Music by Farya Faraji, including improvisations by Soheil Saadat and Nayan Sahihi. Duduk by @AliFarbodnia setar and tar by Siavosh Karami, tanboor by Soheil Saadat, vocals by Ali Reza Berenjan and Farya Faraji, and kamanche by Nayan Sahihi. Please note that this isn't reconstructed era music, this is modern Iranian and Azerbaijani music with a historical theme. I wanted to delve into the rich subject of the Safavid dynasty which is commonly seen as the beginning of modern Iranian history, and whose lasting effects include the conversion of Iran to a Shiite Muslim country, and its consolidation as one of the major gunpowder-based powers in the region. The Safavids were a Turkic speaking dynasty whose dialect was an early form of the modern Azerbaijani language. They came to power in 16th century Iran under the rule of Shah Ismail I. Ismail I was a renowned poet under the pen name of Khatayi. As the leader of the Qizilbash, a faction of Shiite, Turkic Sufi militant group, he took power in Iran, and solidified it as the eastern, Shiite adversary of the Sunni Ottoman empire for centuries to come. The music is primarily based in the common, shared musical heritage of Iranian and Azerbaijani musical forms, with the tar and kamanche being central in both traditions. An Iranian setar and tanbour also accompany the piece, as well as a duduk, an instrument called the mey by Azerbaijanis, and commonly played both in Azerbaijan as well by the Azeris of Iran. A Sufi aesthetic also shapes the central component of the music's rhythm, with the rythmic breaths being typical of Zikr: Sufi musical gatherings were rhythm is used to induce the mystics into a trance believed to bring them closer to the divine. The kurdish tanboor adds to the mystical, Sufi aesthetic of the song, being closely associated with Kurdish Sufis. The main melody is in the mode of Isfahan, equivalent to the Western harmonic minor, with the kamanche improv in the middle by Nayan Sahihi being in Segah. The lyrics are in the Azerbaijani and Persian languages. Azerbaijani lyrics: Allah Allah din gaziler Gaziler deyin şah menem Karşu gelün secde kılun Gaziler deyin şah menem Uçmakta tuti kuşuyam Ağır leşker er başıyam Men sufiler yoldaşıyam Gaziler deyin şah menem Ne yerd'ekersen biterim Handa çağırsan yeterim Sufiler elin dutarım Gaziler deyin şah menem Mansur ile darda idim Halil ile narda idim Musa ile Tur'da idim Gaziler deyin şah menem Tahkıyk ile şahı tanun Nevruz edin şaha yetün Hey gaziler secde kılun Gaziler deyin şah menem Kırmızı taclu boz atlu Ağır leşkeri nisbetlü Yusuf Peygamber sıfatlu Gaziler deyin şah menem Hatai'yem al atluyam Sözü şekerden datluyam Murtaza Ali zatluyam Gaziler deyin şah menem Persian lyrics: Manam Jamshid, manam Khosrow, Manam Rostam o Fereydunam, Name Ali'st, bar labanam, Pir-e davazda emamam, Sharabe man, khoone Yazid, Cho Rostam khoone div ra pashid, Manam shahe Ghezelbashian, Manam Shahanshaye Iran Translation of the Persian text: I am Jamshid, I am Khosrow, I am Rostam and Fereydun, The name of Ali is on my lips, I am the Pir of the Twelve Imams, My wine is the blood of Yazid, As Rostam shed the blood of the div, I am the King of the Qizilbash, I am the King of Kings of Iran The Persian lyrics are sentiments written down by Ismail. Present here is Shiite Islamic imagery; such as the emphasis on the Twelve Imams, a belief specific to Shia Islam which proclaims that succession to the prophet Muhammad is passed every era through a divinely appointed Imam of which there will be twelve, and hostility towards Yazid as a figure of evil due to his killing of Imam Hussein, one of the central figures of Shia Islam. This Shiite Islamic imagery is coupled closely with emphasis on native, pre-Islamic Iranian cultural elements such as the Zoroastrian mythology of Rostam, Jamshid, Fereydun, etc, which remain to this day central to Iranian identity. This shows the highly multidimensional nature of the Safavid Empire as an Iranian empire where native, pre-Islamic Iranian identity played a fundamental part in its identity, ruled by a Turkic speaking dynasty, and shaped by a newly consolidated Shia Islam that would come to define Iran in opposition to much of the rest of the Islamic world. The Azerbaijani lyrics are a poem by Shah Ismail himself, however as with all poems of the era, an English translation is very difficult to offer, so I would rather prefer that someone with a better grasp of Azerbaijani than me write down the translation. The general gist of the poem is Ismail's affirmation of himself as the king, representative of the Imams and defender of the ideals of Sufism, the Qizilbash, and Shiite Islam.

Greetings to all my Farsi and Azarbaijani brothers from Turkey. 🇹🇷 ❤ 🇦🇿 ❤ 🇮🇷

Azerbaijani lyrics: Allah Allah din gaziler Gaziler deyin şah menem Karşu gelün secde kılun Gaziler deyin şah menem Allah Allah, faith, ghazis Ghazis say that I am the Shah Stand before me and bow in prayer Ghazis say that I am the Shah Uçmakta tuti kuşuyam Ağır leşker er başıyam Men sufiler yoldaşıyam Gaziler deyin şah menem I am the bird of Tuti* in flight I am the chief soldier of the heavy troops I am companion to the Sufis Ghazis say that I am the Shah Ne yerd'ekersen biterim Handa çağırsan yeterim Sufiler elin dutarım Gaziler deyin şah menem Wherever you sow me I will bloom Wherever you call for me I will arrive I will hold the hand of Sufis Ghazis say that I am the Shah Mansur ile darda idim Halil ile narda idim Musa ile Tur'da idim Gaziler deyin şah menem I was in trouble with Mansur** I was together with Abraham I was at mount of Tur with Moses Ghazis say that I am the Shah Tahkıyk ile şahı tanun Nevruz edin şaha yetün Hey gaziler secde kılun Gaziler deyin şah menem Know your Shah in congregation Celebrate Nawruz and be sufficient for Shah O ghazis stand before me and bow in prayer Ghazis say that I am the Shah Kırmızı taclu boz atlu Ağır leşkeri nisbetlü Yusuf Peygamber sıfatlu Gaziler deyin şah menem With red crown and grey horse With heavy troops renowned Named as Prophet Joseph Ghazis say that I am the Shah Hatai'yem al atluyam Sözü şekerden datluyam Murtaza Ali zatluyam Gaziler deyin şah menem I am Khatai with red horse I am the one whose word is sweeter than sugar I am personified by beloved Ali Ghazis say that I am the Shah *Name of a bird owned by a merchant that gained its freedom from cage by dying *Mansur al-Hallaj from Iran who uttered the words "I am the Truth/God", important in creed of unity of being Translation and context provided by ​ @gunpowderaficionado9318 I'm just putting in here so I can read it easier

Shah Ismail is in my top ten for the most intriguing people in Iranian history. Really interesting piece you're put together and thanks again for the translation...those are some fascinating verses!

What instrument do you play? Iranian: I play asthma attack. * breathes rhythmically * BASED

Hi farya. Iam an Iranian Azerbaijani my compatriot from Ardabil from the birthplace of the Safavid dynasty this music was very beautiful it took me to the era of Safavid About the afsharid Iran and ottoman empire.long love the country of Iran And Goodluck❤🇮🇷

Glory to the both Azerbaijan and Iran, no need to fight 🇦🇿🇮🇷 The history of the Safavids is the shared history of Azerbaijanis and Iranians. It is truly senseless to engage in conflict. As an Azerbaijani from the Qizilbash clan, I want to express my gratitude, Farya.

Breathy Sufi chanting, epic drums, kamanche, tar, tamboor, duduk, et al are the combination we didn't know we needed! Definitely one of your best compositions.

Long live Great Iran 🇮🇷🦁 from Serbia 🇷🇸

heard the sample of this in your Orientalist music essay and had to find the full thing. Truly sounds epic! Thank you for making and sharing the work you do.

Grettings and support to Iran and Iranian brothers and sisters from morroco 🇲🇦🤝🇮🇷

As a Turk from Trabzon I feel double closer to Shah since his grandmother was also from Trabzon :D His poems are really easy to understand and pretty intelligible to me. Greetings to Azerbaijani and Iranian Turks , also to good people of Persia 👋❤❤ 🇹🇷🇦🇿❤ ⚪🟢🦁🟢🔴 Thank you and your friends for this piece Farya Faraji 👏👏👏

Chokh Gozal Mahnidi,Gozlarim yashla doldu 🥲 🇦🇿🤝🇮🇷

Finally a Shah Ismail project from Farya Faraji! I've been waiting for this moment for a long time and it was great. Shah Ismail is a very interesting character. A gnosticism disguised as leadership, poetry, philosophy and Shia. All of them are united in a single body as Shah Ismail. Khatai expressed it. I always saw him as the eastern version of the western philosopher emperor Marcus Aurelius. Khatai (Shah Ismael) Those who read the secret and message in his poems will understand what I mean. He is both a good leader, an Iranian revolutionary and the best poet in Turkish history. He is the greatest of the 7 Great Poets in turkish literature. Before the earth and the sky existed, I existed I was a rotating compass emerging from a single grain of ore I turned this substance into water, it covered the entire universe I was the one who created the jinn and man, the earth and the sky. I disguised myself as Adam, but no one learned my secret. I have already been living in that house of God for a long time. Since then I knew his (God's) secret that he was my That's why I was a secret within a secret with God O Khatai, I have undoubtedly known and recognized the Truth. That's why I denied what he created...

As an Iranian born in America, I love all of your beautiful musical interpretations of our country's rich history. In a media landscape that is sparse in favorable portrayals of the region, I deeply appreciate your content. Keep up the amazing work.

A great song for the Iranian Safavid Empire (of Azerbaijani origin) 👏❤🇮🇷

I'm trying to spend a day without listening, but no, I always end up on Farya's channel every day. Respect birader.

Im a Afghan Qizilbash from the Afshar tribe💯👍🏼

As a devoted student of the life and works of Shah Ismail, I am delighted. I downloaded this masterpiece even before I listened to it to the end. Magnificent. Keep up the great work Farya. Greetings from Bosnia.

I can't sleep and Farya releases a song during the night. TOP

Very beautiful. I appreciate you. Hello from Azerbaijan 🇦🇿

As a huge fan of your works from Azerbaijan I sincerely thank you for this magnificient piece. You're a great person Farya.

"Mənəm şahe qızılbaşan mənəm şahənşəhe iran" was definitely best part im an afsharid qizilbash from urmia iran

از تبریز و از ملت عزیز ما به فریا سلامت و برکت میریسونیم !Çox Güzel 😍

Farya! The part that is Persian lyrics gave me goosebumps. The way the mythology of Rostam was combined with the story of Imam Ali and Yazid. It just perfectly encapsulated the soul of the modern era of Iran. And the Sufi breathing! Bro, I tell everyone I know about your work.

What a pleasant surprise, I was just yesterday night reading on Safavid history and now this drops. Beautiful and brilliant as always.

Greetings from a Turkish Alevi. Shah İsmail is one of the most important figures for us Alevis too.

LETS GOOOOOOOOO Also, do I smell a Chaldiran symphony coming up?

First Darius, then Cyrus, followed by Khosrow; So now Ismail... Well, next in line is Nadir Shah Afshar. I will look forward to your composition dedicated to this extraordinary person.

Probably my favorite parts are 4:15-5:30 and 7:58-8:36 the energy just hits so hard there, feels like even my heart starts beating synchronized with the rhythm 🔥 the Sufi vibes from it are just unbelievable; also it's really nice to hear shah Ismail's poetry, it always amazed me how good Medieval and Early Modern monarchs were at poetry. Awesome piece as always, greetings to Iranians and Azeris!!🇦🇿🇮🇷

Shah Tahmasp would make Farya his court musician , the vocals, damn the vocals 👏 very good work

Amazing! Please make more Iranian history music! I love it!!

I love Safavids 🇦🇿🇮🇷

✨️🇮🇷 We Iranians are proud of you Thank you for keeping the history of Iran alive

The breathing underlying everything is way too cool

The mighty Safavids of Iran 🇮🇷

Another masterpiece, keep up the good work ❤

One of your best tracks yet!!! We need MORE content like this!!!

Learning more about the Safavids from a music video and the video description than I ever learned in school. Awesome song Farya Faraji

I see some people arguing if Ismail was Iranian or not. first of all , what we know as Nation-State is a modern term. Iran ( previously Eranshahr) has so many ethnic groups. Kurds , Turks , Lurs , Baloch, Arabs, Persians etc. ( btw that's why Reza Shah asked westerners to call us Iran not Persia!) yes he was Turk( maybe with Kurdish roots) but in a larger scale he was an Iranian. It's not strange that from time to time some ethnics has ruled Iran ( as you see later on with Zands)

One of the greatest Iranian empire in my opinion. According to Safavid tradition, Ismāʿīl was descended from ʿAlī. His grandfather Junayd, leader of a Sufi order (tariqah) that had adopted a militant form of Shiʿism, initiated the family’s quest for political power, backed by military support from disaffected Turkmen who were later known collectively as the Kizilbash (“Red Heads”). Ḥaydar, Junayd’s son and successor, continued this quest but died in battle against the Ak Koyunlu when Ismāʿīl was only a year old. Fearful that their enemies would wipe out the entire family, supporters of the tariqah kept members of the family hidden for a number of years.Ismāʿīl emerged at the age of 14 to take his father’s position as head of the order. He quickly established a base of power in northwestern Iran, and in 1501 he took the city of Tabrīz and proclaimed himself shah. In a succession of swift conquests he brought all of modern Iran and portions of present-day Iraq and Turkey under his rule. In 1510 Ismāʿīl moved against the Sunni Uzbek tribes in what is now Uzbekistan. By skillful use of ambush, Ismāʿīl was able to defeat a 28,000-man Uzbek force with only 17,000 Iranians in a battle near the city of Merv (near modern-day Mary).

درود و خسته نباشی خدمت فریا جان عزیز امیدوارم که برای شاهنشاه بهرام بزرگ هم سروده ای ترتیب بدین

The grandson of Uzun Hasan surely turned the tables around, and not in the way his ancestors would have anticipated.

I'm a black American and I just love Persian music thank you for posting this , just beautiful !!😢😢😢😢

Nice work from IRAN🟥⬜️🟩

I was waiting for this. Thank you Farya ❤

I consider Farya as a teacher for me. Each times he releases a song about a subject I don't know, I can't stop digging internet to find information about it. This song about the Safavid Dynasty makes me understood a bit better Shia Islam, but also Sufism, and the fascinating history of that part of the world. And i thank him for that.

THIS IS AWSOME!!!! MANAM SHAHENSAHI IRAN

Holt shit he finally did it... Would you also maybe perhaps make a Music centered around The Iranian Intermezzo? Like the Samanids, Saffarids, Ghurids, Ghazvanids, etc

I'm from Georgia and for my people (even in folk memory, not just textbooks) names like Shah Tamasp, Shah Abbas and the Qizilbash are associated with terror and destruction. But this music is sweet, even many Georgians who fought for freedom and against Iranian domination appreciated this kind of music 🤩

Don't let politics separate us Love from iran to azeris brother 🇦🇿🇮🇷❤

It's funny you post this now, when I was thinking about how cool a Safavid piece would be. This is really, really cool. And it's a poem by the Shah himself? Incredibly cool.

Oh, oh my. This is going to go down as one of the really big ones in my book. Every upload is huge, but this one really, really hit.

Litterly me two days ago : man i wish farya would do a song about safavids farya : ( amazing work man , as always , you're truly a glory to iran❤️❤️ )

I thought we would get celtic music for a whole week straight but here we are, this ones gonna be good(like all of them)

Persian culture has to be my favorite ones so far; long live persia & bengal friendship from Bangladesh.

Incrível que além do seu DOM de cantar Farya Faraji tem uma bellíssima voz! Abraços da Terra Sancta de Vera Cruz (Brasil) - 🇧🇷

Just sharing. I'm a Malaysian. I always new I got some middle eastern blood in my veins. I assumed I had Yemeni Arab blood since most middle eastern descend in Malaysia came from Yemen. But I always fond of Iran and Central Asian culture. Not Arabs. So I did get serious about my middle eastern descend through my mother. My mom always said my great grandfather's grandfather wore pure red turbans. I cross checked with a friend of mine who active in Sufism of Malaysia. He said the only red turban sufis in Perak (state in Malaysia) are Qizilbalshi. Not to mentioned some my Middle Eastern and Pakistani friend said I look like Central Asian rather Southeast Asian. Turns out I had Turkic-Iranian blood. Plus coming from Qizilbalshi tribe which related to the Safavids making this track resonates more to me. The thing is my state, Perak have a lot of Iranian influence within the royal system and culture. Still thinking, why my state have connection with Iran .

Great music as always, the Safavids are super fascinating to me with the speed at which they were able to reconquer a subjugated Iran. I really don't know how you're able to pump out the sheer volume and quality of music that you do.

This deserves to be your most popular piece, been listening on repeat for a day now

Your channel is a treasure. Thank you very much for this.

Oh my god! This is what i wanted all along, though i am from Afghanistan i love shah Ismail Safavi so much. He is the greatest Persian shah of all time in my opinion. Mr farya thank you so much for making my wish a reality!

Farya you made my dream and my day come true thanks alot

Early modern Iran in general and the Safavid era in particular are topics I should definitely be reading up on more.

Amazing!!! You never disappoint brother!!

amazing work 👍

Thank you ❤❤❤❤❤

Bir Türk olarak çok hoşuma gitti, İrana selamlar.

Fully respect to Shah Ismail for making Iran our homeland and identity again✨️ surely he was one of the most intelligent Kings of all time♥️

Heya Farya, I posted a similar question on another of your videos some time ago, but I shall ask again just to be sure: What are your terms of use and to which capacity we can include your work in creative projects? Also fantastic work, as always.

Great masterpiece, I am listening to the history of Safavids raising

Has been requesting this for quite some time) Azerbaijani Sufi music at its best! Sir, you are the legend!!!

I am not great with our old literary language, but I will try to provide accurate translation of the part in Azerbaijani here. Some terms and definitions: Ğazi, Qazi - a zealous fighter, religuous warrior and a victor at that. Shah İsmayıl being very devote himself, and taking it as a source of great pride and tying his military honor to his branch of Islam, considered himself and his warrior elites Qazis. Tuti quş/bird - literally, a parrot. But in old Azerbaijani and Iranian poetry sometimes revered as a sweet-tongue, due to the bird's capabilities for human speech replication. Şah(Shah) - the King in İranian tradition, just in case anyone here didn't know already. Khatai - a famous alias of Shah Ismail, signifying "The one who committed the sin", adopted by himself, as throughout his reign and conquests among what he committed were several acts considered heinous. Allah-allah, deyin, ğazilər, (Oh, Allah-allah, say it, qazis,) Ğazilər, deyin, şah mənəm. (Qazis, say it, I am the shah.) Qarşu gəlin, səcdə qılın. (Come to the front, bow in front) Ğazilər, deyin, şah mənəm. (Qazis, say it, I am the shah.) Uçmaqda tuti quşuyam, (I am the tuti bird in flight,) Ağır ləşkər ər başıyam, (I am the man leader of a heavy/great army,) Mən sufilər yoldaşıyam, (I am the friend/ally of sufis,) Ğazilər, deyin, şah mənəm. (Qazis, say it, I am the shah.) Nerdə əkərsən, bitərəm, (Plant me wherever, and I shall spring up,) Xanda çağırsan yetərəm, (Call for me whenever, I shall reach there,) Sufilər əlin tutaram, (The sufis I shall take by their hands), Ğazilər, deyin, şah mənəm. (Qazis, say it, I am the shah.) Mənsur ilə darda idim, (With Mansur I have shared the pain,) Xəlil ilə narda idim, (With Khalil I have been in heat of fire,) Musa ilə Turda idim, (With Musa I have been at mount Tur,) Ğazilər, deyin, şah mənəm. (Qazis, say it, I am the shah.) Təhkiyə ile şahı tanun, (Know the shah from what is told,) Nevruz edin şaha yetün, (To the shah celebrate and aspire,) Hey ğazilər, səcdə qılın, (Hey qazis, bow in front,) Ğazilər, deyin, şah mənəm. (Qazis, say it, I am the shah.) Qırmızı taclı, boz atlı, (With my red crown and my grey horse,) Ağır ləşkər nisbətli, (Commensureable with a great army/force) Yusif peyğəmbər sifətli, (With my face alike that of prophet Joseph) Ğazilər, deyin, şah mənəm. (Qazis, say it, I am the shah.) Xətaiyəm, ağ atlıyam, (I am Khatai, with my white horse,) Sözü şəkərdən datlıyam, (With my tongue/words more sweet than sugar,) Murtəza Əli zatlıyam, (I am of kin of Ali the Chosen,) Ğazilər, deyin, şah mənəm. (Qazis, say it, I am the shah.) P.S. Thank you very much for the respect, recognition and great music as always, Farya!👍👏👏 P.P.S. Hörmətli bunu oxuyanlar Azərbaycan və Anadolu türk dillərini danışan yoldaşlarım. Mənim tərcüməmdə səhvlər tapsaz, ya da ümumi olaraq təklifləriniz olsa, xahiş edirəm, mütləq yazın. 🙌

Each song you play comes with a cultural and history lesson 🖤

Yashasin Shahimiz! Yashasin Shah Ismail Büyük Shexsiyyat ve Iftixar Iran-Zamim ve Bütün Turk ve Irani Milletin ❤️‍🔥 Ruhiniz Shad Olasuz o Dunyada ve Tabrizdan Farya Farajia Çox Salam Yetiram 💕💕

Bellissima canzone sono contento che tra le centinaia di canzoni che ai fatto una sia propio dei safavidi. un tuo fan italiano

It's cool! I hope you make a Kurdish epic music.

Dear Farya Faraji, thank you for all your music, symphonies connected to Iranian history. It fascinates me, how you are able to bring this music pieces to life that as an outsider living in 2024 can imagine the past, and the longing, the sadness, the glory, and more emotions of a Shah with his followers to consolidate a religion, and Empire. I love your music with history themes so much, l am listening every day to different periodic pieces, and get deep touched by them, and learn a lot too. You have a great gift to produce this music. Thank you, great respect from Judy, Melbourne, Australia.

The duduk has a special place in my heart! Beautifully textured piece, love it

Glory to Iran 🇹🇯🇮🇷

Long Live the great Shah, Shah Ismail. As an Iranian Azeri, I'd like to thank you for creating this masterpiece. LONG LIVE IRAN.

Absolutely Glorious Farya 🙏🇷🇴

God this is so beautiful

You're amazing! Since I've met you' you've always shocked me with your music dedication and quality you deliver! Respect from an Aromanian born and raised in Romania! Wish to hear help or something in the Aromanian language in the future. I'm willing to help for free. Respectfully Yours, Sebastian Florea, Co-Founder and Vice-President of Deadun, Aromanian organisation in Constanța, Romania.

shah Ismail the great king of Iran , Long live Iran the mother land , im turk and from east Azerbaijan and im proudly iranian

I enjoyed so much thanks Farya❤️❤️❤️

Shah Ismail has a very beautiful song in Turkic called "Muhabbet Bağında". I would be gratelful, if you do that

❤This song has such a beautiful and deep sound, being one of the strongest compositions I've ever heard on the channel. Congratulations to all the composers of this work of art.❤

Super belle collaboration entre plein d'artistes passionnés. Bien fier de toi et du coeur que tu mets dans ton travaille. Lâche pas :)

Wonderful masterpiece of this once great time

This is a beautiful piece, while it is modern take it can still teleport you to a period in a culture. Music is the universal language, we should learn what we can from these cultures before they are lost to history.

I got this reccomended under 30 seconds of release. So hurray!

There's something about the harmonic minor scale used here that touches the innermost parts of my soul. Could be genetic memory, something to do with my Spanish and Sephardic Jewish descent, both cultures having made extensive use of this scale considerably.

I've been waiting for a Safavid song for so long! Great work.

It's a pretty impressive work. Thanks.

منیم اتام شاه اسماعیل ❤ ممنون ازت فریا بابت این شاهکار

Anadolu Alevi Kızılbaşlarından Şah İsmail dedemize selamlar olsun can baş feda edip bu yoldan dönmedik ikrarımız daim ola!!

The shahanshah who revived Iran from ashes again like a Huma 👑🔥 He truly deserved a better fate 💔🖤

🇹🇷❤️🇮🇷 Our brother

my mom loves your music and also the description you wrote !