Abolhasan Saba

Abol Hasan Sabā (April 15, 1902 – December 19, 1957) (Persian: ابوالحسن صبا‎) was a renowned Iranian composer, violinist, and setar player.

He was born in Tehran to Abul Qasim Khan Kamal ol-Saltaneh, son of Mohammad Jafar Khan Sadr ol-Hekma, son of Mahmud Khan Kashi Malak ol-Shoara Sadr ol-Shoara Saba ol-Shoara, son of Mohammad Hossain Khan Malak ol-Shoara. He studied several of Iranian and non Iranian musical instruments and became an Ostad in Radif, but selected violin and setar as his specific instruments. He was a student of Mirza Abdollah as well as Darvish Khan.

Saba is considered one of Iran's most influential figures in traditional and instrumental Persian music. His first recording for radio was in 1927 when he played violin accompanying Iran's famous singer Ruhangis.

Amongst his many students who went on to become great masters of Persian traditional music were Faramarz Payvar, Manoochehr Sadeghi, Habibollah Badiei, Rahmatollah Badiyi, Abbas Emadi, Ali Tajvidi, Mahmoud Tajbakhsh, Sassan Sepanta, Saeid Gharachorloo, Parviz Yahaghi, Dariush Safvat, Gholam-Hossein Banan and Hossein Tehrani.

He died in 1957 and was buried in Tehran's Zahir o-dowleh Cemetery of artists and musicians.

Upon Saba's will in 1974, after his death, the faculty of Fine Arts of the University of Tehran turned his private house into a museum.