TEHRAN – Ahmad-Ali Sharafi, a veteran musician and neyanban virtuoso died in Bushehr, the southern Iranian city on Monday. He was 80. 

Sharafi, a prominent figure in the music industry of southern Iran, died due to illness, ISNA reported. 

He was born in Bushehr and had participated in many national and international festivals where he received numerous awards and recognition.

The Persian instrument of neyanban, which is most common in southern Iran, is a kind of bagpipe. 

This old instrument, which has been inscribed on the National Intangible Cultural Heritage list in 2015, is mostly played in the provinces of Bushehr, Khuzestan, Kerman and Hormozgan. 

SAB/