Chef de Musique or Chef de Macaroni: The Twisted History of the European Military Music in Persia Mohsen MohaMMadi The adoption of European military bands in non-Western countries is a popular theme in studies of non-Western cultures. In fact, musicologists believe that the encounter of Ottoman military bands during the Third Crusade in the late twelfth century was the primary motivation for the development of the European military bands.1 During the following centuries, European military bands evolved into a sophisticated music genre, and in turn, they fascinated Eastern rulers thoroughly. The Ottoman Court hired Italian musicians in order to establish European style military music, namely Giuseppe Donizetti (1788-1856) who was succeeded by another Italian musician, Callisto Guatelli (1819-1899).2 Scholars have also done comparative studies on the modernization of music in Eastern societies; Karl Signell, for instance, studied the modernization of music in Turkey and Japan.3 Military music in Persia has been the subject of several publications, including two book-length studies.4 There is one unique reference that scholars use as the irst-hand source on European music in Persia in the 1. JereMy Montagu, arMin suppan, Wolfgang suppan, d.J.s. Murray, and raoul f. CaMus, Military Music, in Grove Music Online, Oxford Music Online, Oxford, Oxford University Press. Accessed 2015, March 16: http://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/subscriber/ article/grove/music/44139. 2. a. BaColla, La musique en Turquie et quelques traits biographiques sur Giuseppe Donizetti, Istanbul, Levant Herald, 1911; Giuseppe Donizetti Pascià. Traiettorie musicali e storiche tra Italia e Turchia / Giuseppe Donizetti Pasha. Musical and Historical Trajectories between Italy and Turkey, edited by Federico Spinetti, Bergamo, Fondazione Donizetti, 2010. 3. Karl signell, The Modernization Process in Two Oriental Music Cultures: Turkish and Japanese, «Asian Music» 7/2, 1976, pp. 72-102. 4. hoseyn-ali Mallah, Tārikh-e Musiqi-e Nezāmi-e Iran, Tehran, Honar va Mardom, 1976; ali BolooKBashi and yahya shahidi, Pazhuheshi dar Musiqi va Sāz-hā-ye Musiqi-ye Nezāmiye Dowreh-ye Qājār, Tehran, Farhang va Mardom, 2002. MOHSEN MOHAMMADI 52 nineteenth century: a French book titled La musique chez les Persans en 1885.5 There were strong patriotic and self-promoting motivations behind compiling that book, as discussed below. The content of the book had been provided by Alfred Lemaire who himself was the subject of the book, and it was elaborated by his Artesian compatriot, Victor Advielle. Lemaire and Advielle downplayed the role of an Italian musician, named «Mario», who had worked for the Persian Court. This musician was even humiliated as being more skilful in making an excellent macaroni than a simple pas redoublé. Victor Advielle (1833-1903), Paris, Bibliothèque Nationale de France, Département Estampes et photographie In order to offer a more realistic picture of this phenomenon, this article provides a concise history of Persians’ encounters with European military music, both in Persia and in Europe. The adoption of military 5. ViCtor-hyaCinthe adVielle, La musique chez les Persans en 1885, Paris, chez l’auteur, 1885. A Persian translation of the short book was first published in an art journal in 1975; the same translation has been republished in a music journal recently (id., Musiqi Nazd-e Irāniān, translated by Hoseyn-Ali Mallah, I, «Honar va Mardom» 146-147, January 1975, pp. 20-27; II, «Honar va Mardom» 148, February 1975, pp. 40-51; id., Musiqi Nazd-e Irāniān dar 1885 Milādi, translated by Hoseyn-Ali Mallah, «Mahoor» 15/58, 2013, pp. 9-30). EUROPEAN MILITARY MUSIC IN PERSIA 53 music as part of the European modern army was a strong motivation for organizing European military bands in Persia. A signiicant part of the article will be devoted to an Italian musician, Marco Brambilla, who was apparently the irst European musician who organized military bands for the Persian Court. Likewise, fragments of information on other European musicians who worked for the Persian Court will form the following sections of the paper. That includes Boschetti (Bosquet, Bousquet) and Royon (Rouyon, Rouillon) who worked before Alfred Lemaire’s arrival in Persia as well as Julius Heise (d. 1870), Julius Gebauer (1846-1895), Angelo, Alexandre Duval, and the musicians of the Persian Cossack Brigade who also worked in Tehran after Lemaire started his career in 1868. The last section provides statistical information on the military bands in Persia prior to Lemaire’s arrival, which shows that he intentionally downgraded the status of Persian military bands organized by his predecessors. First-hand sources offer an information on the early European military bands in Persia. Nineteenth-century travel accounts by Europeans who visited Persia as well as Persians who visited Europe provide hints of information on the introduction of the European music to Persia. Similarly, local newspapers and statistical surveys occasionally offer hints of information on European music. Artesian patriotism and European music in Persia The author of a short book about Persian music, Victor-Hyacinthe Advielle (1833-1903), was born in Arras in the region of Pas-de-Calais in Northern France. He produced dozens of publications, of which several pieces showed his patriotic feelings for his hometown of Arras and for his regional race of Artesian.6 A careful look at his book on music in Persia reveals that his primary intention was, again, praising his own Artesian race and promoting a compatriot Artesian from the same region of Pasde-Calais. Advielle’s irst publication related to music in Persia appeared in 1881 in the third issue of a French quarterly journal, «L’Artésienne», the bulletin of the Association d’Appui Mutuel des Enfants du Pas-de-Calais Résidant à Paris;7 a journal dedicated to the promotion of the Artesian race. The article was a biographical piece on the life and career of a French mu6. angelo de guBernatis, Dictionnaire international des écrivains du jour, vol. 1, Florence, Louis Niccolai, 1891, pp. 21-22. 7. ViCtor-hyaCinthe adVielle, M. Lemaire (Alfred-Jean-Baptiste), «L’Artésienne» 1/3, 1881, pp. 160-161. 54 MOHSEN MOHAMMADI sician: Alfred Jean-Baptiste Lemaire (1842-1907). Victor Advielle’s name appeared on the irst pages of the journal and he was introduced as «attaché au Ministère des Finances» as well as secretary of the «Comité Parisien de l’Arrondissement d’Arras» and «délégué de canton d’Arras nord» for the same comité.8 Advielle himself mentioned a list of his positions and afiliations on the title page of one of his books, of which many were related to his region Arras.9 Although he showed an interest in music by writing articles, such as Le patois artésien et les chansons de la fête d’Arras which included transcription of a song,10 his passion for music may not have been his primary motivation for producing a brief biography of a French musician. As Advielle revealed, Alfred Lemaire was born in Aire-sur-la-Lys, another town in northern part of Arras, and he was introduced as an Artesian compatriot.11 Lemaire’s brief biography included the following information: he was born in Aire-sur-la-Lys, in 1842, entered the Conservatoire de musique de Paris in November 1855, acquired the second prize in solfège and in lute in 1857, acquired the irst prize in lute in 1858, and acquired the second prize in harmony in 1861. He started counterpoint and fugue in 1862, and in the following year he joined the irst regiment of the voltigeurs de la garde. In 1864 he passed the exam to be accepted as sous-chef de musique and in 1868 he was sent to Persia, where he established eighteen military bands. In 1875 he established Persia’s irst known public school of music, where he himself taught wind instruments, piano, music theory, harmony, and other courses. He had married the daughter of a French physician who served as the Shah’s private doctor and he was decorated with several orders including three Persian orders, Commander of the Order of the Lion and the Sun, Oficer of the Order of Science, and the Order of Majidieh, Oficer of the Order of Franz Joseph of Austria, and Chevalier of the Order of the Crown of Italy. The article ended with titles of pieces that Lemaire had published in 1873 and 1881.12 Victor Advielle does not mention his source of information. However, he mentions that Alfred Lemaire had travelled to Paris in 1881, the same 8. «L’Artésienne» 1/3, 1881, pp. 113, 115. 9. ViCtor-hyaCinthe adVielle, Les droits et les devoirs des conservateurs des bibliothèques communales, Paris, Paul Dupont, 1874. 10. id., Le patois artésien et les chansons de la fête d’Arras, «L’Artésienne» 1/3, 1881, pp. 148154. 11. id., M. Lemaire cit., p. 160. 12. Ivi, pp. 160-161. EUROPEAN MILITARY MUSIC IN PERSIA 55 year that his short biography appeared in «L’Artésienne». As Advielle indicated in a footnote, Lemaire had correspondence with the Association d’Appui Mutuel des Enfants du Pas-de-Calais Résidant à Paris and he had requested to be registered as associate member of the society.13 Lemaire must have provided the society with his own biographical as well as bibliographical information upon which Advielle produced the short article. Alternatively it may be that Advielle and Lemaire met in Paris or in Pasde-Calais. Patriotism boosted by self-promotion The same Artesian patriotism motivated a lecture at the public meeting of the Académie des Sciences, Lettres et Arts d’Arras, or Académie d’Arras, to which Victor Advielle was afiliated. The lecture was delivered on August 25, 1882, by another member of the academy, Jules Guérard (18301912), another Artesian compatriot who was born in Arras.14 Guérard retained several professional and oficial titles including the head of the Société Philharmonique d’Arras which revealed his knowledge of music.15 He acknowledged receiving a Mémoire that contained information on the music in Persia.16 Although, the lecture did not reveal the author of the Mémoire, it is likely that the Mémoire was submitted by Victor Advielle who had published a similar article on Lemaire in 1881. This assumption inds support in the fact that Victor Advielle’s La musique chez les Persans en 1885 included the details of the themes that were briely addressed in the lecture, such as the curricula of School of Music in Tehran, the program of a banquet performance for the Prince Zell-os-Soltān, and the details of musical instruments of Persia.17 Alternatively, it might be that the Mémoire was submitted by another Artesian compatriot and Lemaire provided more details for Advielle in 1885. According to «Echo de Perse», the Persian Court’s oficial bulletin in French language published from 1885 to 1888, Alfred Lemaire left Persia to visit his home country in the spring 13. Ivi, p. 161, fn 1. 14. georges defurne and fernand sergeant, Guérard, Jules, in Dictionnaire biographique de la ville d’Arras et de son arrondissement, Arras, Théry et Plouvier, 1906. 15. gustaVe aCreMant, Mémoires de l’Académie des Sciences, Lettres et Arts d’Arras, Arras, Académie des Sciences, Lettres et Arts d’Arras, 1913, p. 153. 16. Jules guérard, Rapport sur le concours des beaux-arts (histoire), in Mémoires de l’Académie des Sciences, Lettres et Arts d’Arras, XIV, Arras, Académie des Sciences, Lettres et Arts d’Arras, 1883, II, pp. 68-75: 72. 17. Ivi, pp. 72-73; adVielle, La musique chez les Persans cit., pp. 8, 10, 12-16. 56 MOHSEN MOHAMMADI of 1885.18 Even if he did not provide more information during this trip, his visit must have been a strong motivation for Advielle to compile and publish La musique chez les Persans en 1885; in fact, Advielle himself was the publisher of the book. The Mémoire not only aimed to promote the Artesian race, but also intended to promote the author as well. It was submitted to win the Academy’s Concours des beaux-arts that had been awaiting a winner for long time;19 therefore, it was meant to fascinate patriotic Artesian members of the committee. Compared to Advielle’s article of 1881, the Mémoire not only provided more information on Alfred Lemaire’s activities in Persia, but it was also characterized by stronger patriotic statements. The book starts with bold patriotic sentences on the Artesian race («notre race artésienne») and it continues with introducing the fellow Artesian, Alfred Lemaire.20 The last motivation was possibly an exchange of favours between Advielle and Lemaire. Perhaps they irst established contact when Lemaire started correspondence with the Academy d’Arras in 1881. That was a motivation for Advielle to produce his short biography of Lemaire, which must have pleased Lemaire enormously. Lemaire must have tried to please Advielle in return, and as a token of gratitude, he could in fact please him with a Persian decoration eventually. As Victor Advielle proudly mentioned in the title page of La musique chez les Persans en 1885, he had been decorated as Oficer of the Order of Science of Persia.21 As a matter of fact, Alfred Lemaire certainly believed in maintaining a strong social network. He was the founder and the irst Grand Master of the Persian branch of the largest Masonic organization of France, Grand Orient de France.22 Further investigation might possibly reveal masonic relationships between Victor Advielle and Alfred Lemaire. The young «sous-chef de musique» and the old «maréchal» Both Advielle’s article and the Mémoire stated that in 1868, and by the request of the Persian Envoy to France, Alfred Lemaire was singled out and chosen to be sent to Persia by Adolphe Niel (1802-1869), the French 18. Nouvelles locales, «Echo de Perse» 1/4, 1885, p. 4. 19. guérard, Rapport cit., p. 68. 20. adVielle, La musique chez les Persans cit., pp. 6, 11. 21. Ivi, p. 1. 22. paul saBatiennes, Pour une histoire de la première loge maçonnique en Iran, «Revue de l’Université de Bruxelles» 3-4, 1977, pp. 414-442: 421-422. EUROPEAN MILITARY MUSIC IN PERSIA 57 Minister of War from 1867 to 1869.23 This happened after a few years that Lemaire had started his irst army position as sous-chef de musique of the irst regiment of the voltigeurs de la garde. There was no more information provided to explain how the celebrated Maréchal Niel, the Minister of War with the highest military rank of Marshal of France, would know a sous-chef de musique of a regiment who had joined the army a few years earlier. It remained unclear why an ordinary matter of choosing a sous-chef de musique to be sent to a mission for reorganizing marching bands for the Persian Court would require the Minister of War’s special attention. Adolphe Niel died a few months after Alfred Lemaire was sent to Persia. Lemaire and his compatriots could make such claims and it was almost impossible to investigate those claims. Advielle included in his article a list of Lemaire’s awards during his study at Conservatoire de musique de Paris: the second prize in solfège and in lute in 1857, the irst prize in lute in 1858, and the second prize in harmony in 1861.24 It is not quite easy to evaluate Lemaire’s claims about his prize and military position, particularly because Lemaire himself must have been the source of information. This information was repeated in La musique chez les Persans en 1885 with one difference: the lute prize of 1858 was mentioned as a second prize. In 1886, the French newspaper of the Persian Court had a report on the annual exams of the school of music and that report included that Alfred Lemaire had won the irst prize of the Conservatoire de Paris with no further explanation.25 The report stated that Lemaire had served at Garde Impérial de Napoléon III as chef de musique, which was a more obvious exaggeration. If Lemaire’s position and prize were exaggerated in the subsequent publications, it is likely that they were exaggerated in the irst piece as well. Italian chef de macaroni ruins efforts of the French chef de musique The rest of the Guérard’s lecture described Lemaire’s great efforts in establishing military music bands in Persia. The musical hero started reorganizing music bands. Soon he established Persia’s irst school of music where he himself taught all courses in music. According to Guérard, while he was not familiar with Persian language, he had to teach music to his illiterate Persian students whose ears would resist anything that was not 23. adVielle, M. Lemaire cit., p. 160; guérard, Rapport cit., p. 71. 24. adVielle, M. Lemaire cit., p. 160. 25. félix VauVillier, Les examens de musique au Collège Impérial de Téhéran, «Echo de Perse» 2/2, 1886, pp. 3-4: 4. 58 MOHSEN MOHAMMADI Asian melody. He was said to have established eighteen music bands for the Persian Court.26 Upon his arrival in Tehran, as Guérard stated, Lemaire realized that another French musician, Boulanger, had organized military bands for the Persian Court; however, they were in complete disarray. Boulanger’s efforts had been ruined by an Italian successor named Mario. Mario was described as having no talent in music, he was rather a «chef de cuisine» than «chef de musique», and more skillful in «composition d’un excellent macaroni» than in composing a simple «pas redoublé».27 The story of the French and Italian musicians was repeated in Advielle’s La musique chez les Persans en 1885. The second version was more elaborated and it revealed that in fact two French musicians had put efforts to establish Persian military bands. Bousquet was a French chef de musique who, with the help of Rouillon, his sous-chef, had organized military bands for the Shah of Persia. Bousquet remained in Tehran in 1856 and 1857. Rouillon, who acquired the title of chef de musique of the Shah, was ill almost all the time and could not work seriously with his musicians. Nevertheless, he was the only teacher for Persian bands until 1867.28 The two names of Bousquet and Boulanger must be alternative readings of Lemaire’s handwriting. This assumption is also supported by the fact that their names appeared in similar sentences in both texts.29 Rouillon was certainly a different person, who was introduced as the second French musician at the service of the Shah of Persia. La musique chez les Persans en 1885 corrected the name of the Italian musician from Mario to Marco. He was described as a former sailor who had introduced himself as clarinettist and maestro di cappella. Once again, Marco «excelled in making macaroni, and his meals, beyond doubt, compensated greatly for his awful music».30 As Advielle reported, the efforts of the French musicians in establishing military bands for Persia was ruined by the Italian sailor. He had formed another «musique» for the Shah, which 26. guérard, Rapport cit., pp. 71-74. 27. Ivi, p. 71. 28. adVielle, La musique chez les Persans cit., p. 6. 29. «A son arrivée à Téhéran, notre concitoyen trouve dans le plus complet désarroi les quelques rares débris d’une musique organisée antérieurement par un autre Français, M. Boulanger» (guérard, Rapport cit., p. 71). «A Téhéran, M. Lemaire trouva les musiciens de M. Bousquet dans le plus complet désarroi» (adVielle, La musique chez les Persans cit., p. 6). 30. Ibidem. EUROPEAN MILITARY MUSIC IN PERSIA 59 most probably meant Italian style bands, in deplorable condition. Lemaire reorganized all Persian bands of both Italian and French style, which were mentioned in the book as «deux musiques», according to the French military bands of the time. The book continues with a few sentences on art music in Persia. It explains that the art of music was not encouraged among Persians, there was no private company, no philharmonic or orphéonique society. At the end of the discussion, Victor Advielle concluded that art music had spread in Persia, as he had assumed, because of his fellow Artesian and the quality of the Artesian race.31 Victor Advielle’s reproduction of Alfred Lemaire’s information was cited in the subsequent publications. For instance, the third chapter of a book on Persia by Charles Le Brun-Renaud (1853-1921), La Perse politique et militaire au XIXe siècle, was dedicated to La musique française en Perse based on Victor Advielle’s publication.32 Likewise, it was cited by Clément Huart (1854-1926) in Albert Lavignac’s Encyclopédie de la musique et dictionnaire du Conservatoire.33 Persians encounter European military music in Europe The adoption of modern military forces was the primary motivation for Persian modernization and military music was the necessary accompaniment for military training. This necessity must have been reminded by the European military trainers who were active in training Persian army. Besides, it could have been suggested by the Persians who travelled to Europe and reported their experience of observing European military music to the Persian ruling elite, both through oral conversations and through written travel reports. Written reports on the use of military music in Europe provide instances of such observations. The earliest of such reports appeared in two books that were composed by Persian immigrants in India. Abd-ol-Latif Shushtari (1759-1805) wrote his Tohfah-tol-‘Ālam in 1801, in which he provided information on Europe in general. While explaining the military forces of Europe, he explained the role of military music: 31. Ivi, p. 11. 32. Charles le Brun-renaud, La Perse politique et militaire au XIXe siècle, Paris, L. Baudouin, 1894, pp. 29-34. 33. CléMent huart, Musique persane, in Encyclopédie de la musique et dictionnaire du Conservatoire, edited by Albert Lavignac and Lionel de la Laurencie, I: Histoire de la musique, Paris, Delagrave, 1922, pp. 3065-3083: 3077. 60 MOHSEN MOHAMMADI At battles, they play the same instrument that was mentioned [for training horses], similar to balabān [lute], and also other things that they have similar to karnā [long horn] and gavorga [large drum]. Most of the tasks are done by that balabān which is named bansuri [Indian lute]. At each point and for each matter, they play it in a certain way so that it is clear to everybody. At marches, when midnight is passed, they start playing it in a certain way. It would be a sign for the troops to collect their items, and for the crew to take down tents and prepare the apparatus, and for the troops to get prepared. Another time they play it in another way, the commander’s order becomes clear from it; whether it is march or stop or night-attack. If it is stop, they set up tents again, and if it is march or night-attack, they take the road when the sound of the instrument is again heard as the sign for passing.34 Between the years of 1799 and 1803, Abu-Tāleb Tabrizi (1753-1805/6) reproduced his European travel journal. Among other travellers, Abu-Tāleb had a distinctive position: He knew the elements of the theory of Persian and Indian music. Eight years before visiting Europe, he had composed a short book on music titled Resāleh dar Mostalahāt-e Musiqi (Treatise on Music Terminology).35 In his travel report, Tabrizi devoted a section to the ‘review’ of the army, in which he mentioned his experience of seeing a review of the British Army in Windsor: The band of musicians of the Commander-in-chief [the Duke of York] was drawn up opposite to him, and played. They stopped playing when a group of the army reached to the front of the Commander-in-chief, playing their own music; the band started playing their instruments again when that group passed. I am totally unable to express the beauty and delicacy of the performance of the band of the Duke of York which consists of forty to ifty musicians, each of them has a different musical instrument in hands. I had not heard such a heart-attracting music all my life. Listening to that music made my soul waxing more and more. Compared to that music, all instruments and music of the London’s opera and playhouse sounded like the braying of the wild animals.36 34. Mir aBd-ol-latif shushtari, Tohfah-tol-‘Ālam va Zeyl-e Tohfah, edited by Zeyn-ol‘Ābedin Kermāni, Mumbai, Matba Islami, 1847, pp. 388-389. Italics show the original terms. 35. Mohsen MohaMMadi, Qand-i Pārsī: An Introduction to Twenty Persian Texts on Indo-Persian Music, «Journal of the Indian Musicological Society», 2006, pp. 36-61: 54-55. 36. Abu-Tāleb esfAhāni, Masir-e Tālebi yā Safar-Nāmeh-ye Mirza Abu-Tāleb Khān, edited by Hosein Khadive-Jam, Tehran, Ketabhaye Jibi, 1974, pp. 207-208. Italics show the original terms. EUROPEAN MILITARY MUSIC IN PERSIA 61 Persian diplomatic delegations also witnessed European military music performance. Abolhasan Ilchi, for instance, observed British military music in his travel report to the court of Persia. On April 16, 1810, Ilchi attended a review of the British Army, during which «each dasteh [regiment] was accompanied by its own instrumentalists [playing] kushā [large drums] and gavorga-hā [large drums] and nair [semi-long horn] and sheypur [ife] in different ways».37 Ilchi was sent to Russia in 1815, where he and his group witnessed Russian military music as well and even the Russian guard of the Persian envoy had a music band, as Ilchi’s secretary, Mohammad-Hadi Shirazi, included in the travel report.38 Each time the Persian envoy was received at the Russian court, several military groups were drawn up on the way, each of which had a band performing music.39 Ilchi’s secretary included a detailed description of the Russian military forces in his travel report, a very desirable piece of information for the Persian ruling elite who keenly sought modernizing Persian army. The account on the Russian army included interesting description of military music as well: Each Polk [polki novogo stroia, Regiments of the New Order], either from infantry or cavalry, is designed as 1500 people. There are several Sargord [colonels?], generals, and oficers in each Polk. A band of instrumentalists with colourful uniforms who are ifty people, is designated to each Polk. The posture of those instrumentalists is different at the Polk of infantry and the Polk of cavalry. The status of the instruments and apparatus of those who are designated to the Polk of infantry soldats is as follows: That ifty people who are a band of instrumentalists, they all have colourful uniforms similar to the uniforms of the soldats. Each instrumentalist has a different kind of instrument in hand, such as kus [large drum], and big and small tabl [drum], and light neys [lutes], and big and small karnā [long horn] with lots of twists, and senj [cymbals], and odd spiral instruments, and other things of all kinds. They walk in front of each Polk and play instruments. Often they play the instruments in a way that men are so excited that they are happy to die and start ighting and battle. Those who are designated to play at the Polk of cavalry, they have only a kind of karnā [long horn] in hands, and they play it in a certain way while passing. Their uniforms are also different from the instrumentalists of the soldats. 37. aBol-hasan shirazi, Heyrat Nāmeh: Safarnāmeh-ye Mirza Abol-Hasan Khan Ilchi be Londan, edited by Hasan Morsalvand, Tehran, Rasa, 1985, pp. 261-262. 38. MohaMMad-hadi shirazi, Dalil-os-Sofarā: Safarnāmeh-ye Mirza Abol-Hasan Khan Shirazi Ilchi be Rusiyeh, Tehran, Markaz Asnad Farhangi Asia, 1978, pp. 169-170. 39. Ivi, pp. 244-245, 248-250, 260-261. MOHSEN MOHAMMADI 62 It is said that the instrumentalists of Russia are the best of all Europe, as their soldats and army are also the best of all Europe.40 Abolhasan Ilchi was again sent to Britain in 1819. Mohammad-Sāleh Shirazi, who by that time was living there to complete his studies, reported that ‘bands’ of music were drawn up along Ilchi’s path to the house of the Prince Regent.41 Mohammad-Sāleh Shirazi himself witnessed military music performance during his stay in Britain. Among various occasions, he mentioned a military parade on October 17, 1815, and the birthday ceremony for King George III held on June 4, 1818. He also stated that military music in the Malta Island was very charming.42 Like reports by diplomatic missions, Shirazi included a description of the countries he visited, and of course, information on European military forces was extremely desirable. On the British armed forces, he prepared the following list on June 16, 1818: The entire army of England: 110100 [...] tabbāl [drummer] and Komāchi [ifer]: 769 [...] English professional soldiers: 89194 [...] tabbāl [drummers] and bālābānchi [ifer]: 2350 [...] Infantry and sentry soldiers of the guard house of London: [...] Bālābānchi [ifers] and musicians: 15543 As the earliest information on European military music in Persia shows, the irst quarter of the nineteenth century was an era of encounter and exploration. European military music affected Persians who had a chance to observe it in European countries. They simply compared it with the unmelodious sound of the Persian Naqqāreh-Khāneh, Persian traditional military bands, hence, they found the melodious European military bands very charming. Early reports on European military bands provided names of the instruments that, however, coincided with similar instruments used in Persian military music. For instance, tabl, kus, and gavorgah were various drums of the Persian Naqqāreh-Khāneh. Abu-Tāleb even used the 40. MohaMMad-hadi shirazi, Dalil-os-Sofarā cit., pp. 169-170. Italics show the original terms. 41. MohAMMAd-sāleh shirAzi, Safarnāmeh-ye Farang; Vaqāye‘-e Raftan va Morāje‘at be Orduye Rusiyeh, in Majmu‘eh Safarnāmeh-hā-ye Mirza Sāleh Shirazi, edited by Gholam Hoseyn Mirza Saleh, Tehran, Nashr Tarikh Iran, 1985, p. 348. 42. Ivi, pp. 156, 189, 367. 43. Ivi, pp. 302-303. Italics show the original terms. EUROPEAN MILITARY MUSIC IN PERSIA 63 name of the Indian lute, Bansuri, to refer to the European lutes. Bālābān and ney were two woodwind instruments that were used to refer to European woodwinds, and karnā was used to refer to big brass instruments. In the second quarter of the nineteenth century, Persians were acquainted enough with European military music to adopt European musical terms as well. Members of Persian diplomatic delegations to Europe continued to provide information on European military music. Prince Khosrow Mirza was sent to Russia in 1829 when the Russian Envoy, Aleksandr Sergeyevich Griboyedov (1795-1829), was murdered by the mobs in Tehran. On his long way to the Russian capital of Saint Petersburg, he was received by the governors of the various Russian cities. The band of the «soldats», for instance, welcomed the Persian delegation in Vladikavkaz on June 10. According to the arrangements for the Persian Prince that was reported by his secretary, Mostafā Afshār, the Prince would be welcomed by military bands in Peterhof. The guards at the Prince’s residence would also have a military band, and he would be accompanied by military bands while going to the audience with the Tsar. Afshār reported performances by the Russian military bands in several other occasions, such as visiting the Russian navy in St. Petersburg, a short trip on a Russian ship, a welcome by the governor of St. Petersburg after the boat trip, and the oficial audience with the Tsar.44 Similarly to the other Persians who mentioned European bands, Afshār used Persian terms to refer to musical instruments, namely sheypur [ife] and tabl [drum]. In addition, he used a new European term, muzekān, that stayed in Persian culture for long time. On June 11, 1829, at around sunset time, the Russian «soldats» marched in front of the Prince’s residence in Vladikavkaz, then performed the prayers with «the melancholy sound of muzekān», which Mostafā Afshār found it being affective. Eighteen days later the Prince was in Stavropol. He was invited to visit the garden of the governor, where more than forty performers of muzekān were playing on instruments.45 Likewise, the secretary to the Persian Envoy to Europe in 1838-39 reported that en route they were welcomed in the Turkish city of Erzurum, «tabbāl» (drummer), «ney-zan» (lutist), and «muzikān» were part of the oficial reception.46 44. Mostafa afshar, Safarnāmeh-ye Khosrow Mirza, Tehran, Mostowfi, 1970, pp. 166, 207211, 219, 222-223, 238. 45. Ivi, pp. 168, 177. 46. fATTāh GArMrudi, Safar-nāmeh-ye Mirza Fattāh Khān-e Garmrudi be Orupā, Tehran, Bank Bazargani, 1969, p. 736. 64 MOHSEN MOHAMMADI Persians encounter European military music in Persia Persian ruling elite primarily experienced indirect contact with European military music through written reports as well as oral narratives by Persians who encountered European military music directly. However, they had a chance to have direct contact through live performances by European military bands as well. The information on such experiences is scarce, only a few pieces survive in European travel accounts. Moritz von Kotzebue (17891861), son of the famous German playwright August von Kotzebue (17611819), travelled to Persia in 1817 in the cortège of a Russian embassy sent to the encampment of the Shah of Persia. Although the Russian delegation did not stay long, Kotzebue produced an informative travel journal, which was published by his father two years later.47 According to Kotzebue, the Russian delegation was accompanied by a Capellmeister as well as thirty Musikanten, of whom one died at the encampment of the Shah in Soltāniyeh.48 The band performed on May 2, 1817, as soon as they entered Echmiadzin at the north-western frontier of Persia and Kotzebue thought all the Christians and non-Christians loved their music. They also performed in various occasions where a Persian audience was present. Of these, Kotzebue mentioned the following: - marching from their residence to the castle of the Governor of Yerevan; - at the garden of the Governor of Yerevan; - on entering the court city of Tabriz; - at the irework arranged in the honor of the Ambassador in Tabriz; - for the Crown Prince in Tabriz; - at their encampment in the village of Sangal-Ābād; - every evening in the city of Zanjān for several days; - at their encampment in Samanarchie [?] to entertain Abd-ol-Vahhāb Esfahāni (1761/62-1829), the Persian minister; - on their inal march to attend the Shah’s encampment in Soltāniyeh; - marching to the castle on the day of audience; - at the Shah’s entertainment evening; 47. oliVer Bast, Germany V. German Travelers and Explorers in Persia, in Encyclopædia Iranica Online, 2012: http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/germany-v. 48. Moritz Von KotzeBue, Reise nach Persien mit der Russisch kais. Gesandtschaft im Jahre 1817. Mit neun ausgemahlten und schwarzen Kupfern, Weimar, Hoffmannische Hofbuchhandlung, 1819, pp. 46, 192. EUROPEAN MILITARY MUSIC IN PERSIA 65 - every evening at their tents at the Shah’s encampment; - at the Ambassador’s entertainment evening for the Persian ministers; - celebration of the anniversary of Saint Alexander in Zanjān. It is interesting that the Crown Prince Abbas Mirza speciically asked the Russian ambassador to send the band of music to his court.49 Although Kotzebue thought that Abbas Mirza «probably» wanted to have his harem listening to European music, it was obviously a sign of Abbas Mirza’s interest in European military music; in fact, a band of European musicians would not be allowed to enter a harem or even get close to the harem in the early nineteenth century. Anyway, details of the performance for Abbas Mirza relected his intention clearly: At irst, they had to play all the pieces they knew, then Abbas Mirza had every instrument presented to him separately. He greatly admired the skilfulness by which the great many of different tones could produce a pleasing harmony. He had every individual play something and all march to music. He expressed the wish to introduce such music to his army, and dismissed them with valuable presents.50 The Shah was also interested in hearing European music. His intention, however, seemed to be different from the Crown Prince. He rather preferred entertainment to exploring or employing European military music. According to Kotzebue, the band was placed close to a group of Persian musicians. There were also some dancer boys and rope dancers. The difference between the character of the Shah and his celebrated heir was expressed by the Crown Prince himself. On the way back to Russia, the Ambassador offered the Tsar’s presents to the Crown Prince, among all fancy objects; Abbas Mirza picked a sword and a gun only, and added: «This is mine, the rest is far too beautiful for me and belongs to the Shah». Kotzebue reported that the Shah expressed great excitement while examining the Tsar’s fancy presents.51 The father and the son stood for two main motivations for adopting European music: improving military forces and entertainment. 49. Ivi, p. 107. 50. Ivi, p. 108. 51. Ivi, pp. 179-180, 194, 166-168. MOHSEN MOHAMMADI 66 The irst European military bands in Persia Primary Persian sources from the irst half of the nineteenth century would not devote attention to the establishment of the European music in Persia. Based on Persian sources, one might conclude that European military music was brought to Persia after 1848 when Nāseroddin Shah (r. 1848-1896) was set to the throne. Notwithstanding Persians’ neglect, European travellers provided valuable information on music bands in Persia. The informative travel account by William Ouseley (1767-1842), the secretary to the British Envoy to Persia, shows the employment of European music band in Persia as early as 1812. On June 19, 1812, Ouseley wrote about arriving in Tabriz at the court of Crown Prince Abbas Mirza: We were received with military honours by the Keshuns or regiments of native troops who lined the streets, soldiers excellently disciplined in the European manner and commanded by Major Christie. It afforded us equal pleasure and surprise to hear the tunes of English marches, country dances, and our national air ‘God save the King,’ exceedingly well played by young Persian ifers and drummers.52 Although William Ouseley did not speciically refer to European music, he was certainly speaking of a European style band. In fact, the band was part of the regiments of «soldiers excellently disciplined in the European manner and commanded by Major Christie». Furthermore, they played English marches, country dances, and the British National Anthem, while limitations of Persian wind instruments of Naqqāreh-Khāneh would not allow performing such a repertoire of European pieces. Charles Christie was one of the British oficers who helped modernizing Persian military forces. He not only trained Persian soldiers, but also participated in military actions against the Russians. Christie was killed at the battle of Aslānduz which took place on October 31, 1812,53 only four months after his regiment received British Envoy by performing European pieces including the British National Anthem. Yet there is no further information on Christie’s music band. Five years later, another music band was reported by a European traveller. On May 3, 1817, the Russian Envoy to Persia arrived in Yerevan, a city in Persian territory that today is the capital of Armenia. They 52. WilliaM ouseley, Travels in Various Countries of the East: More Particularly Persia, 3 vols., London, Rodwell and Martin, 1823, III, p. 399. 53. KaMran eKBal, Christie, Charles, in Encyclopædia Iranica Online, 2011: http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/christie-captain-charles-d. EUROPEAN MILITARY MUSIC IN PERSIA 67 were received by the Governor of the city accompanied by thousands of Persian soldiers with a music band. According to the secretary to the Envoy, Moritz von Kotzebue, canons were discharged and once again the British National Anthem was performed.54 Apparently the band could play a limited repertoire only, as they performed the British National Anthem to welcome Russian diplomatic delegation. Although there is no further supporting facts, one may think that the band in Yerevan was the same band in Tabriz, which was sent to the frontier city of Yerevan along with the regiment of the European style soldiers. Moritz von Kotzebue did not mention any music band of European style in Tabriz, which means the band in Yerevan must have been the same as in Tabriz in 1812. Despite the reports on a Persian band of European style in the northwestern cities of Tabriz and Yerevan, the court of Fath-Ali Shah was apparently not interested or not ready to adopt European military music. As Moritz von Kotzebue reported, the Shah was accompanied by his traditional Naqqāreh-Khāneh which consisted of ifty camels carrying musicians and musical instruments. There was no mention of any European style musician.55 The Crown Prince Abbas Mirza died in 1833 and the Shah raised the young son of Abbas Mirza, Mohammad Mirza, as his heir apparent. Fath-Ali Shah himself died in 1834 and Mohammad Shah (r. 1834-1848) came to the throne. A British oficer, Henry Lindsay-Bethune commanded the new Shah’s artillery and arsenal during the campaign to capture Tehran. Then he marched to the Fars province to reunify the country.56 Apparently, the irst music bands of European style were introduced to the court of Shah in Tehran after Mohammad Shah succeeded in enforcing his authority. Charles Stuart, the secretary to the British Envoy to Persia, reported the following on June 8, 1836: Sir Henry Bethune arrived to-day. He has been given the local rank of MajorGeneral in Asia, and a salary of 2,200 l. a-year whilst serving in this country. He is empowered to expend 2,800 l. for two years, in the establishment of a foundry, and to lay out 400 l. in the purchase of musical instruments!57 54. KotzeBue, Reise nach Persien cit., p. 67. 55. Ivi, p. 147. 56. roBert grant Watson, A History of Persia from the Beginning of the Nineteenth Century to the Year 1858, London, Smith, 1866, pp. 281-284. 57. Charles stuart, Journal of a Residence in Northern Persia and the Adjacent Provinces of Turkey, London, Richard Bentley, 1854, p. 312. 68 MOHSEN MOHAMMADI It is not easy to have a rough estimate of the number of musical instruments that Henry Bethune could have purchased in 1836 with a sum of £ 400, however, this sum was eighteen percent of the annual salary of «Sir» Henry Bethune and fourteen percent of the total budget for establishing a foundry in Persia. Regardless of the quality and quantity of the military music that was assumingly established by Henry Bethune, it could be seen as the irst step towards formation of European military music in the Persian capital of Tehran. It is not clear who ordered Henry Bethune to purchase musical instruments. One may assume it was the Shah himself who was raised by a father, Crown Prince Abbas Mirza, who played a leading role in adopting European military style. Unlike his predecessor Fath-Ali Shah, who was a completely traditional igure of a newly risen ruling family, Mohammad Shah had European education that allowed him to write letters in French.58 A year later, the Persian Court published the irst Persian newspaper. A British journal dedicated an article to that newspaper and reproduced sections of this precious source in English. It included a report of a ceremony in Tehran to celebrate the birthday of the King of Britain in April 1837 that reads: «There was a great variety of music, besides the band of musicians of the Russian regiment, playing foreign airs, which afforded unexpected delight».59 The article included the original Persian text as well, in which the band was described as «a music band of the Bahādorān regiment».60 The regiment of Bahādorān was formed of Russian deserters from Caucasus and their sons.61 Hence, the British regiment commanded by Charles Christie and the Bahādorān regiment of Russian deserters presented the irst two music bands of European style in Persia. Robert Macdonald, a British oficer, portrayed Persian armed forces as they returned from Quchān conquest in December 1838. According to Macdonald, there was no music band at Persian army. The Russian battalion, however, had its own music band: «The Russian battalion had by far the most military appearance of any regiment there, and it was the only corps that had a band of music».62 58. hoMa nategh, Iran dar Rāhyābi-ye Farhangi, Paris, Khavaran, 1990, p. 105. 59. Persian Newspaper and Translation, «Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland» 5/2, 1839, pp. 355-371: 367. 60. Ivi, p. 359. Italics show using the original term. 61. stuart, Journal of a Residence in Northern Persia cit., p. 187. 62. roBert MaCdonald, Personal Narrative of Military Travel and Adventure in Turkey and Persia, Edinburgh, Adam and Charles Black, 1859, p. 162. EUROPEAN MILITARY MUSIC IN PERSIA 69 Marco Brambilla: An Italian musician who established European bands in Persia The irst report on a European musician in Persia was written down three years after Henry Bethune was given a budget to purchase musical instruments, two years after the band of music of the regiment of the Russian style was reported to play in Tehran, and one year after the same band was seen returning from the Herat expedition. On December 12, 1839, a French diplomatic and military delegation arrived in Tabriz. Lieutenant Jules Pichon explained his irst days in Tabriz as follows: During the irst days of our stay in Tauris, doctor Berthoni, which I have already spoken of, presented us to Mr. Marca, an Italian by origin who was employed by the troops of the Shah of Persia as “chef de musique”; we had, in many circumstances, to praise him for his kindness. Later Mr. Marca introduced us to Mr. Colombari, an Italian like him, tied with Prince Karaman Mirza as painter.63 It may be that Marca was in fact related to Sir Henry Bethune’s efforts to establish European military bands for the Persian court, yet there is no fact to support this assumption. About eight years after French mission met Mr. Marca in Tabriz, a French engineer and geographer, Xavier Hommaire de Hell (1812-1848), provided more information on European music in Persia. On February 11, 1848, he wrote in Tehran: «Royal music, organized as European, was directed by a man named Marco, an Italian who stood at the centre of young musicians and hit the bass drum with a true Italian furia».64 Four days later, he added more information on music bands: I think I have said that the music of the king was organized by a man named Marco, an Italian refugee. Performers, eighty in number, are selected from mountain tribes at a very young age. They receive their musical education forcefully by using sticks and whips to stimulate their sluggish nature. Ten families contribute to the maintenance of a musician for six tomans [Persian currency] per year. For its part, the government grants them eight [tomans], including rations, but this balance is rarely paid.65 63. Jules piChon, Journal d’une mission militaire en Perse, 1839-1840, par le Lieutenant Jules Pichon, edited by Camille Couderc, Paris, L. Gougy, 1900, p. 4. 64. xaVier hoMMaire de hell, Voyage en Turquie et en Perse, edited by Jules Laurens, 4 vols., Paris, P. Bertrand, 1857, II, p. 119. 65. Ivi, pp. 119, 131-132. MOHSEN MOHAMMADI 70 Two weeks later, Xavier Hommaire de Hell revealed more details. He wrote on March 1, 1848, that it was the battalion of the province of Irak that maintained the European music band. Irak, Iraq, or Erāq, referred to the lands starting from central parts of Persia towards the west and it included the capital of Tehran. Therefore, the battalion with European music band in 1848 must have been based at the court of the Shah in Tehran. Xavier Hommaire de Hell revealed Marco’s surname as well: «Each battalion has its drums, ifes, and clarions, except battalion of Irak which has a European music band formed by Marco Brambilla».66 During the nineteenth century, several Italian oficers were hired by the Persian Court for the purpose of reorganizing Persian Army based on the European military forces. Giuseppe Anaclerio served the Persian Court from 1862 to 1866 and his travel account was published two years after he left Persia. Anaclerio’s account on European military music in Persia connects the previous information on Marco with the following narratives. He mentioned three European musicians who had been hired by the Persian Court to organize European military music bands, two of whom were from Italy and the third from France: A long time ago, the celebrated Italian professor Boschetti was in charge of organizing European music there. But the loneliness at this place with a lot of melancholy and boredom made him refusing the generous offers of the Shah who wanted to keep him, also by raising his salary. He wished to abandon the land and go back to Europe. It was during this time that professor Marco Brambilla left Turkey in order to come to this land and fully devote himself to teach music to the young soldiers. After a thousand efforts, he saw some progress and various instruments could be already heard in the middle of these deserts, which recalled the idea of beautiful Europe. In the meantime, Professor Ruillon arrived together with the French mission, who was similarly hired to form a music band; and thanks to his exhausting efforts, it seems that nothing lacks to the desired wish of Naser-al-Din Shah: Various pieces and songs are performed with the great satisfaction of the public.67 Anaclerio mentioned elsewhere that two different bands were already formed and conducted by Marco Brambilla and Roillon: Until now it was possible to organize diverse battalions in a European manner; engineers, the marching drums with piccolo lute, together with two bass 66. Ivi, p. 146. 67. giuseppe anaClerio, La Persia descritta, Napoli, Vincenzo Marchese, 1868, p. 139. EUROPEAN MILITARY MUSIC IN PERSIA 71 drums, with trumpets etc. begin marching; lags divide and distinguish the various companies: two music bands have already been established, the irst is conducted by an Italian Mr. Marco Brambilla, the other one by a Frenchman, Mr. Ruillon.68 Anaclerio’s account provided valuable information. The most important is that Marco Brambilla left Turkey to attend Persian Court. This must have been before December 12, 1839, when the French military mission met the Italian musician, Mr. Marca, in the North Western city of Tabriz.69 One may immediately think about a possible relation between Marco Brambilla and Giuseppe Donizetti (1788-1856), who served at the Ottoman court to establish military music bands in European style in 1820s.70 If an Italian musician lived in Turkey before moving to Persia to establish European bands at the Persian Court, that musician could have been working with the Italian musician who was in charge of establishing European bands in Turkey. It may be that Persian ruling elite heard of the Italian musician who organized European military bands in Istanbul and therefore sought an Italian professor to arrange a similar music in Tehran. Alternatively, it might be possible that Marco heard that Donizetti was reportedly making a fortune in the mysterious land of Orient, thus he tried his chance at the court of Persia. Either way, having an Italian musician in Tehran in 1830s could be related to the presence of the Italian musicians in Istanbul in 1820s. Primary sources in Persian generally did not include information on music; however, a book on the achievements of the reign of Nāseroddin Shah, Al-Ma‘āser val-Āsār, mentioned the two Muzikānchi-bāshi (director of the musicians) of the Shah as «Monsieur Marco of Italy; Monsieur Lemaire of France».71 It is quite important that among all European musicians who served Persian Court, only Marco’s name was recorded as Muzikānchi-bāshi along with Alfred Lemaire. Marco had lived in Persia for decades and he had a signiicant role in the establishment of European military music in Persia. Therefore, his name remained in oral history and years after he passed away, it appeared in a book that provided a report 68. Ivi, p. 98. 69. piChon, Journal d’une mission militaire en Perse cit., p. 64. 70. eMre araCi, A Levantine Life: Giuseppe Donizetti at the Ottoman Court, «The Musical Times» 143, 2002, pp. 49-56; Giuseppe Donizetti Pascià cit. 71. MohAMMAd-hAsAn e‘TeMād-os-sAlTAneh, Al-Ma‘āser val-Āsār, Tehran, Dar-otTebaeh Dowlati, 1889, p. 26. 72 MOHSEN MOHAMMADI on the history and achievements of the era of Naser-od-Din Shah. As a matter of fact, Alfred Lemaire would destroy the name that he had heard repeatedly, the name that could challenge him in establishing a reputation, so that he could ind enough excuses to attack Marco. Although Lemaire bragged about the dificulty of teaching music to illiterate students, Marco was in a relatively more dificult situation. Marco must have been the irst European musician who started creating military bands in Persia, while before Lemaire’s arrival, Marco and four other musicians had formed music bands for Persia. Moreover, the irst Persian school based on European education opened in 1851. By 1868, when Lemaire arrived, hundreds of students had the experience of studying with a European teacher. Last but not least, Marco had spent his life establishing music bands for Persia and the older he became the less energy he might have had. That could be the reason for hiring more musicians while Marco was still alive. He died before Lemaire’s arrival, which means that, for a certain period Persian military had no European trainer to help them to stay in satisfactory condition or even improve their level. As a matter of fact, Lemaire became a legend, mainly because his arrival coincided with a break-through for Persian military bands of European style. After decades of having European musicians in Persia, European music was already introduced to the society and the scene was ready for a hero. Alfred Lemaire reorganized music bands in a style which was probably closer to the original European standards. That is in fact what Lemaire himself stated, but he ignored the efforts of his predecessors who prepared the way for him to become the hero of European music in Persia. Advielle’s story implied that Marco Brambilla died in Tehran before 1868 when Lemaire arrived Persia. Giuseppe Anaclerio, who served Persian Court until 1866, indicated that one of the Persian music bands was conducted by Marco.72 Hence, Marco died in Tehran between 1866 and 1868. Considering the irst account of Marco’s presence in Persia in 1839 leads to the conclusion that he served the Persian Court to organize military bands for about thirty years. According to the information that Advielle received from Lemaire, Marco died in Tehran and his wife stayed there and received his pension.73 72. anaClerio, La Persia descritta cit., p. 98. 73. adVielle, La musique chez les Persans cit., p. 7. EUROPEAN MILITARY MUSIC IN PERSIA 73 Bosquet (Bousquet, Boschetti) and Royon (Rouyon, Rouillon) Heinrich Ferdinand Karl Brugsch (1827-1894), a German Egyptologist, visited Persia along with the Prussian diplomatic delegation to Persia in 1860 and 1861. His travel account included an interesting brief account on his encounter with the Persian military bands. On August 15, 1860, Brugsch attended a ceremony at the summer encampment of the French diplomatic delegation in Tehran to celebrate the birthday of Napoleon Bonaparte; he described the music bands as follows: A Persian music regiment quite plucky played some recently learned European national anthems. The merits of having brought the Persians, in the short period of eight months, so far that they could perform European pieces of music on European instruments are of the nice Mr. Bosquet, Kapellmeister at the Grand Opera in Paris. The skilful connoisseur has achieved incredible things in Persia and with the Persians, with the support of a younger colleague, the sous-chef de musique, Mr. Royon. The Iranian music band, all farmers and most of them very young (I saw some ten to twelve year old boys), played according to a curious system of notation. The notes were indicated by the ingers of the left hand and the interval between them; the music director raised his hand into the air, pointed to the inger or interval in question and then the musicians played the requested note with perfect precision. Mr. Bosquet only recently managed to familiarize his music students with written notes. I barely need to mention that hearing Persians play ‘partant pour la Syrie’, ‘God Save the Queen’, the Russian National Anthem, and other melodies leaves a peculiar impression.74 If Lemaire’s information was correct that Bosquet stayed in Persia for two years only, Heinrich Brugsch might be probably the one and only who mentioned seeing Bosquet in Tehran. Brugsch moved Bosquet from myth to reality and he marked the exact years that Bosquet was present in Tehran. On August 15, 1860, Brugsch stated that Bosquet had been working with Persian bands for eight months only. It implied that Bosquet arrived in Persia around January 1860, and again, if Lemaire’s information was precise about the duration of Bosquet’s stay in Persia, he must have left by the end of 1861. This conclusion contradicts Lemaire’s story, which stated that Bousquet was in Persia in 1856 and 1857.75 Perhaps Lemaire, who arrived in Persia in 1868, heard from Persians that «Monsieur Bousquet 74. heinriCh ferdinand Karl BrugsCh, Reise der K. Preussischen Gesandtschaft nach Persien, Leipzig, J.C. Hinrichs, 1862, p. 307. 75. adVielle, La musique chez les Persans cit., p. 6. 74 MOHSEN MOHAMMADI left ten years ago», a very common Persian approximation. Having heard that Bousquet did not stay more than two years, Lemaire concluded that Bousquet was there in 1856 and 1857. The spelling of the name that Brugsch mentioned was not exactly the same that Lemaire, or Advielle, gave. While Brugsch called him Bosquet, Lemaire and Advielle said Bousquet, which had an extra letter (u) in the irst syllable. Surprisingly, Brugsch was cited in a German anthropology publication a year after he published his travel account and the name of the musician in Tehran was mentioned as Bousquet with the extra letter, not Bosquet as Brugsch himself recorded.76 Brugsch stated that Bosquet was «Kapellmeister» of the Grand Opera of Paris. It is not clear, however, whether that was a guess by Brugsch or a claim by Bosquet himself. The closest Bosquet we can think of is George Bousquet (1818-1854), who was a Kapellmeister of the Grand Opera of Paris. This Bousquet, however, died in Saint-Cloud in France on June 15, 1854.77 Perhaps there was a relation between the two characters, or Brugsch assumed the Bosquet in Tehran was the same as George Bousquet, the Kapellmeister of the Grand Opera of Paris. It might also be possible that the Bosquet in Tehran simply used the reputation of George Bousquet in Paris in an act of selfpromotion. In fact, in a quite interesting and unique case in mid-nineteenth century, the oficial newspaper of the Persian Court reported on September 14, 1854 that several notable people had died in Paris, «among which one is Boski by name, who was a celebrated writer and who was extremely skilful in the knowledge of muzikān as well».78 Therefore, using the reputation of George Bousquet, or Boski as the Persian newspaper related, could have helped to acquire reputation among Persians. Further investigations on Bosquet (or Bousquet) may clarify aspects of the real identity of the European musician who organized military bands in Persia in 1860. The name was even mentioned as Boulanger in Guérard’s lecture at Academy d’Arras,79 but it is likely that they misread Lemaire’s handwriting. The most interesting variation of Bosquet’s name appeared in Giuseppe Anaclerio’s Italian book.80 Anaclerio’s account adds more problems to 76. MaxiMilian perty, Anthropologische Vorträge gehalten im Winter 1862-1863 in der Aula zu Bern, Leipzig-Heidelberg, Winter, 1863, p. 84. 77. hugo rieMann, Musik-Lexikon, Leipzig, Verlag des Bibliographischen Instituts, 1884, p. 123. 78. Vaqāye‘-e Ettefāqiyeh, «Hendustān» 189, September 14, 1854. 79. guérard, Rapport sur le concours des beaux-arts cit., p. 71. 80. anaClerio, La Persia descritta cit., p. 139; see p. 70. EUROPEAN MILITARY MUSIC IN PERSIA 75 the case of Bosquet and Bousquet, yet it also adds Italian spices to it. Anaclerio spoke of «the celebrated Italian professor Boschetti» in a way that could imply that Boschetti was a well-known Italian musician in the irst half of the nineteenth century. It may be that Bosquet (or Bousquet) was in fact from Italy, and that Anaclerio heard about Boschetti from Italian oficers in Tehran, or from Marco Brambilla. Perhaps the Italians knew the true origin of the «professore italiano Boschetti» who was known among Persians as Bousquet, or who introduced himself to Persians as Bosquet the Kapellmeister of the Grand Opera of Paris. Anaclerio’s most problematic comment showed that he himself or his sources were confused about Marco and Boschetti. He stated that Marco Brambilla came to Persia to replace Boschetti while Jules Pichon and Xavier Hommaire de Hell had met Marco in Persia in 1839 and 1848. In fact, it was not true that Boschetti worked in Persia «long time» before Anaclerio’s arrival. Brugsch met Boschetti (or Bosquet) in August 1860,81 which was only two years before Anaclerio started working in Persia. It is very unlikely that Boschetti and Bosquet (or Bousquet) were two different European musicians who worked in Persia in a period that hardly exceeded two decades. The case of Boschetti vs. Bousquet is similar to the case of Giovanni Battista Lulli vs. Jean-Baptiste Lully, except that it is not clear whether Boschetti or Bousquet was originally from Italy or France. The confusion between Boschetti and Bousquet occurred at least one other time in mid-nineteenth-century literature on music. On November 19, 1864, «The Athenaeum» reported the following about a famous opera singer in Italy: Here it may be said that Signora Leonilda Boschetti, another lady who has found great favor (as our readers may recollect) in Italy, and is one of the company at Barcelona, in which Mr. Santley has engaged to appear, turns out, if all tales are true, to be French by origin, if not by training, – Mdlle. Léonie Bousquet translated!82 As Lemaire narrated, another French musician, Rouillon, worked with Bousquet in Tehran as sous-chef de musique.83 It was conirmed by the direct report by Heinrich Brugsch in 1860; the name of the French musician, 81. BrugsCh, Reise der K. Preussischen Gesandtschaft nach Persien cit., p. 307. 82. Musical and Dramatic Gossip, «The Athenaeum» 1934, November 1864, p. 681. 83. adVielle, La musique chez les Persans cit., p. 6. 76 MOHSEN MOHAMMADI however, was reported as Royon.84 In September 1866, Royon (or Rouillon), was still working in Persia, as it is indicated in a travel account by a Dutch traveller and collector, Tinco Martinus Lycklama à Nijeholt (18371900). Lycklama à Nijeholt provided information on European military bands in Persia performing at a dinner, as follows: «A military band led by a French named Rouyon, never ceased playing, mixing Persian airs with the Russian national chants».85 Comparing the two reports by Brugsch and Lycklama à Nijeholt shows that Rouyon (Royon, or Rouillon) worked in Persia for six years at least. Alfred Lemaire narrated that Rouillon was ill most of the time; he must have heard it from the Persians and it could be true. Perhaps that was the reason Rouyon left Persia around a year before Lemaire arrived. Julius Heise (d. 1870), Julius Gebauer (1846-1895), Angelo, Alexandre Duval, and Persian Cossack Brigade Tinco Martinus Lycklama à Nijeholt, who met the French Rouyon in Persia in September 1866, mentioned another musician as well. He mentioned meeting Heise, the Shah’s pianist, whom the Shah liked very much.86 Four years later, the Shah himself mentioned Heise in his diary on a trip to Karbala and Najaf. On October 27, 1870, the Shah stated that «Monsieur Heise the pianist» died in Tehran.87 Heise was probably the irst European musician who published a piece of the repertoire of the Persian military bands of European style. The sixth volume of Handbuch der musikalischen Literatur, which listed the musical publications of the years 1860 to 1867, included a march by Heise; the entry reads: «Heise, Jul., Marche triomphale. A sa M. Nassir-Ed-Tin, Shah kadjar de Perse. Wien, Wessely 8 Ngr».88 Since Lycklama à Nijeholt met Heise in Tehran in September 1866 and Handbuch der musikalischen Literatur included the publications of the years 1860 to 1867, it is likely that Heise published his Marche triomphale in 1866 or 1867 after spending some time in Tehran. 84. BrugsCh, Reise der K. Preussischen Gesandtschaft nach Persien cit., p. 307. 85. tinCo Martinus lyCKlaMa à niJeholt, Voyage en Russie, au Caucase et en Perse, dans la Mésopotamie, le Kurdistan, la Syrie, la Palestine et la Turquie, Paris, Arthus Bertrand, 1873, p. 356. 86. Ivi, p. 355. 87. naser-od-din shah, Shahriār-e Jādeh-hā: Safar-nāmeh-ye Nāser-od-Din Shah be ‘Atabāt, edited by Parviz Badi‘i, Tehran, Sazman Asnad Melli Iran, 1993, p. 52. 88. adolph Moritz hofMeister, Handbuch der musikalischen Literatur, Leipzig, Friedrich Hofmeister, 1868, p. 324. EUROPEAN MILITARY MUSIC IN PERSIA 77 It may be that this Marche triomphale. A sa M. Nassir-Ed-Tin, Shah kadjar de Perse was related to one of the irst pieces that Alfred Lemaire published in 1873: Kadjars March (Marche triomphale persane).89 Yet it is not easy to understand whether Lemaire republished the march by Heise under his own name, whether he used it as a base, or he composed his own version of Marche triomphale. Lemaire must have heard Marche triomphale in Tehran as it has been one of the pieces that Monsieur Heise composed for the Shah. Lemaire certainly met Heise since they both lived in Tehran from 1868 to 1870. The relation of the two marches triomphales of the Kadjars will remain unclear until a copy of Marche triomphale by Heise is found. The entry in Handbuch der musikalischen Literatur may also help to identify the Shah’s pianist as it revealed his irst name as «Jul», which most probably stood for the German given name Julius. In fact, there was a German musician named Julius Heise who was about the same age as the Shah’s pianist. The name appeared in a book on the history of the Conservatorium der Musik in Leipzig, which contained a list of the students and teachers of the Conservatorium. Julius Heise was from Großenhain and he was studying at the Conservatorium in 1843.90 It seems that he was the same Jul. Heise who published the Marche triomphale about twenty years after he left Conservatorium. Therefore he must have been younger than ifty years of age when he died in Tehran in 1870. Another musician with the same German given name, Julius, arrived in Tehran on January 4, 1879, along with a group of Austrian military oficers on a three-year contract to organize a new regiment of Austrian style for the Persian Army.91 Julius Gebauer (1846-1895) was born in the city of Šternberk in the region of Olomouc,92 which is now located in the eastern side of the Czech Republic. Gebauer extended his stay in Persia and played a signiicant role in transmitting European music to the Persian society.93 His name was mentioned in the Persian 89. alfred Jean Baptiste leMaire, Kadjars March (Marche triomphale persane), «Le Monde illustré», July 31, 1873. 90. eMil KnesChKe, Das Conservatorium der Musik in Leipzig, Leipzig, Breitkopf & Härtel, 1868, p. 34. 91. paul-henri Morel, Les missions militaires en Perse: Fin, «Echo de Perse» 1/9, 1885, pp. 1-2. 92. VladiMír helfert and GrAciAn Černušák, Pazdírkův Hudební Slovník Naučný, vol. 2/1/1, Brno, Pazdírka, 1937, p. 307. 93. helMut slaBy, Bindenschild und Sonnenlöwe: die Geschichte der österreichisch-iranischen Beziehungen bis zur Gegenwart, edited by Bert G. Fragner, Wien, Österrichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, 2010, pp. 181-182. 78 MOHSEN MOHAMMADI Almanac of 1879, 1880, and 1881 along with the Austrian oficers.94 According to the police reports of the year 1887, Julius Gebauer was present at various gatherings of the European community in Tehran, such as a ball at the British Embassy, a dinner party, a theatre at home, a party at the Austrian Embassy, and a party at the French Embassy.95 Gebauer was the conductor of the orchestra at the feast of the British Embassy in Tehran for celebration of the iftieth anniversary of the reign of Queen Victoria (r. 1837-1901) in 1887, and in 1888 he received the Persian Order of Science.96 He was present at a military review in Tehran on February 21, 1895,97 about ive month before he died on July 9, 1895.98 Similar to what he did to Marco Brambilla, Alfred Lemaire downplayed Gebauer’s role in transmitting European music to Persia. Although Gebauer worked with other Austrian oficers to establish the regiment of Austrian style, Lemaire and Advielle stated that «Lemaire gave up six bands, all organized and trained, to a competent Austrian chef de musique who, as we see, had nothing else to add than to continue the tradition initiated by our compatriot [Lemaire]».99 The same statement was repeated in the Persian Court’s newspaper in French language.100 That newspaper, however, was redacted by Lemaire’s French compatriot.101 During the 1870s, an Italian drummer served the Persian court as trainer of the drummers. «Monsieur Angelo Tabbāl-bāshi», literarily meaning head of the drummers, was listed among the European teachers of the 94. MohAMMAd-hAsAn e‘TeMād-os-sAlTAneh, Sāl-Nāmeh-ye Dowlat-e Aliyeh-ye Iran, in Mer’āt-ol-Boldān, vol. 3, Tehran, Dar-ot-Tebaeh Dowlati, 1879, p. 40; vol. 4, 1880, p. 43; in Tārikh-e Montazam-e Nāseri, vol. 1, Tehran, Dar-ot-Tebaeh Dowlati, 1881, p. 25. 95. ensiyeh sheyKh-rezaei and shahla azari, Gozāresh-hā-ye Nazmiyeh az Mahallāt-e Tehran, 2 vols., Tehran, Sazman Asnad Melli Iran, 1998, I, p. 348, II, pp. 410, 431, 439, 458. 96. paul-henri Morel, Téhéran 14 mai, «Echo de Perse» 3/4, 1887, p. 1; id., Décorations, «Echo de Perse» 3/15, 1888, pp. 1-2. 97. QahraMan-Mirza eyn-os-saltaneh, Ruznāmeh-ye Khāterāt-e ‘Eyn-os-Saltaneh, edited by Iraj Afshar and Mas‘ud Salur, 10 vols., Tehran, Asatir, 1995, I, p. 700. 98. helfert-Černušák, Pazdírkův Hudební Slovník Naučný cit., vol. 2/1/1, p. 307. 99. adVielle, La musique chez les Persans cit., p. 7. 100. faBius Boital, Le théâtre en Perse, «Echo de Perse» 1/24, 1886, p. 4. 101. Mohsen MohaMMadi, Écho de Perse va Alfred Lemaire: Muzik, Te’ātr, va Frāmāsonery, «Faslnāmeh-ye Musiqi-ye Mahoor» 15/61, 2013, pp. 63-83. EUROPEAN MILITARY MUSIC IN PERSIA 79 Persian Army in the Persian Almanac of the years 1877 to 1883.102 It is not clear what happened to Angelo as his name did not appear in the Persian Almanac of the following years. Police reports of the year 1887 indicated that «the wife of Angelo, the killer of [?] the Italian» died in Tehran and her belongings were auctioned by the Italian Embassy.103 Perhaps Angelo killed an Italian in Tehran and escaped. Alexandre Duval was another French musician who lived in Persia briely and was perhaps the last European musician who worked for the Persian Court in the nineteenth century. The irst published book on the history of music in Iran, which relected parts of the oral history, stated that Duval was a French violinist who spent two years in Iran in the last years of the Nāseroddin Shah’s era (d. 1896). In 1898, Histoire musicale de la main mentioned Duval as «M. Alexandre Duval, chef des musiques du Schah de Perse».104 His name appeared in a list by «Association des Lyonnais» and the entry revealed that he was a violinist from Lyon and he lived at 12 rue du Louvre in Paris in 1898.105 Some information about his education comes from a report on a bourse of 1,200 fr. by the «Commission Municipale de Lyon» that was granted to Duval to continue studying music at the Conservatoire de Musique de Paris, and as the reports on the grant revealed, his father, Honoré Duval, was a music teacher in Lyon.106 Last but not least, the Persian Cossack Brigade, a cavalry unit founded in 1879 when the unit of Austrian style was established, had an important role in transmitting European music to Persia. The Cossack Brigade’s fame is primarily related to the bombardment of the newly established Constitutional Parliament of Persia under direct command of Mohammad-Ali Shah (r. 1907-1909). Furthermore, the founder of the succeeding dynasty, Reza Shah Pahlavi (r. 1925-1941), was primarily a colonel of the Persian Cossack Brigade. Those two signiicant roles of the Persian Cossack Brigade in the modern history of Persia have drawn attention away from 102. MohAMMAd-hAsAn e‘TeMād-os-sAlTAneh, Sāl-Nāmeh-ye Dowlat-e Aliyeh-ye Iran, in Mer’āt-ol-Boldān, vol. 1, Tehran, Dar-ot-Tebaeh Dowlati, 1877, p. 9; vol. 2, 1878, p. 9; vol. 3, 1879, p. 23; vol. 4, 1880. p. 26; in Tārikh-e Montazam-e Nāseri, vol. 1, Tehran, Dar-otTebaeh Dowlati, 1881, p. 8; vol. 2, 1882, p. 8; vol. 3, 1883, p. 10. 103. sheyKh-rezaei and azari, Gozāresh-hā-ye Nazmiyeh cit., II, pp. 485, 507-508. 104. éMile gouget, Histoire musicale de la main, Paris, Fischbacher, 1898, p. 357. 105. Association des Lyonnais: Rhône, Ain, Isère et Loire, Paris, Maretheux, 1898, p. 20. 106. Procès – verbaux des séances – Commission municipale de la ville de Lyon, Lyon, J. Gallet, 1874, pp. 753-754. 80 MOHSEN MOHAMMADI Band of the Persian Cossack Brigade, ca. 1900 EUROPEAN MILITARY MUSIC IN PERSIA 81 the Brigade’s role as an intermediator for the transmission of European music to Persia. As a report to the Shah indicated, the music band of the Cossack Brigade was irst established in 1879 with thirty-ive musicians.107 The band was mentioned in Persian Almanac of the years 1881 to 1884.108 The Cossack band was established to perform for military purposes, but it would play at gatherings as well. In 1886, for instance, they played at the gathering of the Cossack oficers hosted by one of the brigadiers of the regiment.109 Military bands organized by Lemaire’s predecessors By mid-nineteenth century, European music in Persia was established enough to appear in Persian texts as well. Several reports indicated that the bands of European style performed in various Persian cities. The oficial bulletin of the Persian Court in 1850s, «Vaqāye‘-e Ettefāqiyeh», reported the review of the army in Tehran in 1852 and 1853. The report provided number of soldiers of various army units including the musicians of European military bands. During the review on March 4, 1852, there were eighty-two Muzukānchi playing at the review; in 1853 eighty-four Muzukānchi were present at the review.110 On January 25, 1855, «Vaqāye‘-e Ettefāqiyeh» included a report on the second regiment of Khoy which was practicing in the north-western city of Tabriz every day; the newspaper reported: «In particular, they have written lots of good words about the Muzikehchiān, that the foreigner [European] oficers acknowledge that they play Muzikeh like good Muzikehchiān of Farangestān [Europe]».111 Later in that year, another report mentioned the European military music at the city of Qazvin. On August 7, 1855, the Persian diplomatic delegation to the Russian Court was received at a garden at Qazvin; all the state and noble men residing in Qazvin were present, including the military oficers as well 107. naser-od-din shah, Ruznāmeh-ye Khāterāt-e Nāser-od-Din Shah dar Safar-e Sevom-e Farangestān, edited by Mohammad-Esmaeil Rezvani and Fatemeh Qaziha, 3 vols., Tehran, Sazman Asnad Melli Iran, 1992, II, p. 365. 108. MohAMMAd-hAsAn e‘TeMād-os-sAlTAneh, Sāl-Nāmeh-ye Dowlat-e Aliyeh-ye Iran, in Tārikh-e Montazam-e Nāseri, vol. 1, Tehran, Dar-ot-Tebaeh Dowlati, 1881, p. 16; vol. 2, 1882, p. 18; vol. 3, 1883, p. 21; in Matla‘-osh-Shams, vol. 1, Tehran, Dar-ot-Tebaeh Dowlati, 1884, p. 36. 109. sheyKh-rezaei and azari, Gozāresh-hā-ye Nazmiyeh cit., I, p. 21. 110. «Vaqāye‘-e Ettefāqiyeh» 58, 11 March 1852, p. 2; 109, 3 March 1853, p. 2. 111. «Vaqāye‘-e Ettefāqiyeh» 208, 25 January 1855, p. 2 (Italics show the original terms). 82 MOHSEN MOHAMMADI as the band of Muzkanehchi.112 In the same year, a music band with European instruments welcomed the French Envoy, Joseph Arthur Comte de Gobineau (1816-1882), at the southern city of Bushehr.113 In 1850s newly adopted terms of Muzukānchi, muzikānchi, and muzik became part of the Persian language and appeared in several reports.114 Finally, when the newly appointed Heir-Apparent received his robe of honor outside Tabriz in 1868, he was accompanied by the soldiers of the seventh regiment of Afshār, who lined up on the sides of the road and marched with sheypur (ife) and Muzikand.115 More reports on Persian music bands appeared with the original Persian term of tabbāl (drummer) and bālābānchi (bālābān player; bālābān: cylindricalbore wood-wind instrument, duduk), hence, indigenous terms were used to refer to European music bands as well. Balabān and bālābān had been previously used in several Persian writings to refer to the European lute, in fact, it was irst used by Abd-ol-Latif Shushtari and Mohammad-Sāleh Shirāzi in the early nineteenth century.116 On May 20, 1852, «Vaqāye‘-e Ettefāqiyeh» reported that sixty-one hats of English style and another sixty-one hats of Russian style were made for the bālābānchi and tabbāl. It is likely that the European style hats were necessary for European style musicians. Similarly, travel report of the Persian Envoy to Russia in 1855 and 1856 used Bālābān to refer to military music bands at several occasions.117 On his return, the Persian Envoy ordered that the welcoming troops of the Persian Army should play the tabl (drum) and sheypur (ife) according to the «zud marche» (quick march) of the Persian Court. Therefore, «they marched in front on the sides of the road with tabl and bālābān».118 It is likely that a band of European style would play a piece which was titled «marche». Zud marche and other types of «marche» were also used by the translator who prepared an 112. haBiBollah QazVini, Safar-Nāmeh-ye Seyf-ol-Molk beh Rusiyeh, edited by Mohammad Golbon, Tehran, Markaz Asnad va Tarikh Diplomacy, 2001, p. 46. 113. Joseph arthur goBineau, Trois ans en Asie, Paris, Hachette, 1859, p. 114. 114. «Vaqāye‘-e Ettefāqiyeh» 62, 8 April 1852; 170, 4 May 1854; 189, 14 September 1854; 194, 19 October 1854; 195, 26 October 1854; 390, 22 July 1858. 115. Akhbār-e Mamālek-e Mahruseh, «Ruznāmeh-ye Dowlat-e Aliyeh-ye Iran», 10 July 1862. 116. shushtari, Tohfah-tol-‘Ālam va Zeyl-e Tohfah cit., p. 250; shirazi, Dalil-os-Sofarā cit., p. 303. 117. QazVini, Safar-Nāmeh-ye Seyf-ol-Molk beh Rusiyeh cit., pp. 49, 54, 173, 175. 118. Ivi, p. 178. EUROPEAN MILITARY MUSIC IN PERSIA 83 early Persian book on drilling soldiers.119 Bālābān was in use to refer to the musical bands of European instruments even up to 1936, when Iran-shahr School published an annual report, of which a section was dedicated to musical activities. The report included an account on establishing a Bālābān band that would play during the «déilé» of the students; a picture of the band presented European instruments including lutes and clarinets.120 Jakob Eduard Polak (1818-1891) and Augustus Henry Mounsey (18341882) were among the other Europeans who mentioned European style bands in Persia before 1868.121 At two different hunting occasions in 1863 and 1864, the Shah himself mentioned two bands of muzikānchi of the two military units supplied by the inhabitants of Lurā and Shahrestānak.122 A year before Lemaire’s arrival, a French diplomat published his report on working in Persia and he included valuable statistical information on the Persian Army and the European military music bands. Louis-Jules Émilien comte de Rochechouart (1830-1879), or Julien de Rochechouart, was a member of the French diplomatic delegation at Tehran from 1860 to 1866.123 According to Rochechouart, Persian Infantry consisted of eightyive regiments of 850 soldiers along with a regiment of cavalry of 500 soldiers and the Royal Guard of 2,000 soldiers. Each regiment had one chef de musique, one drum major, one ife major, and one trumpet major; he added that each regiment possessed a music band of forty instruments.124 It means that at least eighty-seven music bands served Persian Army; the total number of musicians would be up to 3480. Rochechouart himself admitted that the information, which was apparently acquired from Persian sources, was exaggerated: regiments of infantry would not have more than 500 soldiers. Even if it is assumed that only half of the eighty-ive regiments had music bands, and each band consisted of about twenty musicians, not forty 119. Mirza zaKi, Dar Qavā‘ed-e Mashq-e Dasteh va Qā‘edeh va Qānun-e Nazm-e Tup-Khāneh-ye Mobārakeh, Tehran, Mohammad-Taqi Tabrizi, trans. 1852, p. 40. 120. Sāl-Nāmeh-ye Dabirestān-e Iran-Shahr, Tehran, Dabirestan Iranshahr, 1936, p. 44. 121. JaKoB eduard polaK, Persien: Das Land und seine Bewohner. Ethnographische Schilderungen, 2 vols., Leipzig, Brockhaus, 1865, I, p. 381; augustus henry Mounsey, A Journey through the Caucasus and the Interior of Persia, London, Smith, Elder and Co., 1872, p. 141. 122. naser-od-din shah, Gozāresh-e Shekār-hā-ye Nāser-od-Din Shah Qājār, edited by Fatemeh Qaziha, Tehran, Sazman Asnad va Ketabkhaneh Melli Iran, 1992, pp. 171, 260. 123. henri Cordier, Histoire des relations de la Chine avec les puissances occidentales, Paris, Félix Alcan, 1901, p. 341 fn. 1. 124. Julien de roCheChouart, Souvenirs d’un voyage en Perse, Paris, Challamel Ainé, 1867, pp. 98-99. MOHSEN MOHAMMADI 84 as Rochechouart reported, the number of musicians would be more than 1700; and if only ten percent of the whole was true, the number of musicians would be more than 300. Although Rochechouart himself admitted that the information was exaggerated, the details of the information implied that it was obtained from a relatively reliable source. His account on the Persian Army was followed by a table of the salaries and rations according to the two versions, and included musicians’ salaries as follows:125 Rank Chef de musique Drum major Fife major Trumpet major Musician Salary (tomans) Version 1 35 14 12 12 11 Salary Bread (kg) Barley (kg) Straw (kg) (tomans) Version 2 20 Grant of 50 tomans 12 6 2 15 12 6 2 15 12 6 2 15 8 6 2 15 From musicant to muzikān By 1873, when for the irst time Lemaire’s name appeared in a book as the Muzikānchi-bāshi or the director of the music bands of the Persian Army,126 muzikān had become the common Persian term for the European music and the European musical instruments. Persian dictionaries, including the most comprehensive lexicon by Ali-Akbar Deh-khoda (18791956), simply refer to the French word musique as the etymological root of muzikān,127 most probably because the French language inally became the main source from which modern Persian terms were borrowed. As mentioned before, the secretary of the Persian delegation to the Russian court used the term muzekān in 1829.128 In 1855, another Persian diplomatic delegation was on a mission at the Russian court and the secretary of the delegation used the term muzekand/muzikand for European 125. Ivi, p. 99. 126. e‘TeMād-os-sAlTAneh, Sāl-Nāmeh-ye Dowlat-e Aliyeh-ye Iran cit., 1873, p. 36. 127. ali-aKBar deh-Khoda, Muzikān, in Loghat-Nāmeh-ye Deh-Khoda, accessed March 24, 2015: http://www.loghatnaameh.org/dehkhodaworddetail-829659d644024b2285aef2e91d8d5871-fa.html. 128. afshar, Safarnāmeh-ye Khosrow Mirza cit., pp. 168, 177. EUROPEAN MILITARY MUSIC IN PERSIA 85 A school band in 1936: The band of Bālābān, Iranshahr School music bands as well as muzekandchi/muzikandchi for the instrumentalists.129 The second travel report included variations such as muzekān/muzikān and muzekānchi/muzikānchi130 as well as muzekaneh and muzekanehchi.131 The latter appeared in the irst half of the book and it could have been a misreading, either by the manuscript copyist or by the editors of the book, since it is easy to mistake d with eh in Persian handwriting when it is the last letter of an unfamiliar word.132 Muzikand and muzikandchi appeared in several reports by the oficial newspaper of the Persian court 129. QazVini, Safar-Nāmeh-ye Seyf-ol-Molk beh Rusiyeh cit., pp. 89, 133, 135, 148-149, 151152, 154-155, 158, 160-164, 166, 168-169, 171. 130. Ivi, pp. 76, 83, 85, 152. 131. Ivi, pp. 57, 62, 65, 67, 71, 79. 132. 86 MOHSEN MOHAMMADI in 1862.133 The two travel reports to the Russian court clearly showed that muzikān was in fact a short version of the Russian term muzikant/ musicant, although it was in turn borrowed from the West-European languages. Persians slightly altered the term by dropping the last consonant letter, as having subsequent consonant letters is odd in Persian language. In addition, Tabriz, where from the earliest accounts on military bands were reported, was for decades in direct contact with Russians, both in war and in peace. Furthermore, the irst European oficers who served to modernize Persian military forces were Russian deserters and renegades.134 Finally, the regiment of the Russian deserters was reported to have a European style music band in late 1830s.135 Borrowing the term muzikān might also be related to the thirty «musikanten» that accompanied the Russian delegation to the Court of Persia in 1817, as Moritz von Kotzebue mentioned.136 The meaning of the original word was altered from the one who plays music to the music itself as well as the musical instrument. Hence, the term muzikānchi was coined to refer to the one who plays the muzikān, and the head of the Royal music bands was similarly titled as Muzikānchi-bāshi (literally meaning the head of the muzikānchis). Conclusion The present article demonstrates the necessity of employing primary sources on oral traditions, both in indigenous and in European languages, and the need for individual research in order to uncover neglected sources. Painstaking systematic search may provide a more realistic image of historical issues, particularly in oral traditions where only few established stories had a chance to survive in oral history in the form of myth. While no Persian primary source on the history of music in the nineteenth century has been found yet, early Persian newspapers, police reports, and Persian travel accounts provide invaluable information on the establishment of European music in Persia. Indigenous sources would pay meagre 133. Ruznāmeh-ye Dowlat-e Aliyeh-ye Iran, «Akhbār-e Mamālek-e Mahruseh», 27 February, 18 May, 10 July, 24 July 1862. 134. Joseph MiChel tanCoigne, A Narrative of a Journey into Persia, and Residence at Teheran, London, W. Wright, 1820, p. 316. 135. Persian Newspaper and Translation, «Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland» 5/2, 1839, p. 359; MaCdonald, Personal Narrative of Military Travel cit., p. 162. 136. KotzeBue, Reise nach Persien cit., p. 46. EUROPEAN MILITARY MUSIC IN PERSIA 87 attention to music; therefore music-related themes needed to be established enough to appear in indigenous primary sources occasionally, which could in turn stand as a sign of establishment. Subsequent local publications generally relect the oral history of the time and narratives would be gradually ixed as belief which deserves no question. During the process of ixation of selected narratives as the written history, preciseness of the details or being critical about narratives may not necessarily have been a primary concern. European travel accounts provide invaluable information as well and digital libraries provide an unprecedented opportunity to have access to hundreds of European accounts on traveling in Persia or any other country. European sources provide random pieces of information and they could be invaluable few pieces of a puzzle; however, they might show strong biases, and they may or may not provide precise information. As an example, the present essay shows how regional patriotism and self-promotion twisted the history of European military bands in Persia. A French book published in 1885 by Victor Advielle has been widely used as the unique source on the history of European military music in Persia, although the book was primarily compiled in order to serve the author and his fellow compatriot, Alfred Lemaire. Recent publications on military music in Persia take Advielle’s account at face value;137 however, that account was in fact patriotic and self-promoting. It is essential to be critical of the sources in general, particularly rare historical texts in oral traditions. Alfred Lemaire was one of the several European musicians who worked for the Persian Court during the nineteenth century. He arrived at the moment when Persian military bands needed a break-through, both because of the decades of practicing European military music and because of the intensiied modernization of Persia in the latter decades of the nineteenth century. He reached his fellow Artesian compatriots at the Academy d’Arras and that resulted in a short patriotic biography, a book that eventually became the sole irst-hand source on the history of European music in Persia. In a patriotic and self-promoting act, Lemaire and Advielle twisted the narratives and they denied efforts of the Italian musician, Marco Brambilla, who was apparently the irst European musician hired by the Persian Court. Marco lived in Persia about three decades and as the irst European musician at the court of the Shah, he played a signiicant role in organizing Persian military bands of European style. Lemaire’s harsh criticism of Marco Brambilla was not justiiable. His account on European music 137. BolooKBashi and shahidi, Pazhuheshi dar Musiqi cit., p. 41. 88 MOHSEN MOHAMMADI in Persia prior to his arrival in 1868 clearly relected a self-promoting act that attempted to ignore all the previous efforts in order to exaggerate the result of his own works. Nevertheless, it implies that Marco in fact did have a reputation among Persians in Tehran, as it was relected in Persian primary sources as well. Lemaire could have been upset by hearing Marco’s name repeatedly and he reacted by harsh criticism. Similarly, he tried to downgrade and ignore the role of other musicians who worked in Persia, including the Italian Angelo who trained the drummers, Julius Gebauer who organized military bands of Austrian style, and the music bands of the Persian Cossack Brigade who were totally ignored. His fellow French musician, Rouillon, was excused for being ill most of the time, and Bousquet, who was assumingly French, was pardoned for not being present in Persia for long time. I hope that this paper can inspire Italian scholars to search Italian primary sources and databases for more information on the Italian musicians who worked in Persia in the nineteenth century. aBstraCt – La prima fonte in cui si traccia una storia delle bande militari persiane che suonavano nello stile europeo risale al 1885. È il libro di un francese, Victor Advielle, il cui scopo principale era la celebrazione della razza artesiana e in cui l’autore raccontava le imprese di un compatriota, un musicista della provincia dell’Artois, che gli aveva fornito le sue notizie biograiche, assieme a qualche informazione sulla musica in Persia. Quest’opera ignorava tutti gli altri musicisti europei che avevano organizzato, presso la corte persiana, bande militari che eseguivano musica alla maniera europea. L’italiano Marco Brambilla fu probabilmente il primo musicista proveniente dall’Europa che fu attivo in Persia, dove arrivò alla ine degli anni Trenta dell’Ottocento e dove si fermò per tre decenni. Nonostante il lungo lavoro effettuato per organizzare bande militari in stile europeo, fu severamente giudicato e persino umiliato dal suo collega francese, il quale sostenne che aveva più talento per cucinare degli eccellenti maccheroni che per scrivere un semplice pas redoublé. Altri musicisti europei ingaggiati, nella seconda metà del XIX secolo, per organizzare bande militari furono Bosquet (Bousquet, Boschetti), Royon (Rouyon, Rouillon), Julius Heise, Julius Gebauer (1846-1895), Alfred-Jean-Baptiste Lemaire (1842-1907), l’italiano Angelo, Alexandre Duval e i maestri di banda russi della Brigata Persiana dei Cosacchi. Utilizzando sia fonti persiane sia resoconti di viaggio europei, questo contributo delinea l’incontro tra la Persia e la musica militare europea nel corso dei primi decenni del XIX secolo.