TEHRAN – Monday marked the 91st anniversary of the death of poet and musician Mirza Abolqassem Aref Qazvini.
Aref was born in Qazvin, where he studied Persian language and grammar and also some music.
About 1898 he went to Tehran, where thanks to the “beauty of his voice,” he was introduced to some of the capital’s leading men, including Mirza Ali Asghar Khan Amin al-Soltan, Atabak-e Azam.
Later he came to the attention of Moaffar-al-din Shah, who had him enrolled in the ranks of the royal valets, but he found this distasteful and finally managed to obtain release.
Aref “devoted his art to the people” and used poetry as an effective means of expressing political ideas and stirring emotions.
A whole-hearted supporter of the constitutionalists, he left Iran for Turkey with other militants in 1916 and stayed at Istanbul for some time.
His most important and impressive works are his taṣnīfāt (song lyrics), which he composed in response to political events of the day and sang to large and enthusiastic audiences.
He owed his fame mainly to the mood of the time and the revolutionary content of his poems. His autobiography and some letters are preserved.
His melodies always carried a central theme of social and political concepts. He composed songs, which played a major role in guiding society and familiarizing people with their social rights. This is the main reason why after 70 years Qazvini’s songs are still relevant, alive and still performed by musicians.
“The melodies composed by Aref were heard everywhere. He was the only one who composed the poetry and the song himself and performed the melody as well,” said late musician Ruhollah Khaleqi about Aref Qazvini.
Aref Qazvini died on January 21, 1933 in Hamadan. He was buried in the courtyard of the Ebn Sina mausoleum. His poetry and songs are collected in his divan.