Maurice Béjart, Choreographer
"Master Elahi was an extraordinary musician. He never played in public, nor did he ever make any public recordings…. He played for me and it really opened up something within me. It is through music that I have understood…. He did not speak French and I did not speak Farsi. He played some music … and I cannot put into words what I experienced or felt … it was a great change in my life, my existence, and my thought."

Sir Yehudi Menuhin, Musician
"This marvelous musician was able to maintain a tension and concentration that I never imagined possible in the limited interval of a fourth or a fifth…. It seemed extraordinary to me that one’s musical interest could be maintained within the scope of such a narrow interval. Never had I heard anything like it; it is the greatest impression of this kind I have ever had. Never had I heard a musical piece that stayed within the interval of a fourth for at least half an hour! It was very sensitive, very intense music, but also very precise and pure. I almost couldn’t believe what I was hearing. It was a refined power, like some sort of laser…."

Taghi Tafazzoli, Scholar and Music Aficionado
"Ostad Elahi began to play … and in the semi-darkness of the room one could distinguish the heads of the participants moving as they were repeatedly chanting some words. These sounds and movements added to the fervor of the gathering and plunged everyone into a state of enthusiasm and joy. The sound of the tanbour became fuller and more passionate, producing an amazing rhythm that resonated throughout the entire room. In the semi-darkness, one could distinguish changing lines that rippled and rejoined. Some were raising their hands and swinging them in a rhythmic manner. It was no longer an agitation, but a raging sea. An incredible fervor had taken hold of us … but the state of Ostad himself was even more marvelous. In the twilight of the room, his face was marked with extraordinary splendor: he resembled a captain at the helm of a ship that was caught in a storm, looking to safely bring it back to the harbor. Then the music stopped. For a few moments, nobody could say a word and everything happened in silence. The atmosphere of the room was luminous and bathed in spirituality; it was strange and indescribable…. There was a sweet perfume lingering over the gathering."

Musa Marufi, Musician
"I met with a man of great spirituality who had achieved perfection in the art of tanbour. His music so overwhelmed me that I felt as though I no longer belonged to this world. Strangely enough, his music had intoxicated me such that for several days I would not pay any attention to my surroundings. When I finally recovered from this state, I asked myself: ‘How strange! If this is music, then what are the sounds that we usually hear?’"

Ruhollah Khaleqi, Composer, Former Head of the National Academy of Music
"At the Ministry of Justice in Tehran one of the judges, who may not want me to mention his name, plays the tanbour and its ancient melodies magnificently. These melodies have little in common with today’s music, and deserve a separate discussion altogether."