MOKHTARI, MOSTAFA,

Mostafa Mokhtari was born in Esfahan in Iran in 1988, He began playing tonbak
at 2002. He completed his studies of music with renowned masters Morteza
Ghasemi and Majid Hesabi.
The tonbak is a single-headed goblet drum about 43 cm in height with a 28 cm
diameter head. Its shell is carved from a single block of (sometimes highly figured,
knotted or marbled) wood, often with a carved design or geometric pattern (such as
furrows, flutes, diamonds and/or spirals—it is often a costly, heirloom-type or
vintage musical instrument). At the bottom the shell is somewhat thicker than at
the top for strength. The shell’s wall thickness is approximately 2 cm. The throat is
nearly cylindrical and connects the top (body) cavity to the hollow base.