Iran. It is also historically known as Atropatene and Aturpatakan....
.
In Loristan, Sorna is used as a main instrument during wedding ceremonies and also funeral ceremonies (which is called Chamaryounah). Sorna almost always is accompanied with dohol
Dohol
A dohol is a large cylindrical drum with two skin heads. It is generally struck on one side with a wooden stick bowed at the end, and with a large thin stick on the other side, though it is also played by the bare hands. It is the principal accompaniment for the sorna...
in this region.
In the region of Sistan and Baluchestan, sorna is mostly used in wedding ceremonies and other celebration. The instrument is always accompanied by dohol and sometimes may include traditional dance by forming a circle.