Identification and Categorization of the Applications of Martial Musical Instruments throughout the Post- Islamic Eras of Iran

The objective of this article is to describe and classify the occasions on which martial musical instruments used to be employed throughout the history of Iran in post- Islamic eras. Should historical, musical and illustrated documents are investigated, it will be realized that, throughout the social history of Iran in post- Islamic eras, martial musical instruments not only were used in wars but also on other occasions on which the high intensity of sound was needed. Presently, the applications of these instruments are regarded as obsolete. Owing to the fact that the most significant reason behind abandoning martial musical instruments was drastic decrease of their usage, identification and descriptions of such occasions on which these instruments were applied, are of great importance.
The situations in which martial musical instruments used to be employed, throughout the history of Iran, fall into the following categories: wars, spreading news, flexing military muscles, hunting, travelling, animals’ shows such as olden circuses, athletic competitions and mourning ceremonies. Among which, wars, spreading news and flexing military muscles of rulers were the most significant of all, in as much as playing martial music on such occasions used to play a crucial role. The rest of the occasions comparatively were of less importance, for they had little political and state consequence and sometimes, they were regarded as merely popular situations. The overall method in this research is descriptive – analytic and gathering data is based on library studies.