You may not understand the feeling, I should say before I start my story. But well, read it.

I was at high school. It was in Iran. I was around 17 years old. For many many years music was frowned at in Iran. For many years cassette tapes were smuggled into the country, and we had to go to some black market people to purchase them. They used to be in specific places: Vali asr square, Vali asr street, 25 Shahrivar square, Mirdamad near Mohseni square,….

At the time, you couldn’t hear music on the streets or anywhere in public places. You may not understand how big of a deal this teeny tiny matter might be. I can tell you, it is a big deal.

Anyways, I was passing through “Park Kourosh” to get to our house. I usually got off a taxi in front of Park Kourosh on Shariati street, passed across the park to get home. There was a small place, like a big cabin, in the middle of the park. At the time it was a “cultural centre”. I don’t know how to explain it for you. Your dad might be able to explain better. Anyways, as I was passing I heard a very beautiful music with a male silky voice, singing. I felt in love with the song on the megaphone. I couldn’t resist going inside. I asked for the cassette tape. It was an approved tape (I will tell you what it means in the following paragraphs). It was one of the best Iranian singers I have ever known: Mohammad Nouri. It was his new album. Even at the time (early 90’s) he was a nice lovely old man. I purchased it.

I didn’t bring any of those cassettes to Canada with me. Soon cassettes were so outdated, and no-one kept cassette recorders. It was the era of CDs and DVDs. But now, I do not have those many CDs and DVDs. I go online to listen to music.

During pregnancy, I listened to his songs on YouTube many times. My favourites are “Jaan e Maryam” and “Chi misheh ghosseh maa ro yeh lahzeh tanhaa bezaareh”. Those songs date back to some good old golden days of Iran, before 1979.  Interestingly, I cannot remember which song was being played on that spring mild day in Park Kourosh. It doesn’t matter. It was a song, a beautiful one, sang by a kind man with a silky voice.

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Khomeini banned music after the Iranian revolution. But some time before he died, he, somehow removed the ban. He, however, said that music should be “islamic” and should not be a music of “ghanaa”. Ask your dad what “ghanaa” is, and he should be able to explain it to you. Anyways, the approval criteria was rather subjective. You could listen to it and consider it as “islamic”; I could have a different idea. Female voice had to be in the background, and mixed with male voices. Female solo singers couldn’t sing, except in ladies-only concerts, where there was no recorder (hence no cellphones, after cellphones became paradigm after late 90s)

This new comment from Khomeini opened the gate in around 1986-7, shortly before he died. The very first song that was approved was “ey saarebaan aahesteh raan kaaraam e jaanam miravad”. People fell in love with that song. Well, it was a long awaited song, and lyrics were made by “Saa’di” a renowned iranian poet of the 7th century hejri shams.

Interestingly and ironically enough, this song was played in memory of Khomeini after his funeral.

Nowadays, there are many approved songs in Iran. Sometimes you get surprised by the types of the songs that are being approved.

Some basement bands also formed in Iran. They are really good. Their musics are not approved, but because of the digital music era, they publish their musics online, or send them to specific satellite channels. I don’t listen to them much. I could never relate to them. But I don’t deny, they do a great job.

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Iranians love music, dancing and singing. Leave a bunch of them together, call it a small party or picnic, and the next thing you know, they start singing together, especially if one of them knows how to play a music instrument. 😀

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One of my candidate names for a girl was Nakisa. Nakisa is said to be a female Iranian court musician for “Sassanids” around 3000 years ago. She is mentioned to have composed the national anthem of the time.  She was a master harp player.

Your dad preferred the name Deeba for girls. So, Nakisa was eliminated from the list.