KUČA-BĀḠI (also referred to as ḡazal-ḵᵛāni), a vocal measure-free singing of poems in various meters without instrumental accompaniment, a kind of popular singing done in Tehran and Ray by amateur singers from a certain social stratum. The status of this kind of singing in the official musical culture of Iran is largely influenced by the social position of its performers, which is often associated with almost deep traditional tendencies, but with certain questionable characteristics in regards of customary social ethics; a class of individuals that now can be found in the southern part of present-day Tehran. Individuals of this particular part of the society, who are referred to by various terms such as dāš (gallant), dāš mašdi, gardan-koloft (roughneck), jāhel (lit. ignorant), etc., have often been exemplifications of the two antithetical qualities of chivalry and rascality. Depending on the activation of which quality, one would attract the respect of the community or its mistrust and repulsion.

Similar to the case of many other kinds of folk music, it is almost impossible to estimate the source and the age of kuča-bāḡi or, more correctly, ḡazal-ḵᵛāni, which is also known by other terms such as lāti, laši, bābā-šamali (Aḥmadi, p. 81), and ḵarābāti. It is, however, reasonable to be sure that this genre of Persian music has been prevalent at least from the final years of the Qajar period. In the past, in Tehran, occasionally a session would be arranged in a coffee house (qahwa-ḵāna) for a competition between the ḡazalḵᵛān of a city quarter and the one invited from another city quarter. The competition was carried out with special formality. The ḡazalḵᵛān, acting as the host, would lead the guest to his own seat on the platform, the foremost point of the area.  The manager, holding a battle-axe (tabarzin) with two hands, would place it down in front of the guest as the indication of his request that the guest start singing, which he would do after picking and kissing the battle-axe (Šahri, 1988, I, p. 402, II, p. 159, VI, pp. 467-68).

Ḡazal-ḵᵛāni is often performed in Segāh and occasionally in Dašti (q.v.) or other modes. While singing, the ḡazalḵᵛān raises the tone to upper tetrachords (e.g., to moḵālef in Segāh) and returns to the original at the end. Ḡazal-ḵᵛāni music, although it generally follows the system of Iranian classical music, is notable for its special simplicity, which is due to its lack of instrumental accompaniment, its limited melodic development, and avoidance of the complex melisma of classic mode of singing.

The content and the type of the poem are factors quite significant in the identification of ḡazal-ḵᵛāni. Contray to the literal meaning of the term, the poems used in ḡazal-ḵᵛāni were not limited to ḡazal. It can reasonably be said that stanzaic poems, particularly moḵammas, were the ones more often used (for a discussion about the popularity of moḵammas and other kinds of stanzaic poems in urban vocal folk music in Iranian culture, see Fatemi, 2005, pp. 329-30 or Fatemi 2014, p. 353). Points contained in these poems provide a wide spectrum of subject matters, including religious and mystic questions as well as advice, particularly points attributed to a prisoner regretting his past misdeeds and wasting property and respect in pursuit of transitory desires. The main poem, usually a ḡazal or moḵammas (rarely a maṯnawi) is preceded by one or two couplets and ends with one, often a robāʿi. The introductory two couplets may contain the expression besmellāh (q.v.) in at least one of the hemistiches, or the initial letter of the first word in each hemistich will be from the Arabic term salām (s, l, a, m) in the order used in the term. The conclusive couplet may contain the prophet’s name or the use of ṣalawāt (a phrase invoking divine blessing on the prophet) for urging the audience to repeat the ṣalawāt. This form is comparable to the pattern of ḡazal-ḵᵛāni in the tradition of reciting poetry (soḵanvari, sardam-ḵᵛāni), which is referred to by reciters (soḵanvar) as dastgāh (Maḥjub, p. 779). It can also be compared with humorous żarbi-ḵᵛāni done by festivity musicians (moṭreb) of Tehran, in which poems of four hemistiches are recounted prior to and at the end of reciting the main poem. These poems, however, are not used for the implication of expressions “besmellāh,” “salām,” and “ṣalawāt” (Fatemi, 2005, pp. 143-44 or Fatemi 2014, pp. 173-174). It is noteworthy that the ḡazalḵᵛān usually at the beginning or end of the poem, or at the end of hemistiches, uses additional expressions such as “ey dust,” “maḥbub-e man,” “maḥbub-e hame ʿāšeqān, ʿAli,” “ʿAli Jān,” and the like. Besides, as he is singing, one of the auditors may state “Utter ṣalawāt to reward the mouth of … (singer’s name)” in order to stimulate the reciter. Poems used are chosen from the works of celebrated poets such as Ḥāfeẓ, Saʿdi, Shaikh Bahāʾi, Šahriār, Parvin Eʿteṣāmi, as well as little-known poets like Ḥosayn Bābā Meškin, Šokuhi, Reżā Āgahi, Ṭoluʿi, etc.

Ḡazal-ḵᵛāni is performed on various occasions and in different places. At coffee houses, it is done particularly in the evening in Ramażān after breaking the fast (efṭār) and while playing tornā-bāzi (for a description of this game, see Hasandust). In such cases, if the loser of the game is known for his pleasant voice he would be asked to do the ḡazal-ḵᵛāni. In wagering situations concerning pigeon-flyers getting together for laying bets on their pigeons, those with pleasant voices do ḡazal-ḵᵛāni in turn.  Similar event also would take place in traditional gymnasiums (zur-ḵāna) by exercisers in the gymnasium-pit during the breaks between actions; in taverns and assemblies for using hemp (bang) and cannabis resin (ḥašiš); in religious ceremonies during Moḥarram, usually before or after reciting mourning songs (nawḥa-ḵᵛāni); and also in the assembly of friends as well as in private assembly.

The fact that ḡazal-ḵᵛāni is performed in sometimes contradictory situations in regard to social and ethical norms is the reflection of the contradictory character of its performers. In fact, one can draw the situations mentioned above (pigeon-fancying, coffee houses, religious circumstances, etc.) on a continuum of social-ethical values to define the place of each one in terms of their social acceptability. Moving from the right end of this continuum, which belongs to religious circumstances (e.g., ceremonies in Moḥarram, etc.) to the other end on the left, which includes taverns, and passing zur-ḵāna, which is located between the two extremes with tendency towards the right side (for zur-ḵāna and its double status, see Rochard, 2002), socio-ethical values diminish causing decline in the social acceptability. Meanwhile most of the ḡazalḵᵛāns belong to the class of dāšes, gardan-kolofts, athletes (pahlavān), or those claiming these titles, who form a layer of the society with double dispositions, as rogues (awbāš) or chivalrous ones (javānmard; see AYYĀR; Zarrinkub, p. 355; Cahen; Fatemi, 2002); a class of people whose members can be credited for organizing the mourning rites of Moḥarram (or participating in them) and, at the same time, be distinct in zur-ḵāna, frequent coffee houses, and be interested in pigeon-fancying. Thus the presence of this social class throughout the continuum explains the presence of ḡaza-ḵᵛāni and ḡazalḵᵛāns in this large spectrum of situations; a presence that is facilitated by the double character (religious/non religious) of gazal-ḵᵛāni’s poems.

Following is a selected number of past and contemporary famous ḡazalḵᵛāns: Ebrāhim Ḡazalḵᵛān, Esmāʿil Tanhā, Ḥosayn-ʿAli Čārvādār (Šahri, V, p. 622), Akbar Ḡazalḵᵛān, Ḡolām Ḡazalḵᵛān, Mortażā Ḡazalḵᵛān (Šahri, VI, p. 469), Reżā Bābāšamali, Aṣḡar-e Nana, Ḥosayn Kabābi (Aḥmadi, p. 82), Ḥasan Šahrestāni (popularly known as Ḥasan Ḵeštak), Reżā Kad-Ḵodāʾi, Reżā Ḵošnevis (popularly known as Reżā Ḵarmohra), Darviš ʿAbd-al-Ḥosayn, ʿAli Gāvi, Moḥammad Moʾaḏḏeni (popularly known as Moḥammad Ḵorusi), and ʿAbbās Qorbānipur (popularly known as ʿAbbās-e Dāyi Mad [Moḥammad] Āqā).

Later on, the term ḡazal-ḵᵛāni was replaced in official milieu by the term “Bayāt-e Tehran” (Badiʿzāda, pp. 224, 227; Aṃadi, p. 81) and a number of vocalists, on the radio (e.g., Badiʿzāda, ʿAbd-al-ʿAli Homāyun, Ḥosayn Ḵᵛāja-Amiri [Iraj]) as well as in cafés of southern part of Tehran (e.g., Qāsem Jebelli, Jawād Yasāri) started using it. However, the performances of these kinds, in official and semi-official milieus, are not, neither musically or socially, loyal to this musical tradition. Concentration on popular elements for attracting listeners has turned the mediatic performances an instrument for pleasing the new audience, who, with roots in traditional culture, tries to conform with the official culture propagated by the mass media.