Mugham trio or mugham triads () is a classical ensemble of three Azerbaijani national musical instruments: tar, kamancheh, and qaval performers. It is a traditional musical group of Azerbaijani musicians who perform the mugham repertoire and represent the ensemble of khanandas and sazandas.
The performance of the muğam trio is called a complete vocal-instrumental mugham dastgah. The dastgah represents the entire mugham, including its form, all sections and branches, as well as the sequential performance of each section or diringah. The sections that make up the mugham composition are improvised recitative with melody, which determine the musical-poetic content of the work. These are alternated with songs that have a precise rhythm, as well as dance episodes. The song episodes are called tasnif, while the dance episodes are called rang.
Structure
As the name suggests, the muğam trio consists of three people. This ensemble is the only one that performs the complete muğam in dastgah form with all its intricacies delivered to the listener.
In the early times, the sazanda (ensemble of musicians) used to include the tar, kamancheh, and balaban for playing tasnif and rangs. When playing tunes and color pieces, the daira and qoshanaqara were used. After famous musician Mirza Sadiq Asad oghlu made improvements to the tar, the need for the loud qoshanaqara disappeared and it was replaced with the soft and subtle sound of the shepherd's flute (qaval) held by khananda. As a result, this ensemble became composed of only three people: the tar player, kamancheh player, and khananda, and since the second half of the 19th century, this trio has been active until today. Their role in the development of Azerbaijani folk music and the creation of the mugham performance school is immeasurable.
The main performer in the trio is the khananda who plays the qaval. According to their personal taste and abilities, they create compositions. In other words, it is the khananda who decides which branches and tunes should be included in the dastgah, their volume, rang, or the placement of the tasnif. When performing the mugham, khananda brings the qaval close to their face, ensuring that its sound is directed towards the listeners and resonates. During the performance of tunes with different colors and tunings, the khananda competes with and accompanies the qaval.
The second participant of the trio is the tarzen (), and his instrument is the tar. When the khananda sings, the tar player accompanies him with the organ point, playing solo mugham pieces between the vocal lines and modulating to new modes. The performance of the dastgah is a dialogue between the khananda and the tar player, as the tar initially plays any given gusha (section) instrumentally before handing it over to the khananda. In the instrumental pieces that alternate with the vocal sections of the mugham, the tar player is the sole soloist. The tar player must have a keen sense of ensemble, supporting the khananda while also being sensitive to his individual capabilities and knowing when to breathe.
The third participant of the trio plays the kamancheh which has a somewhat limited function in mugham performance when compared to the qaval and tar. The kamancheh player accompanies the kamancheh and tar player and serves to bring about the complex expression style of mugham. In addition to that, while the tar imitates the khananda, the kamancheh's imitation of the tar creates a complex expression style called "two-fold imitation" in the language of musicology. However, the kamancheh is not just an accompanist. In the most lyrical and passionate episodes of mugham, after the khananda's declamatory passages, the solos of the kamancheh sound as expressive and impactful as the human voice.
Musical instruments used
Qaval is a wind instrument. It is made of a cylindrical body with a width of 60-75 mm and a diameter of 350-450 mm, covered with fish skin on one end. Thin rings are carved into the inside of the cylinder, and they produce sound when played. It is widely used in Mugam performance and is an attribute of the khananda. The Khananda participates in the precise rhythmic music episodes of the trio while playing the qaval. Therefore, the qaval instrument has been transformed into an attribute of the khananda.