Persian Percussion Workshop with Darioush Madani: Daf and Tombak
Darioush Madani led a hands-on workshop on Persian daf and tombak technique at our home concert space in Faenza, covering the rhythms and timbres of Sufi ceremonial music.
We opened 2023 not with a concert but with a workshop. On January 22, Darioush Madani — tar and setar player and a regular collaborator of ours — led a full day of Persian percussion built around two instruments: the daf and the tombak.
The morning session, from 10:00 to 13:00, worked through the daf: how to hold and set up the instrument, the distinct techniques of the right and left hand, the basic rhythms, and the characteristic timbres used in Sufi mystic ceremonies. After a break, the afternoon session, 14:00 to 17:00, moved to the tombak, the goblet drum at the core of Persian classical music.
Eight people came in person, with dozens more following along online. It was the kind of practical, skills-first session we like to run between concerts — building a community of players, not just an audience.