Bijan Tamari

Bijan Tamari is an accomplished student, and also the son-in-law, of one of the great figures of the Yarsan community, Taher Yarveysi. He was born in 1346 SH (1967/68) in the village of Qaleh Kahush in the Guran area.

As a teenager, while still at school, and because of the interest and talent he perceived in himself, he set out to learn from Taher Yarveysi the authentic tanbur maqams (the traditional melodic pieces/modes of the tanbur), the singing of the kalams (the sacred hymns of the Yarsan) and the way of understanding and interpreting the teachings of the daftars (the Yarsan sacred books). Yarveysi's considerate and affectionate manner spurred him to ever greater effort and enthusiasm as a student, in learning the sacred principles of the faith and in making rapid progress in tanbur and maqam playing, so that it can be said that in 1367 SH (1988/89) he attained the rank of master in tanbur and maqam playing.

His firm resolve and high aspiration led Tamari to follow the way of his predecessors and to pass on everything he had learned in this field to the devotees and lovers of the Yarsan religious path. Accordingly, there are today many devoted and eminent people who have satisfied their thirst for learning the sacred principles of the faith, tanbur playing and kalam singing at the feet of the esteemed master Bijan Tamari.

It should be noted that the valuable principles and the correct way of tanbur playing and kalam singing of great masters of earlier times, such as Seyed Vali Hosseini, Darvish Alimir Darvishi, Darvish Jahangir Darvishi, Maaref Amiri and Mahmoud Ghanbari, played a significant and special role in Tamari's development and ever-growing progress. He has always attributed his progress to the grace of God, to the tireless efforts of Yarveysi and to taking the distinguished masters named above as his models and inspiration; and so he always speaks in praise and admiration of these great figures of the Yarsan community.

Source: Telegram channel “Navaye Tanbur”, 2 February 2017; written by Seyed Hekmat Hosseini; quoting the channel “Yaran-e Dalahu”.