Val Sal Va Mechanism and its Impact on Performer’s Speech
Sadegh
Safaei
Faculty Member, Department of Performing Arts, College of Fine Arts, University of Tehran
author
text
article
2013
per
Although the function of neuro-vocal system of the human body was previously suggested in the second half of the 17th century by Italian surgeon Antonio Valsalva”, but its use in speech therapy during the past 30 years. However, its role has not been considered properly for teaching the speech method in the schools of dramatic arts. The present study aims to shed some light on the extreme need for more attention to this mechanism, rather than focusing on the speech therapy. The present research aims to pave the way for the application of a scientific achievement in teaching artistic tasks. In order to get started in this study, we should take something important into consideration. If we accept this reality that we do not speak to be satisfied of our voices; but we speak to influence the others’ behavior, amuse them, and inform them, we must be aware that each single speech characteristic (including the quality of effectiveness and being influenced) contains a wide range of components and consequently some of them should be included in our discussions on teaching speech to theatre students. As a matter of fact, Valsalva mechanism is activated by physical activities, as well as the emotions and passions of scene activities. After discussing about the specific characteristics of the above mentioned mechanism, and its effectiveness on the final scenic speech, we will be informed that passion is basically the shared component of speech pathology and elocution, which has unfortunately been neglected in speech exercises. The direct impact of this mechanism on the speech esthetics, both in realistic performing methods and its branches (such as naturalism and impressionism), and unreal and abstract forms is considerable. However, if inexistence of control on the negative aspects of the mechanism, the final form of speech would not be located in the expected range, and the voice type and its accompanied passion would influence both the performers and audiences simultaneously. Since the impacts of emotions and sensations are reflected in different behaviors of people, it is understandable that whether the Valsalva mechanism is formed or not. Controlling the emotions and sensations in line with the existing dramatic situation, it is possible to enhance the level of plausibility for the audiences. In order to reach this goal, the performer must have a defined technique in his hands to make the situation plausible to the audience, as well as minimizing the drawbacks of Valsalva mechanism at the same time. In this regard, some specific exercises are suggested in this article to control the emotions and sensations by making the training situation similar to the real one. In other words, doing so in a virtual reality as much as conveniently possible. In such situation we can be expected that combined mechanical exercises might be helpful for dramatic speech, alongside with the emotional exercises of the voice and speech. In addition, the entire exercises which are designed and conducted for this purpose might also be helpful to address the speech disorders with mental routs.
Journal of Fine Arts: Performing Arts & Music
University of Tehran
College of Fine Arts
2228-6012
18
v.
2 (پاییز و زمستان1392)
no.
2013
5
12
https://jfadram.ut.ac.ir/article_36452_240bf163d5cca78e1583278ca9d3ad52.pdf
dx.doi.org/10.22059/jfadram.2014.36452
An Introduction to the Economy of Theater in Iran
Hamid
Reza Afshar
Assistant Professor, Art University of Tehran, Tehran
author
text
article
2013
per
Abstract This paper takes an overall look at the economy of arts and studies the relation between economy and the production of theater by considering the economic and cultural principles and approaches governing today’s society of Iran. The main objective of this study is to study the adverse conditions of Iranian theater and the inferior status of this cultural product in Iran. In scientific terms, economy is the budget or capital, which is converted to products for consumption purposes. Product is something that both meets the needs of people, and can be exchanged with other products. Therefore, any product has two properties: 1- It meets the needs of people. 2-It is produced and distributed for exchange purposes. If theater is considered as a cultural product that has different mechanisms from its production to performance and can be consumed like any other product to meet a part of human’s needs, we must pay enough attention to create a balance between its costs and incomes just like any other product, since theater is subject to three economic elements of production, distribution, and consumption. Theater is considered a valuable product in development terms. The government is interested that people consume such a product more than what is consumed in practice. Despite such an interest, there are barriers that reduce the share of theater in cultural budgets in such a way that the status of theater in the finance system and cultural budgets of Iran has lowered to its minimum, and the support and facilities provided to theater is less than the half of those granted to other arts. These barriers can be classified as follows: - Unquantifiable nature of art has made it difficult in general to use quantitative criteria and measuring tools for its recognition. Such a problem makes it also difficult to provide the statistic data and indices that are required for the economic evaluation of an artistic work. - The theater artists and experts have no strong will and interest to generate such indices. As the economics of art as a branch of economics that evaluates and analyzes the tangible results of artistic policies, plans, and activities has not a broad background, the studies conducted in this field are limited and speak in general terms. Moreover, they fail to provide a clear perspective on practical and theoretical solutions. This research shows that theater in Iran has a small share in the households’ consumption baskets and plays an insignificant role in the national economic and development plans. Therefore, it can be concluded that theater has an inferior status in Iran, and such a status in artistic production and culture is undermining quantitatively and qualitatively. If theater is considered and employed as a profitable and entrepreneur institute in the cultural society and its economic aspects are studied for taking more upturn, the methods of promoting investments and directing proper financial resources are revealed and the most important obstacles to the upturn of theater are removed.
Journal of Fine Arts: Performing Arts & Music
University of Tehran
College of Fine Arts
2228-6012
18
v.
2 (پاییز و زمستان1392)
no.
2013
13
20
https://jfadram.ut.ac.ir/article_36475_e20e602f2e534eacc6384866145aca8b.pdf
dx.doi.org/10.22059/jfadram.2014.36475
Realism in Film: A Critical Survey on Gregory Currie's Theory of Likeness
Mohammad
Shahba
Assistant Professor, Art University, Tehran
author
Mehrdad
Pour Elm
PhD Student, Isfahan Art University, Isfahan
author
text
article
2013
per
Abstract Cinema has traditionally been described as the most realistic art. Nonetheless, the concept of reality in film, as in any other art form, has been defined in various ways. The foremost and most prominent aesthetic and even cognitive question in film studies has been the question of reality and its relation to film. Philosophers of film, from the first ones such as Hugo Munsterberg to the most recent ones such as the cognivist Gregory Currie, have thought about film in terms of either realism or illusionism. Currie's ideas on film are amongst the most recent theories concerning film and reality in film. As a philosopher, Currie has made room for film in his philosophy, and has attempted, through the use of cognitive science, to solve some of the theoretical problems of film theory. In Currie's view, the relation between film and reality has been considered from three different standpoints: 1) Transparency, which claims that films, through the use of a photographic method, not only represents the reality but also reproduces it. This view is mostly known by the work of French film theorist Andre Bazin. 2) Likeness, which is based on the idea that watching films is almost similar to observing the real world. This view is also attributed to Andre Bazin, in his emphasis on the long take and deep focus filmmaking. 3) Illusionism, which claims that film is capable of producing for the spectator an illusion of reality. Most film theorist hold this position regarding the relation between film and reality it depicts on the screen. In his seminal work Image and Mind: Film, Philosophy, and Cognitive Science, Gregory Currie firstly discusses these three standpoints, then rejects both Transparency and Illusionism, and accepts Likeness. He defends the idea of Likeness by arguing that watching films generates a kind of experience which is similar to the normal experience generated in us while perceiving the world. This article firstly tries to introduce briefly the threefold relations among film, reality, and illusion. Secondly, it tries to elaborate on the concept of "likeness" in Currie's theory. Currie has criticized the two other concepts – transparency and illusionism – which have been put forward by other film theorists regarding the problem of reality in film. Currie himself favours the concept of "likeness" as best explanation for film realism. This article tries to demonstrate some of the shortcomings of Currie's concept of Likeness, arguing that his theory also fails to answer some of the most important questions regarding the issue of film realism. The article concludes that in the recent years there have been many new technological developments in film production and film reception that have changed the traditional concept of Film. The article argues that due to these radical changes in the concept of "film", as well as recent technological advances in film production and projection, theories of film realism also need a radical transformation. Such transformations seem necessary if film theories are still in search of new answers to the new questions about film.
Journal of Fine Arts: Performing Arts & Music
University of Tehran
College of Fine Arts
2228-6012
18
v.
2 (پاییز و زمستان1392)
no.
2013
21
30
https://jfadram.ut.ac.ir/article_36476_cd75717e7c35cddbcfea90c740e92e42.pdf
dx.doi.org/10.22059/jfadram.2014.36476
Aesthetic Considerations in Performing the Works of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, the Case of the Concerto for Flute and Orchestra in D Major K.314
Azin
Movahed
Associate Professor, School of Performing Arts and Music, College of Fine Arts, University of Tehran
author
text
article
2013
per
The present article aims to address the basic principles of interpretation in the music of the Classical era by drawing upon issues of aesthetics and performance practice in the works of W.A. Mozart. A comparative review of the classic treatises, as well as a thorough survey of the writings of contemporary authors on performance practice, and personal experience as a flautist, has guided the author to introduce a model for the interpretation of the music of Mozart. Important elements that play a key role in understanding the stylistic traits of the Classical period, as well as practical issues that need to be addressed in connection with the preparation and execution of a historically informed performance are introduced in an attempt to allow performers gain a better understanding of the language of Mozart. Considering the emphasis given to the close relationship between rhetoric and musical performance during the Classical period, musical parameters that provide a better understanding of the grammatical structure of compositions are discussed in an attempt to stimulate students to consider not only the formal and structural aspects of a piece but to contemplate on issues pertinent to the expressive layers of performance, issues such as the diversity of accents, meaningful articulation, and appropriate sonority and touch. These parameters are important aspects in allowing performers reach a transparent and meaningful execution on their instruments. Drawing upon historical, analytical and stylistic trends, it is crucial for professional performers and students to combine all theoretical data in order to make a well grounded interpretation. Searching elements that affected the original conceptions of Mozart, the influence of Empfindsamerstil can not be neglected during the Rococo. Mozartian phrases exemplify contrast through juxtaposing distinct but complementary affects in the phrase. Contrasts exist not only among the different themes of a composition but also within the same theme. The development of the Mannheim school and orchestra encouraged composers to also take into consideration the virtuosic capabilities of instruments and instrumentalists along other principles. Virtuosic phrases that require steady technique, endurance, and vigor are an emblem of Mozartian aesthetics. Combined with the growing weight of tonality during this period, virtuosic passages always emphasize tonal and harmonic motion. By studying the ways and means in which a stylish interpretation can be established, and to use them as historical foundations for artistic decisions, performers have to understand and make a distinction between metric, structural, and pathetic accents. Mozartian melodies can not be significantly expressed unless the performer considers the integrated relationship between melodic inflection, articulation and accents in the interpretation of melodies. While structural and pathetic accents are influenced by the rhetorical/grammatical structure of the piece, it is important for meter not to be mistaken for pulse. Thus, appropriate accentuation is a critical skill in the performance of Mozart because it generates pulse, and pulse should be sufficiently emphasized because it creates motion in performance
Journal of Fine Arts: Performing Arts & Music
University of Tehran
College of Fine Arts
2228-6012
18
v.
2 (پاییز و زمستان1392)
no.
2013
31
40
https://jfadram.ut.ac.ir/article_36477_84ed51c334c8e6191c86dbb69e68dcc4.pdf
dx.doi.org/10.22059/jfadram.2014.36477
A Critical View to the some Researches on the Popular Music in Iran
Reza
Samim
Assistant Professor in Sociology, Institute for Social & Cultural Studies, Tehran
author
text
article
2013
per
Research on popular music in Iran has a short history. Perhaps the article “sociology of the music of the masses in Iran”, published in 1980, can be considered as the first methodological and systematic study on the popular music in Iran. In that article, the researcher, using Marxist and Neo-Marxist approaches to study popular music, provides a general view on the music of the masses of the pre-revolution era in Iran. It is worth mentioning that, ever since the publication of mentioned article, the amount of research conducted on popular music in Iran has been quite low, even though the production and consumption of popular music in Iran has a considerably richer history. Production and consumption of popular music in Iran as a country in transition has a long history. Up to now dsifferent Genres of popular music in Iran has produced such as Pop, Rock, Jazz, Heavy Metal and etc. The history of production and consumption of music in Iran can be traced back to the time of the introduction of technological aspects of the western modernity to Iran; however, the gap between the production of popular music in its particular sense in Iran, and the concern of researchers for a methodological study of this phenomenon in rather long. Early research on popular music in west almost coincides with the provision of a social context for the production and consumption of popular music. Regardless of the problematic gap between the rise of popular music and the conduct of methodological research on them in Iran, another issue is that these studies are not a theoretical and methodological study. In today’s Iran, despite the expansion of the frontiers of knowledge related to the study of popular music, such as sociology, anthropology, psychology, and educational science, and the establishment of specialized interdisciplinary fields such as musicology and folk musicology in universities and research centers, we do not yet witness the establishment of an interdisciplinary field related to the “popular music studies”, similar to the one which has developed an independent identity in the form of traditional theories and a variety of methodologies for research on popular music in west. This paper aims to study the domestic research experiences on popular music, whose results are generally published in scientific and specialized publications (Such as Mahoor Music Quarterly, University of Tehran Journal of Social Sciences, Iranian Journal of Cultural Researches, University of Tehran Journal of Sociology of Art and Literature, University of Tehran Journal of Fine Arts, Iranian Journal of Sociology) , in order to analyze the possibility of forming the interdisciplinary field of “popular music studies”, and answerthe question, why studies on popular music have not gained a standard form in Iran yet? What is evident from the popular music studies in west is that, determining a field of study in the area of popular music studies is a very essential perquisite for purposeful studies on popular music, and this, in turn, asserts the necessity of forming such an enterprise in Iran
Journal of Fine Arts: Performing Arts & Music
University of Tehran
College of Fine Arts
2228-6012
18
v.
2 (پاییز و زمستان1392)
no.
2013
41
48
https://jfadram.ut.ac.ir/article_36478_8681fb436f37957f3f3622979b1067fd.pdf
dx.doi.org/10.22059/jfadram.2014.36478
Analysis of the representation of ood player in the Images of Sasani to Safavi*
Mryam
Dolati Fard
M.A. in Art Research, Islamic Azad University, Tehran Central Branch, Tehran
author
Fateme
Shahroodi
Assistant Professor, Art and Architecture Faculty, Islamic Azad University, Tehran Central Branch, Tehran
author
text
article
2013
per
Abstract
This article tries to have a look at 40 images which shows ood player in Sasani to Safavi periods. These images can be considered as documents for more information about ood instrument. Permanent elements in these images are the base of the analysis in this research. Two types of figures were being considered as permanent elements: basic figure and non basic figure. In this research basic figure means an element or a person in an image which is superior to the other figures and can be recognized by visual signs and symbols such as composition, size, position, the direction of the other figure’s looks toward it. Sometimes a text or poem which the image is about can help us to find out basic figures. Basic figure can be a human, mythological creature, tree, bird, throne or building. Non basic figure is in a lower status than basic figure. In this article, more often ood player is as a non basic figure. This research shows four kinds of patterns representing of ood player in the images. Most of the images belong to the first pattern in which king is basic figure and superior to ood player as a non basic figure. Most of the time ood player is represented in the left corner of the scene but in a few images it is shown in the right corner. In second pattern a non human element replaced to king as basic figure. As the third pattern, ood player is represented as the basic figure showing his individuality. In a better word there is an overlapping between basic and non basic figures. In the last kind of patterns ood player is shown beside to the other figure in equal status. In fact there is no superiority between them. This study introduces sasani’s patterns as a group having the most variety in. we have all four types of patterns in this periods. But reviewing the images from safavi to sasani we see that gradually first pattern is being dominant. It means ood player is shown as non basic figure. There are tree images belonged to the third category. The first one is related to sasani period. The second one is related to Islamic period but obviously under the influence of Sasani’s artistic traditions and the last one is belonged to Safavi’s art. Although we know that ood players were respected in Sasani period but this research cannot able to interpret the third pattern as the superiority of ood player in Sasanian social classes because of the lack of enough images from this period. But in the images of Islamic period we see the individuality of ood player is not emphasized. There had been some discussion about music in Islam so the first and the second patterns can be an indication of lower status of ood player in the society.
Journal of Fine Arts: Performing Arts & Music
University of Tehran
College of Fine Arts
2228-6012
18
v.
2 (پاییز و زمستان1392)
no.
2013
49
56
https://jfadram.ut.ac.ir/article_36479_2877c13fa2d8a885a09a525d28d3a4fe.pdf
dx.doi.org/10.22059/jfadram.2014.36479
European Musical Instruments in Safavid Period of Iran
Narges
Zaker Jafari
Assistant Professor, School of Music, Faculty of Architect and Art, University of Guilan, Rasht
author
text
article
2013
per
Abstract
There is Interchange of cultures and different kinds of ethnos music in the world between different cultures as acculturation. The economical, trade and political interchange, war and immigration has played a prominent role on acculturation; and obviously most of the time dominant culture has more influence on the other culture. One of the acculturation in the field of music devoted to interchange of musical instruments. In this subject, European art’s influence on Persian art is one of the controversial subjects of Cultural issue in Safavid period. The consequence of political and cultural relationships between Safavid Iran and west regarding to music subject matter was the prevalence of European musical instruments in court of Iran. European musical instruments can be seen both in European travel accounts and iconographical sources of discussed period. Although European musical instruments were prevalent among courts and played by European players, they weren’t became popular throughout the Safavid society. Persian kings became more intrigued by western music and European musical instruments, therefore, for example, Shah Soltan Hossein (c.1668 - c.1726) wrote a letter to Portugal ambassador to send European players to the court of Iran. Iranian and especially Safavid kings praised European music, and strangely in some cases, based on some records, they relished even unturned sound of European musical instruments. European musical instruments imported Iran in different ways. In some cases they were presents of European governments to Safavid kings. Occasionally they were introduced to Persian court by Europeans who served in court of Iran. Also, some ambassadors who traveled Iran, in most of the times brought with themselves numbers of players and musicians. Although the presence of musical instruments and European players is obvious in Safavid Iran, there isn’t any source showing the western music’s influence on basis of Persian music in that time. The influence of European art on Persian culture was so evident in Painting in comparison to other arts which led to the formation of Farangi-sazi style. However in music subject matter there is not any especial transition; also it seems the prevalence of Santūr was due to arrival of western musical instruments. Western travel accounts show that Iranians are more intrigued by Keyboard musical instruments like Epinette, Harpsichord and organ than the other European musical instruments. However the interesting thing is that in pictures such chordophones as European lutes, bowed instruments from cello family (category) are more illustrated than the other instruments. Finally Iranian made acquaintance with European musical instruments and western music in Safavid period and the influence of European music, though it wasn’t perceptible at first time, intensified more and more until Qajar period which continued seriously; and in the latter period the western music’s influence is more sensible. For instance the prevalence of violin in Iranian music and its influence on Kamānča like adding the fourth string, changing of the tune and other details can be continued in Qajar period; however in Safavid period such influence on musical instruments is not observable clearly.
Journal of Fine Arts: Performing Arts & Music
University of Tehran
College of Fine Arts
2228-6012
18
v.
2 (پاییز و زمستان1392)
no.
2013
66
57
https://jfadram.ut.ac.ir/article_36480_60db3dc9f9a1a2baa32d3f7ebfb57fe0.pdf
dx.doi.org/10.22059/jfadram.2014.36480