Professional and Amateur Musicians in Afghanistan

Author(s): John Baily

Source: The World of Music , 1979, Vol. 21, No. 2 (1979), pp. 46-64
Published by: VWB - Verlag für Wissenschaft und Bildung

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John Baily
Professional and Amateur Musicians in Afghanistan
Recent research in Afghanistan has disclosed a characteristic pattern of
recruitment, role and status for musicians. A central feature of this system of
social organization is the distinction between two kinds of musicians, labelled
(in the Persian spoken in Afghanistan) kesbi and shauqi. These terms refer to
the "professional" (kesb = a profession, of any kind) and to the "enthusiast"
(shauq = enthusiasm for anything, or to any activity that is performed or enjoy-
ed with enthusiasm). According to the primary definition - that most com-
monly given by informants - the criterion for belonging to one or other cate-
gory lies in the reasons for playing music: the kesbi plays music to make a
living, the shauqi plays for his love of music and does not accept payment in
money or gifts. These two categories are thought of as being mutually ex-
clusive, and to include all individuals who can be classed as musicians. The
terms kesbi and shauqi are usually translated in English as professional and
amateur.

Under closer examination this seemingly clear-cut folk-definition turns out

to be rather fuzzy. One complication is that in addition to the primary econom
criterion there are a number of secondary criteria that also differentiate kes
and shauqi , and these criteria also enter into Afghans' thinking about musi
cians (I am using the term Afghan here to refer to inhabitants of Afghanista
irrespective of ethnic origin). A second complication is that in addition to kesb
and shauqi there is a third intermediate category of musician that on some of
these criteria may be considered as kesbi , and on other criteria as shauqi .
There is no clearly established label for this third "hidden" category. Our
purpose in this paper is to examine these categories and the criteria that defin
them.

The Afghan concept of music (sāz or musiqi) is usually defined in terms of

the sound of musical instruments, especially melodic instruments, played eith
alone or to accompany singing: unaccompanied singing is not usually con-
sidered to be music. Music, defined in these terms, occupies an ambiguous
place in the Afghan value system. From the point of view of orthodox Islam, as
interpreted in Afghanistan, music is generally considered somewhat undesir-
able, or even downright sinful, even though there is no clear Quranic prohibi-
tion on music. A mental association between music and other more clearly
prohibited activities such as licentious dancing and the drinking of alcohol is
part of the rationale for this standpoint. While this attitude has been consider-

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ably modified in recent years, particularly in the face of government efforts to
popularize music, we still have to understand the role of music in Afghan
society in terms of an underlying puritanical condemnation. However, music
also has its positive values, as "food for the soul", as a reviver of the spirit, as
an agent for exciting people, and in certain circumstances the moral prohibi-
tion on music is suspended. Thus music is considered an indispensible adjunct
to festive occasions, notably wedding celebrations, the springtime country
fairs and religious holidays ('Eid-s).
The prejudice against music per se is paralleled by a prejudice against
musicians, particularly the kesbi-s, who are regarded in a vague sense as "bad
people", who lie, cheat, who make excessive demands for money, who do not
care about religion, whose wives are prostitutes and whose sons are dancing
boys. Their behaviour is regarded as deviating from the expressed ideals of
Muslim society. Much less prejudice is directed against shauqi-s. The signifi-
cance of the kesbifshauqi distinction lies in the fact that it is an important
determinant and indicator of the musician's status.

The data we shall be discussing derive from male musicians in Herat, the
third largest city in Afghanistan, with a population of about 125,000. In many

Kesbi group at a Ramazan concert

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rural areas the distinction between kesbi and shauqi is also made, but we do
not have space to discuss the rural music scene here. Nor are we able to
consider the very interesting question of female kesbi and shauqi musicians,
which also follows the same general pattern, with some significant differences
that arise from the special role and status of women in this conservative Muslim
society. We are concerned here with male urban music making, and in this
respect Herat is a satellite of Kabul, Afghanistan's capital. The pattern of musi-
cian recruitment, role and status is broadly the same in both cities, though the
total number of musicians in Kabul is much larger. The pattern is probably
repeated in other cities of Afghanistan but detailed research is so far lacking.
Afghan cities are important centres of commerce and manufacture, supporting
a business sector of merchants, tradesmen, artisans and craftsmen, with a wide
variety of professions. Many of the traditional crafts described for Iran in the
1930s by Wulff (1966) are found today in Afghan cities; English (1966) gives
a list of professions in Herat. In this society with a high degree of division of
labour the professional musician is also a highly differentiated economic spe-
cialist. The question of kesbi and shauqi musicians has been discussed in
detail by Slobin (1976), mainly with reference to Northern Afghanistan, by Sa-
kata (1976) and by Hoerburger (1969).

Kesbi and Shauqi

We start with a consideration of Heratic male musicians who are, on all

criteria, quite clearly either kesbi or shauqi.

Repertory and instrumentarium

There is a large degree of overlap in the repertory and instrumentarium

employed by kesbi-s and shauqi-s. The repertory is predominantly vocal, with
instrumental accompaniment, and consists of various genres: klasik (Hindustani
khyai and tarana), ghazal (with texts often taken from the great Persian poets),
kiiiwaii (popular radio songs) and mahaii (local Herati songs). Some instru-
mental pieces are also found, notably naghme raqs (dance pieces, often orig-
inally the melodies of kiiiwaii or mahaii songs) and naghme kasha! (a purely
instrumental form specific to Afghanistan). The use of these genres is shown
in the following table.
Although ghazal singing is a shared element, this technically difficult genre is
the speciality of kesbi-s; the mainstay of shauqi performance is the technically
easier kiiiwaii repertoire.

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 Kesbi Shared Shauqi

klasik ghazal mahali

kiliwali
naghme raqs
naghme kashal

The ideal kesbi performance group (daste sāz) consists of a singer with
supporting instruments. The essential instruments are the 'armonia (harmo-
nium), usually played by the singer, the rubāb (plucked lute) and the tabla
(drum pair). The delruba (bowed lute) and sormandel (zither, used as drone)
are occasionally played by Herati kesbi-s. Shauqi-s more often play solo, or in
duos or trios. The two central elements shared with the kesbi-s are the 'armonia
and rubāb. Instead of the tabla they play the easier zirbaghali (goblet shaped
drum) or even occasionally the dãire (frame drum, usually played by women).
There are several other instruments shauqi-s use that kesbi-s do not play.
Foremost amongst these is the dutãr (plucked long-necked lute) in its 2, 3 and
14 stringed forms. The 14 stringed dutãr is frequently found in kesbi perfor-
mance groups but the dutār player is invariably a non-kesbi , a member of the
intermediate category we shall consider later. Other examples of shauqi in-
struments in Herat are the tanbur (plucked long-necked lute), chāhārtār (the
Iranian tar, a plucked long-necked lute) and several types of lute. This pattern
of use is shown in the following table.

Kesbi Shared Shauqi

tabla 'armonia dutãr

delruba rubāb zirbaghali
sormandel dãire
tanbur
chāhārtār
flutes

Recruitment

The kesbi-s are members of hereditary professional musician families.

Hereditary attachment to a profession is a feature of many trades and crafts
in Herat, in some cases a single extended family controls the majority of busi-

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nesses of a particular type. Amongst the kesbi-s of both Herat and Kabul there
are two segments, the dālāk-s (barbers) and the ustãd-s (master musicians).
The dālāk kesbi-s are members of an ethnic group which engages in a variety
of poorly paid and/or low status professions, principally that of barber. This
ethnic group is known as Gharibzāde (born of the stranger), or more pejor-
atively as Jat-s, and in the older literature they were often identified as Gypsies.
The accuracy of this description is by no means established, but even if in-
accurate the term suggests something of their role and position as outsiders in
Afghan society. Certain Gharibzāde families are specialized as musicians
(sāzānde, a term which can also be applied to urban kesbi-s) and actors
(moghaled). As musicians they play the sorna and dohol (double reed aero-
phone and drum). Nowadays these musicians are really part of the rural music
scene: the stereotype of the kesbi as a "bad character" refers most obviously
to them. Some of the urban kesbis of Herat are from one such Gharibzāde
family, who have adopted the instruments and repertory of the urban styl
quite recently. Let us call them kesbi Family A. The women of this extend
family are also professional musicians, who sing and play the ' armonia , ta
and dāire at women's wedding celebrations. A number of male members of
Family A are, or have been, dancing boys (bache bāzigar).

The second segment of kesbi-s, the ustad-s, are really a feature of Kabul.
They are the descendants of Muslim professional musicians from North India
(Patiala region) who migrated to Kabul in the late 19th Century. No descendants
of such musicians are permanent residents of Herat, but there is an equivalent
kesbi family, Family B, which has sprung from the lower income artisan class
of the city and who (like the ustad-s of Kabul) is quite separate from the
Gharibzāde. The oldest members of Family B were the students of a prominent
Kabuli ustad who spent several years in Herat in the 1930s, and all members
of Family B consider themselves the pupils of this ustad (now dead). It is the
close relationship with this Kabuli musician that has conferred the status of
ustad on Family B. Families A and B account for all the kesbis musicians in
Herat, each family has 8 members who are musicians, some other family mem-
bers work at other professions. Although they sometimes have occasion to
cooperate musically they live in separate parts of the city and have no mar-
riage connections. Both families do have marriage links with kesbi families
in Kabul, Family A with dalak kesbi-s , Family B with the ustad family of their
teacher. The two families adhere to different branches of Islam, and a major
difference between them is that the women of Family B are not musicians and
the young men are not dancing boys.

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 In contrast, shauqi musicians are recruited from all sections of society, poor
and rich. It is difficult to predict who will become a shauqi but there are certain
identifiable predisposing factors. Shauqi-s tend to come from families that have
an established interest in music and where the women are used to singing and
playing the dāire to entertain themselves and their children in the house. Often
there is an older male relative who is a shauqi instrumentalist. These condi-
tions are by no means essential, however. It might be supposed that families
with a religious reputation to maintain, such as Sayed or Hazrat, would be
unlikely to produce shauqi musicians. This is largely the case but exceptions
can be found: such individuals seem to be rebelling against their religious
background and identify music as the antithesis of puritanical orthodox religion.
Due to their secrecy (see below) the number of shauqi musicians is impossible
to estimate accurately, about 25 such individuals are known to me, and my
guess is that there are 200-300 such musicians in Herat City.

The learning process

An important difference between shauqi and kesbi is the way that they learn
music: according to the folk-view, kesbi-s learn music from their fathers (or
other relatives) while shauqi-s are self-taught.
The male child of a kesbi family is reared as a musicians. From infancy he is
exposed to the sound of music in the house and is encouraged to clap, to sing
and to dance in response to music. Later on he is taken out with his relatives
when they go to perform and sits on the bandstand with them. This early ex-
perience is regarded by the kesbi-s as very important for the later development
of musical ability. The boy starts to learn an instrument about the age of 10.
At this stage he becomes subject to the most direct forms of teaching, the
father (or relative) demonstrating phrase by phrase, the child imitating and
receiving verbal feedback and a great deal of encouragement. He practices alone
and with his relatives at home. By about the age of 15 he is ready to start going
out with his family to play, if he is a singer/' armonia player he will perform
some part of the programme. The question of which child learns to play what
instrument is clearly dictated by the long-term needs of the family performance
group, and not all the children of a kesbi family necessarily become musicians.
Once the young musician is a regular member of a group he will become a
highly competent technician within a few years. The process of learning music
as a kesbi is not unlike that found in other professions. Typically, the 10 year-
old boy starts spending the days in the shop or workshop of his family (or he
may be apprenticed outside), doing menial jobs at first, then slowly being

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 Shauqi-kesbi group at a Spring fair

shown how to perform increasingly complex tasks until, aged about 20, he is
accepted as a khalife , a fully competent craftsman or tradesman, able to set
up his own business (if he has the money).
The method of learning amongst shauqi-s is usually very different. Like
kesbi-s, they may be exposed to music from an early age but this is usually
women's domestic music (and not really music at all in the Afghan definition)
and is played for entertainment and children's games with no thought of in-
culcating musical experience for future financial advantage. They may be ex-
posed to shauqi music making by relatives, but even if a relative is, for ex-
ample, a dutãr player, he is very likely to forbid the child to touch his instru-
ment, telling him it is sinful to play. Like other young boys they will sometimes
see kesbi-s playing at weddings or other types of performance. The young
shauqi seems to learn despite active discouragement. He usually starts playing

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an instrument at about the age of 15, when he can save enough to buy one, and
from that point on he is usually self-taught. He watches other players, trying to
memorise what they do, and later experiments in private. Shauqi musicians take
pride in being self-taught and at first deny that they have learned from anybody
else, but persistent questioning reveals that they can name one or more in-
dividuals whom they have adopted as "models" and copied. The model was
apparently often unaware that a budding shauqi was learning from him. More
direct methods of learning are sometimes utilized as when one shauqi de-
monstrates a piece for another to learn, and a few shauqi-s pay to have lessons
from kesbi-s. When it comes to teaching shauqi-s , kesbi musicians are mean
with their resources, spinning out a piece over as many lessons as possible
to maximise the return on their musical material and keeping the best things
(such as certain old tunes) to themselves.

As exponents of a theory of music

Kesbi musicians describe themselves as sorfahm - knowing about notes. At

the core of their technical skills and musical abilities is an articulated theory
called the 'ilm-i-musiqi, the "science of music". This science covers several
kinds of knowledge. Perhaps its most important aspect (to the kesbi-s) is the
system of maqãm-s, each defined by sor (set of tones) and characteristic me-
lodic sequences. A system of oral notation is used, closely related to the sar-
gam system of India, and this allows kesbi-s to talk about tonal relationships.
A few kesbi-s use this notation in written form. 'Ilm-i-musiqi also includes
knowledge of a number of rhythmic cycles (tāl-s); mnemonic syllables (bol-s)
are used for oral notation. Another kind of knowledge is that which gives the
kesbi-s control over a variety of musical forms. A fourth aspect of the 'ilm-i-
musiqi is the knowledge of special performance techniques for playing instru-
ments such as the rubãb, 'armonia and tabla.

The 'ilm-i-musiqi is not some abstracted theoretical scheme divorced from

the realities of music making, it is a practical system of music theory used by
the kesbi-s to control performance. Kesbi-s take pride in their knowledge of the
science and consider it is this which principally distinguishes them as musical
performers from the shauqi-s , that makes them pokhte (cooked) while the
shauqi-s are khām (raw). This idea that shauqi-s do not "understand" music,
are not sorfahm is bourne out by the facts. Shauqi-s do have rather little in the
way of an articulated folk-theory about music, and what they do have is filtered
through from the kesbi-s: they do not know the names of the notes and their
concept of maqâm is more restricted, dealing with scales rather than modes.

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They tune their instruments less accurately and have a much higher tolerance
to playing out of tune. They know little about the structure of tāl-s ; they are less
able to control musical form; and they are largely ignorant about sophisticated
performance techniques. While shauqi-s acknowledge the superiority of kesbi-s
in these matters they are not necessarily ashamed of their own limitations, for
their mistakes and ignorance in a sense confirm their claim to play for their
love of music. Knowledge of the 'ilm-i-musiqi implies training in music, and that
is a mark of being a kesbi. The shauqi framework imposes quite different
criteria on the standards of performance.

Musical activities

Space permits only the briefest outline of this very important aspect of the
urban music scene. The main source of income for the kesbi comes from play-
ing at receptions (majlis) for male guests held in conjunction with wedding
celebrations. A band of kesbi-s is hired to provide several hours of music, the
programme consisting mainly of ghazal-s and kiliwali songs, with some dance
pieces for solo and group dancing. Several special songs are used for the
central marriage ceremony (takht-i-dāmād), which lasts about 20 minutes. Sim-
ilar majlis are sometimes held in connection with birth and circumcision cele-
brations. The conditions of employment at a majlis are fixed beforehand in a
verbal agreement, the terms of which reflect a number of variables, such as the
wealth of the patron and the personnel of the band. The payment of the musi-
cians takes place in public at the end of the majlis. They divide the money
later, usually into equal parts, but in some cases the singer takes two shares.
Kesbi-s also play in several other types of social situations: in the theatres, at
picnics, at nightly concerts during Ramazan, and at dancing parties, when a
dancing boy or girl is brought to entertain a small male audience gathered
in some secrecy at a private house.
The shauqi-s play in very different circumstances: they are essentially private
as opposed to public performers. Unlike kesbi-s they often play alone at home
for their own enjoyment. The shauqi is also often a member of a circle of
friends who share an enthusiasm for music. He plays for his friends, who meet
in the privacy of each others' houses or go out to a bãgh (privately-owned walled
garden or orchard) for musical recreation, which may well include some danc-
ing. In this social context there is no question of the shauqi being paid for his mu-
sic with money or gifts, the social parameters are completely different from those
governing kesbi-s playing at a majlis , the shauqi is an equal in a group of
equals. If, in some unusual circumstance, he should be offered payment, the

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shauqi is expected to refuse it. Sometimes there are get-togethers of shauqi-s
playing various instruments together as a band. A shauqi singer may be present
but is not considered indispensable, for often these sessions are instrumental,
the musicians playing sets of kiliwali tunes. The results are sometimes chaotic
but this does not perturb the musicians, whose maxim is shauq konim (let's have
a good time).

Social behaviour

The kesbi-s of Herat regard themselves as an extension of the musician

network of Kabul, with its dalak and ustad segments. This connection is rein-
forced by marriage links, as mentioned above. The kesbi-s of Herat form an
association, membership of which is extended to include certain musicians of
intermediate status who regularly play in kesbi groups. This association has
no formal structure but in certain ways resembles the kind of association found
for other crafts and trades. Within the musician association there is a recogniz-
ed hierarchy in which members of Family B occupy higher positions: Family A
acknowledges Family B as kālāntār (senior). Family B owes its ascendancy to
several factors: their non-Gharibzāde origins, their position as students of a
Kabuli ustad, and their technical superiority in musical performance and knowl-
edge of the 'ilm-i-musiqi. The two families usually play in their own family
groups augmented by musicians from the intermediate category, but they
sometimes co-operate in the same groups. Two members of Family A were
formerly regular members of Family B's group, and members of Family B
regard Family A as their shagird-s (students). The dynamics of membership of
these family performance groups is a complex matter which we cannot discuss
here: the group operates as a family business and it is in the interest of a
musician family to provide, so far as possible, all the personnel of a perfor-
mance group, for this maximises family income and minimises disputes within
the group. Such groups have a high degree of stability. The members of the
association of professional musicians have occasional get-togethers, for ex-
ample, at the marriage of a musician. At these gatherings the musicians take
it in turns to play, sometimes in family groups, sometimes in other combina-
tions.

Kesbi musicians have a low social standing. The status of Family A is partic-
ularly low because their women are also musicians, whose work involves break-
ing the purdah (segregation) rule. Kesbi Family B enjoys higher status amongst
those who know that their women do observe purdah strictly and are not musi-
cians, but a large sector of the public is probably unaware of this and would

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impose the Jat stereotype on Family B. In the past - less so today - members
of kesbi families have been under pressure from religious minded people to
give up their profession, which they are told is a kār-i-Shetān (the Devil's work).
The kesbi-s reply that music is their family profession, what else can they do
for a living? As well as playing music kesbi-s perform other music-related
services. They buy and sell musical instruments, and repair and teach them.
In contrast, an association of shauqi-s is much less clearly defined. Although
a shauqi usually knows a number of other shauqi musicians, and may play with
some of them on occasion, they could not be said to constitute an hierarchy in
any way comparable to the kesbi-s. Each shauqi tends to have a high opinion
of himself, is proud of the fact that he is self-taught, and loathes to acknowledge
any superiors amongst the shauqi-s. Due to the nature of their involvement with
music, and because they gain their livelihood from other means, shauqi-s are
much less caught up in an all-embracing "world of music". According to their
own accounts some shauqi-s have been subject to criticism for their musical
activities, with mulia-s and other righteous persons attempting to persuade them
it is sinful. The experience every shauqi fears is to be called "Jat". However,
shauqi-s to a large extent avoid criticism by revealing their musical talents only
to people who will admire them and not be critical. Shauqi-s thus tend to hide
their musical activities: a shauqi rarely likes to be seen in public with his musi-
cal instrument and it is usually carried separately by a young relative if he is
going off somewhere to play. Although some shauqi-s are known to a wider
public, usually by dint of being enthusiasts of many years' standing, they do not
necessarily loose status, indeed, prestige may even be enhanced if the amateur
musician can establish a public identity as a Sufi (and thereby admitted the
right to use certain musical practices) and maintains his shauqi role very
strongly, a role that separates him clearly from the kesbi-s.

The intermediate category

So far we have dealt with musicians who fall clearly into one or other of the
two categories that are recognized and labelled by the culture. We have yet to
discuss a third, intermediate, category of musicians who are shauqi by recruit-
ment but who have become professional and make some, or all, of their income
from playing music. There is no label that exactly fits this category, though I
found in talking with Afghans that my own term "shauqi-kesbi" was understood
and accepted, and for convenience I use this term.
The shauqi-kesbi-s play the same music that is shared by kesbi-s and
shauqi-s (i.e. mainly kiiiwali), while the instrumentarium is essentially that of

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A young shauqi (a weaver) plays the dutar in his workshop

the shauqi-s. Some are singers. Altogether, I know of about 45 shauqi-kesbi-s

in Herat. This kind of musician often plays the 14 stringed dutār, an instrument
that developed in about 1960 and whose adoption was closely connected with
a process of professionalisation amongst dutār players (Baily 1976). Shauqi-
kesbi-s are usually recruited from the poorer shauqi-s, some of whom become
full time musicians, while in other cases the shauqi-kesbi has another job and
supplements his income from music. As Slobin (1976:43) has pointed out, to
a man who is poor any opportunity to capitalize on his musical ability may be
very welcome, despite the loss of status that may ensue. Shauqi-s who come
from wealthier backgrounds are unlikely to become shauqi-kesbi-s; they are
under less financial pressure and they have more status to loose.
To a considerable extent shauqi-kesbi-s fill a particular niche which is not
occupied by either shauqui-s or kesbi-s. They often play as duos, with dutār ,
rubāb or tanbur accompanied by zirbaghaii, perhaps both musicians also sing-
ing, and as a performance group they are cheap to hire. Based in the city, such
musicians play a good deal in the villages of the Herat Valley, for wedding
celebrations and dancing boy parties, venues that kesbi bands would not ac-
cept, being badly paid and reached with difficulty. In the past such work would

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have been carried out more by Gharibzāde sorna and dohol players. The nu-
celus of two shauqi-kesbi musicians may be filled out with other instruments
to form a daste sãz, and such groups often play at outdoor teahouses at the
Spring fairs (mele-s) held in the countryside. In comparison with kesbi groups,
the combinations in which shauqi-kesbi-s play tend to be very unstable and
constantly changing. Some shauqi-kesbi-s find employment by joining kesbi
bands as dutār and rubāb players, and shauqi-kesbi singers also sometimes
perform with kesbi groups. Those who regularly co-operate with kesbi-s be-
come incorporated into the association of professional musicians and take part
in its occasional meetings. Through such contact some shauqi-kesbi musicians
learn a lot about the 'iim-i-musiqi, partly by "osmosis", sometimes by being
shown directly how something should be done. The kesbi-s require that those
outsiders who play with them become highly skilled practitioners, and in any
case the demands of giving sustained public performances and the opportunity
for practice that a professional musician's work involves means that most
shauqi-kesbi-s develop a level of musical skill that is reached by few shauqi-s.

The status of the shauqi-kesbi is not clearcut, and opinions about their posi-
tion vary. Questioned directly such musicians usually declare themselves to be
shauqi, but many people do not accept this and say that these musicians call
themselves shauqi because they are ashamed to admit they are taking money:
they fool themselves, in reality they are kesbi. However, the claim to be shauqi
is valid if a new criterion is adopted and shauqi and kesbi are defined in terms
of recruitment rather than the reason for playing music, and this is certainly
what some shauqi-kesbi-s have in mind when they define themselves as shauqi.
Moreover, this is also the criterion adopted by the kesbi-s, who characterise
themselves as hereditary musicians, who learn the profession from their fathers,
are the sole purveyors of "good" music and who hold the exclusive right to
make money from its performance. On this basis the kesbi-s clearly distinguish
themselves from the shauqi-kesbi musicians, who may play in the kesbi-s'
performance groups. Despite his claim to be shauqi there is no doubt about the
low status of the shauqi-kesbi, who is seen as one who has degraded himself
and brought his family into disrepute. In comparison with kesbi-s the shauqi-
kesbi-s are usually poor. If they play with kesbi groups they usually get less
than a full share of the money. Some of them gravitate towards the underworld
of gangsters (badmãsh), gamblers (qamârbãz), pimps (mordegau), spivs (kāke),
"handsome boys" (bache maqbui) and other husslers who frequent certain
teahouses. The connection of such musicians with the underworld lends sup-
port to the common view that music is sinful and musicians are bad characters.

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 There is some evidence to suggest that the shauqi-kesbi is a recent phenom-
enon and is the response to an increased demand for music since about 1950.
This followed the liberalisation of puritanical attitudes towards music that is
one aspect of cultural modernisation in Afghanistan. While it is probably true
that this kind of musician was less common in the past it is clear, however,
that even fifty years ago there were shauqi-kesbi-s in Herat (Baily 1976) and
we have to conclude that even though it may be ambiguously categorised this
class of musician is an integral component of the typical pattern of social
organization of musicians in Afghanistan. Analytically, the shauqi-kesbi can be
regarded as being in a state of transition between shauqi and kesbi status: full
transition only occurs when the shauqi-kesbi rears his own sons as musicians
in order that they continue in the music profession. It is this behaviour pattern
that in essence defines the kesbi. A famous shauqi-kesbi dutār player explained
to me that he did not want his sons to become musicians because people
would criticise him. He said that it was all right for kesbi musicians to teach
their sons to become kesbi because that was their family profession, but his
father and grandfather were not kesbi . It was not so bad that he himself earned
his living from playing music but it would be very bad if he trained his sons as
musicians and this became his family's profession.

Very few shauqi-kesbi-s take, or have taken, this final step to become
kesbi , but it has happened. This, in fact, is the origin of kesbi Family B in Herat,
whose relatives are members of the poorer artisan class of the city. The father
of the two oldest members of Family B was originally a shauqi who took to
earning his living from music in the early part of this century and reared his
sons as musicians. His sons later became the students of a Kabuli ustad, from
whom they learned a great deal about the 'iim-i-musiqi. Today, the members of
Family B are proud of their position as kesbi musicians who (as they believe)
are regarded as equals by the ustad-s of Kabul.

Conclusions

The data we have considered here are of interest from several points of view
Firstly, we are dealing with a complex urban Islamic society that emphasizes
the distinction between amateur and professional, and has adopted this as on
of the main dimensions in thinking about The Musician. The difference betwee
amateur and professional is manifest in many ways: in the type of music an
instruments they play, in their recruitment, learning processes, knowledge
about music, music-making activities and social behaviour. The significance

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of the distinction lies in the different statuses reserved for amateurs and profes-
sionals.

Secondly, we have an example of the difference that may exist between ideal
types and actual behaviour: the simple distinction between amateur and profes-
sional conceals the existence of a category that has features of both. The
classification of this intermediate category depends upon the criterion adopted,
and this shifts with distance from the music practitioners themselves. While the
general public adopts the criterion of income, the musicians adopt the criterion
of recruitment.

Thirdly, the data illustrate a point of general theoretical importance - that

professionalism in music is not determined by special innate musical abilities.
This idea is embedded in the Afghan folk-view that professionalism in music
is to be equated with being an hereditary professional. There is no doubt that
ascribed professional (kesbi) musicians in Afghanistan are better as musicians
than amateurs (shauqi), but this is the result of being born into a particular
social category in which there are a variety of pressures on the individual to
develop his natural musicality to its fullest extent. Given that original condition
all else follows as a matter of course. Those amateur musicians who, under eco-
nomic pressure, become achieved professional (shauqi-kesbi) musicians have the
opportunity to develop their latent abilities, though the lack of early training
may act as a barrier to their full realisation. In short, social and economic
factors are the determinants of the special musical abilities that are implied by
our use of the term "professional" as applied to musicians.

Bibliography

John Baily, "Recent changes in the dutār of Herat." Asian Music, 1976, Vlll-I: pp. 29-64.
Paul English, "The traditional city of Herat." In L. Carl Brown, ed. From Madina to Metro-
polis, Princetown: The Darwin Press, 1973.
Felix Hoerburger, Volksmusik in Afghanistan, nebst einem Exkurs über Qor'an-Rezitation
and Thora-Kantillation in Kabul. Regensburg: Gustav Bosse Verlag, 1969.
Lorraine Sakata, "The concept of musician in three Persian-speaking areas of Afgha-
nistan." Asian Music, 1976, Vlll-I: 1-28.
Mark Slobin, Music in the culture of Northern Afghanistan. Tucson, Arizona: Wenner-
Gren Foundation or Anthropological Research, 1976.
Hans Wulff, The traditional crafts of Persia. Cambridge and London: M.l.T. Press, 1966.

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John Baily
Die Berufs- und Freizeitmusiker in Afghanistan
(Kurzfassung)
In Afghanistan gibt es zwei Sorten von der rubâb (die Laute) und der 'armonia
Musikern: die kesbi, die ihren Lebensunter- (das Harmonium). Bestimmte Instrumente
halt mit Musik verdienen, also Berufsmusi- wie der tabla (die Doppeltrommel), der dei-
ker sind, und die chauqui, die nur zum Ver- ruba (die mit dem Bogen gespielte Laute)
gnügen spielen, also Freizeitmusiker dar- und der sormandel (die für den Bordun zu-
stellen. In Wirklichkeit sind die Unterschiede ständige Zither) sind für die kesbi typisch,
zwischen ihnen viel komplexer, als diese während zum Beispiel der dutâr, der tan-
vereinfachte Definition vermuten läßt. Zu- bur, der châhârtâr (die gezupften Langhals-
dem existiert noch eine dritte Kategorie lauten), der zirbaghaii (die Bechertrommel),
von Musikern, die chauqui-kesbi, eine Zwi- der dâire (die Rahmentrommel) sowie die
schenstufe zwischen den ersten beiden Flöten zum Gebiet der chauqui gehören.
Gruppen.
Die Berufs- und Freizeitmusiker in der
Für die Afghanen beschränkt sich Musik afghanischen Gesellschaft unterscheiden
auf eine besonders melodische Instrumental-
sich auch durch die Rekrutierung und Aus-
musik, wobei die Instrumente entweder
bildung ihres Nachwuchses. Bei den kesbi
allein gespielt werden oder den Gesang be- vererbt sich der Musikerberuf vom Vater
gleiten. So gesehen hat die Musik innerhalb auf den Sohn. Die kesbi gliedern sich je
des orthodoxen Islams einen widersprüch- nach Volkszugehörigkeit in zwei Untergrup-
lichen Stellenwert: Sie ist einerseits - ob-
pen: die dâlâk (Barbiere) aus der Volks-
wohl im Koran nicht ausdrücklich verboten
gruppe der Gharibzâdé (Fremden), die we-
- eine Sünde und wird gedanklich mit nig wol-angesehene und unterbezahlte Berufe
lüstigen Tänzen und Alkoholkonsum asso- ausüben, und die ustad, die seit Ende des
ziiert; andererseits wird sie als „Nahrung 19. Jahrhunderts in Kabul lebenden Nach-
für die Seele" betrachtet. Die Vorurteile
fahren moslemischer Berufsmusiker aus
gegen die Musik gehen mit Vorurteilen Nordindien. Die kesbi werden von klein auf
gegen die Musiker einher, und insbeson- mit der Musik vertraut gemacht, zunächst in
dere gegen die kesbi, deren Lebenswandel eher formloser Weise, dann durch systema-
sich angeblich nicht an den Idealen der tischen Unterricht seitens des Vaters oder
moslemischen Gesellschaft orientiert.
eines Verwandten. Sobald der Junge das
Unsere Studie beschränkt sich auf die Alter von 15 Jahren erreicht, wird er nach
Musiker männlichen Geschlechts aus Herat, und nach als vollberechtigtes Mitglied ins
der drittgrößten Stadt Afghanistans. Ein Familien-„Ensemble" integriert und erreicht
großer Teil des hauptsächlich vokalen Re- in wenigen Jahren ein hohes technisches
Niveau.
pertoires sowie der Instrumente ist bei den
chauqui und den kesbi identisch. Der tech- Die chauqui auf der anderen Seite kön-
nisch schwierige ghazal (dessen Texte oft nen aus jeder Gesellschaftsschicht stam-
von großen persischen Dichtern stammen) men, selten jedoch aus Familien, die den
ist allerdings eher eine Spezialität der Ruf besonderer Frömmigkeit genießen.
kesbi, der leichtere kiiiwali (volkstümliche
Lieder für den Rundfunk) die der chauqui. Haupteinnahmequelle der kesbi sind die
Zu den gemeinsamen Instrumenten zählenmajiis (Empfänge für Gäste männlichen Ge-

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schlechts), die anläßlich von Hochzeiten, pen gemeinsam sind, greifen jedoch im we-
manchmal auch von Geburten und Be- sentlichen auf die Instrumente der chauqui
schneidungszeremonien gegeben werden; zurück. Sie gehören zu den ärmsten chau-
gu/'-Kreisen und verdienen ihren Lebens-
ihr Auftritt dauert mehrere Stunden und um-
unterhalt entweder ausschließlich mit Musi-
faßt ein Programm von ghazal- und kiliwaii-
Liedern sowie von Tänzen. Sie werden am zieren oder bessern nebenberuflich ihre
Ende des majlis öffentlich bezahlt und tei- Einkünfte damit auf. Sie treten für einen
len den Gewinn im allgemeinen zu gleichen niedrigen Lohn in den Dörfern des Herat-
Teilen unter sich auf; der Sänger erhält Tales auf, wohin sich die kesbi wegen der
allerdings oft den doppelten Anteil. schlechten Bezahlung nicht begeben. Manch-
mal gelingt es ihnen, als Sänger oder dutâr-
Die chauqui spielen im Gegensatz dazu
und rubâb- Spieler in kesbi- Ensembles auf-
zumeist allein oder für ihre Freunde; sie
genommen zu werden; in diesem Falle
kommen bisweilen zusammen, um gemein-
müssen sie sich eine große technische Fer-
sam zu musizieren, doch es geschieht im-
tigkeit aneignen.
mer zu ihrem eigenen Vergnügen; wird
ihnen zufällig eine Belohnung angeboten,
Der Status der chauqui-kesbi ist unklar.
so wird erwartet, daß sie sie ablehnen.
Sie nennen sich selbst chauqui, aber ver-
Während unter den kesbi je nach Abstam-
mutlich nur deshalb, weil sie sich schämen
mung, technischer Fertigkeit oder Kenntnis
zuzugeben, daß sie von der Musik leben
des 'ilm-i-musiqi (der Musiktheorie) eine und in Wirklichkeit kesbi sind. Ihr Ansehen
Hierarchie existiert, gibt es bei den chauqui
ist um so geringer, als manche von ihnen
nichts dergleichen, denn jeder von ihnen am Rande der Gesellschaft leben.
pflegt eine hohe Meinung von sich zu haben
und auf sein Autodidaktentum stolz zu sein.
Abschließend läßt sich sagen, daß man
Die Musiker der Zwischenkategorie - in Afghanistan eine komplexe, urbane isla-
man könnte sie chauqui-kesbi nennen, da mische Gesellschaft vorfindet, in der dem
ein afghanischer Begriff zu ihrer genauen Unterschied zwischen Berufs- und Freizeit-
Kennzeichnung fehlt - stellen unter dem musikern großer Wert beigemessen wird,
Aspekt ihrer Herkunft professionell gewor- und daß soziale sowie wirtschaftliche Fak-
toren die Entfaltung musikalischer Fähig-
dene chauqui dar. Sie spielen zwar alle
keiten entscheidend mitbestimmen.
Gattungen, die den beiden anderen Grup-

John Baily
Les musiciens professionnels et amateurs en Afghanistan
(résumé)
En Afghanistan, il existe deux catégories cette définition simpliste. Il y a par ailleurs
de musiciens: les kesbi-s, qui font de la une troisième classe de musiciens, celle
musique leur gagne-pain - donc les pro- des chaouqui-kesbi-s, qui est un amalgame
fessionnels - et les chaouqui-s, qui en des deux premières.
jouent pour le plaisir - c'est-à-dire les
amateurs. Dans la réalité, elles se distin- La musique se restreint pour les Afghans
guent par des critères plus complexes que à la musique instrumentale, notamment mé-

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lodique, les instruments étant joués seuls arrivés à Kaboul à la fin du 19ème siècle.
ou pour accompagner le chant. Ainsi dé- Dès l'enfance, les kesbi-s sont familiarisés
finie, elle a un statut ambigu dans l'Islam avec la musique, tout d'abord de façon
orthodoxe: d'une part, bien que le Coran informelle, puis par un enseignement sys-
ne la condamne pas expressément, elle est tématique, dispensé par leur père ou un
péché, et associée aux danses lascives et parent. A partir de l'âge de 15 ans, le jeune
à l'absorption d'alcool; d'autre part, on y garçon devient peu à peu un musicien à
voit une «nourriture pour l'âme». Les pré- part entière dans «l'ensemble» familial,
jugés contre la musique en soi vont de acquérant en quelques années un haut
pair avec des préjugés contre les musi- niveau technique.
ciens, et notamment contre les kesbi-s
dont la conduite, dit-on, ne se règle pas Quant aux chaouqui-s, ils sont issus de
sur les idéaux de la société musulmane. toute classe sociale, mais rarement des
familles qui ont une réputation de piété à
Notre étude se borne aux musiciens de préserver.
sexe masculin d'Hérat, troisième ville de
Les kesbi-s tiennent leur principale
l'Afghanistan. Une grande partie du réper-
source de revenus des majiis (réceptions
toire, qui est principalement vocal, et des
offertes aux invités de sexe masculin) don-
instruments, sont les mêmes chez les
nés à l'occasion des mariages, et parfois
chaouqui-s et les kesbi-s. Toutefois, le des naissances et de la cérémonie de la
ghazal (dont les textes sont souvent em-
circoncision, où ils se produisent pendant
pruntés aux grands poètes persans), à la
plusieurs heures avec un programme de
technique difficile, est plutôt la spécialité
chants ghazai-s et kiiiwaii et de danses. Ils
des kesbi-s, et le kiliwali (chansons popu-
sont payés à la fin du majiis, en public, et
laires pour la radio), plus facile, celle des
se répartissent les gains généralement à
chaouqui-s. Parmi les instruments com-
parts égales, mais souvent, le chanteur
muns, on citera le rubâb (luth) et l 'armonia
touche deux parts.
(harmonium). D'autres, comme le tabiâ
(double tambour), le deiruba (luth joué Les chaouqui-s, par contre, jouent le
avec un archet) et le sormandei (cithare plus souvent seuls, ou pour leurs amis, se
faisant office de bourdon) sont spécifiques réunissant parfois pour faire ensemble de
des kesbi-s, tandis que le dutâr, le tan bur, la musique, mais toujours pour leur propre
le châhârtâr (luths à manche long à cordes plaisir et si, par hasard, on leur offre une
pincées), le zirbaghaii (tambour en forme rémunération, on attend d'eux qu'ils la re-
de gobelet), le dâîre (tambour à cadre) et fusent. Alors qu'il y a chez les kesbi-s une
les flûtes sont propres aux chaouqui-s. hiérarchie selon l'origine, les compétences
techniques ou la connaissance de 'iim-i-
Les musiciens professionnels et amateurs musiqi (théorie musicale), celle-ci est in-
de la société afghane se distinguent égale- existante chez les chaouqui-s, chacun d'eux
ment par leur recrutement et leur formation. ayant tendance à avoir une haute opinion
Chez les kesbi-s, on est musicien de père de lui-même et à être fier de son état
en fils. Ceux-ci se subdivisent en deux caté- d'autodidacte.
gories, en fonction de l'ethnie: les dâlâk-s
(barbiers), du groupe ethnique des Gharib- Les musiciens de la catégorie intermé-
zâdé (étrangers), qui exercent des métiers diaire, que l'on pourrait appeler chaouqui-
peu considérés et sous-payés, et les kesbi-s, faute de terme afghan pour les dé-
oustad-s, descendants de musiciens musul- finir, sont, de par leur recrutement, des
mans professionnels de l'Inde du nord, chaouqui-s devenus professionnels. S'ils

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interprètent les genres communs aux deux Le statut des chaouqui-kesbi-s est flou.
autres catégories, ils utilisent cependant Ils se dénomment eux-mêmes chaouqui-s,
essentiellement les instruments des chaou- mais on prétend que c'est parce qu'ils ont
qui-s. Issus des plus pauvres des chaou- honte d'avouer qu'ils gagnent leur vie avec
qui-s, ils ont la musique pour seul gagne- la musique, et qu'ils sont en réalité des
pain, ou ils la pratiquent pour améliorer kesbi-s. Ils sont mal considérés, d'autant
leurs revenus, à-côté d'un autre métier. que certains d'entre eux gravitent autour
Bon marché, ils se produisent dans les des bas-fonds de la société.
villages de la vallée d'Hérat, où les kesbi-s
On peut dire en conclusion qu'en Afgha-
refusent de se rendre, parce qu'ils sont
nistan, on se trouve en face d'une société
mal payés. Certains parviennent à s'inté-
islamique urbaine complexe, où l'on met
grer aux ensembles kesbi-s comme chan-
l'accent sur la distinction entre profession-
teurs ou comme joueurs de dutâr et de
nels et amateurs, et que les facteurs so-
rubâb, auquel cas on exige d'eux qu'ils
ciaux et économiques sont les éléments
acquièrent une grande compétence tech-
déterminants de l'épanouissement des ap-
nique. titudes musicales.

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