introduction to arabic music history and theory v3

8/10/2019 Introduction to Arabic Music History and Theory v3

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Introduction to Arabic Music History and Theory

By, Lord Robert Downey of Forfar

[email protected]

Disclaier! I a a student of this art. The inforation contained here reflects y

understandin" at this #oint in y learnin". Beware those that tell you $This is the RI%HTway&, for they ha'e not studied enou"h to understand their i"norance. (ne of the thin"s

that draw e to this art is its co#le)ity and de#th. It is as co#le) and dee# as the

huan soul it e)#resses. I will always be a student. I reser'e the ri"ht to be corrected. Ifyou ha'e soethin" that increases y understandin", or corrects an incorrect conclusion,

I be" of you to share with e*. After class. +sile

Introduction! in this class, we will briefly discuss the history of Arabic usic durin" the-A #eriod, and will then discuss the basic #rinci#les of the resultant usic theory this

history de'elo#ed. Much of the theory +if not all is a##licable to both historical and

conte#orary Ma/a based usic, and should ho#efully ser'e as a startin" #oint for

these studies.

-ection 0! History

How uch historical usical detail do we 1now about this usic2 The answer is, A L(T,

and not enou"h. 3e ha'e a "reat le'el of detail on the theory, artistry, #erforance styles,#olitical intri"ue, teachin"s, feuds, and li'es of the faous usicians of the early days.

3hat we D(45T ha'e are usical $scores& #er se. This, fran1ly, is a #roduct of the 1ind

of usic u#on which we are s#ea1in". There is a for of #eriod notation +which I ha'e

no idea how to read yet but in other docuentation, there is e'idence that a syste ofnotation was used that allowed trained usicians to re#licate elodies and structures

fro letters sent by fellow usicians. It is 'ery i#ortant, howe'er, to understand thisusic is based u#on a syste of i#ro'isation, not rote #erforance. In this section, wewill atte#t to "i'e an o'er'iew of the historical $hi"h#oints& to "i'e you soe structure

for further study.

I. The days of Idolatry. Fro 1nown history, to 678 AD

a. In #eriod literature, the tie before the eer"ence of Isla is 1nown as

the tie of 9ahiliya. There sees to be se'eral transliterations of this

word, but it translates rou"hly as $wrath, #ride, i#udence, andfanaticis&. The social structure of #re:islaic Arab counities was

anchored in the ideas of ;tribal union5. Music of this tie #eriod has been

classified by odern historians as $the


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rece#ti'e to the ore direct ad'ances of her custoers.& These woen

were hi"hly res#ected ebers of the counity. In soe ways I see

the as reiniscent of the oriental %eisha. +this i"ht be a s1ewed 'iew,howe'er. More study is re/uired There were two doinant usical

fors=

i. The sin"in" of the Bedouin noads. In the historical te)ts, they arereferred to in ters of si#licity and cultural 4ai'ety. There were

two %enres of this for. They were=

0. The Huda! The nae for the rousin" son"s of the caeldri'ers. Its rhyth reiniscent of the cael5s ste#s.

8. The 4asb! The "eneral nae "i'en to the son"s intoned by

youn" Bedouins ridin" throu"h the desert, and to the dir"es

sun" by the woen.ii. The son"s of the ewelry. There are any references tofra"rances and #erfues surroundin" the. -oe


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fruition >ust yet. 3ith di'ersification of usic also cae a new "rou# of

#erforers to the usical landsca#e. These were 1nown as the

Mu1hannathun. +#lural of Mu1hannathi. The Mu1hannathun were ale sin"ers that eulated the beha'ior

and dress of woen. There are soe references to hoose)ual

tendencies in the historical te)ts, but it a##ears that was notnecessarily uni'ersal. They were "enerally con'erts to Isla, and

not necessarily of Arabic descent. In fact, ost of the docuented

$"reat& ale and feale sin"ers were ersians, thio#ians, orBlac1 Africans. A "reat eltin" #ot of ideas and usical artistry

be"an stirrin". A new usical tradition was thereby created, and

because of its ori"inality, it flourished in the court of the ali#h,

+soeties ri"ht under his nose as uch as the houses of ros ofthe


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1nowled"e. Much of it fueled by the ideas of the ancient %ree1s and

Roans.

i. In the ninth century, Abbasid ali#h al:Ma5u created the Baytal:Hi1ah, or House of wisdo. This concentrated effort to

translate ancient te)ts created a assi'e flourishin" of culture, and

ideas. Music would ne'er be the saeii. Many treatises on usic and theory were #roduced by these early

scholars, -oe of these ideas tried to /uantify the older usical

theoretical systes, soe #ro#osed new constructs. But there aretwo en who defined, and #reser'ed all the usicality, and theory

for the centuries to coe. These were the definin" years in the

creation of what we ha'e coe to 1now as a/a usic theory.

b. There are two definiti'e root sources we ha'e for all the inforation we1now, fro the ties before the


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#re'ious wor1s on the sub>ect. ut si#ly, He was a #arty

anial, and wallowed in the life and #leasures of the usic

world of the tie, and of all the #leasures bein" a fa'oriteof the ali#h offered hi.

a. This boo1 is the ost co#lete co#ilation of

son"s, usic #ractices, #oetry, and artist naes tothis #oint in history. It contains a 'ast aount of

inforation fro #re'ious sources, stretchin" bac1

to the days of Idolatry, alost all of which would belost to us now, if we didn5t ha'e this boo1.

b. It was #urchased for 0GGG "old #ieces by the -haw

of al:Andalusia, and too1 al:Isbahani G years to

co#lete.c. This boo1 is loo1ed u#on as the sin"le "reatest

re#ository of early usical and #oetic #ractices.

d. There are 8 #artial sur'i'in" co#ies, and one whole

co#y still e)istin".I. Al Andalus!

a. The Arabic ali#hat of al Andalus #ro'ed to be the "reatest e)#ression of,and last bastion of usical de'elo#ent. The last $"reat& Arabic usic

theorist was a an by the nae of aryab +died around G AD he was a

freed sla'e fro Ba"hdad, and li'ed and wor1ed in ordoba. He iscredited with addin" strin"s and e)#ression to the ?d +we5ll tal1 about that

later and co#ilin" a re#ertoire of twenty:four 4awbat. +rou"hly, a

classical concert with s#ecific e)#ressions, #ro"ressions, and focus

b. Al Andalus, in any ways, was an early conduit of Arabic influence andunderstandin" to the west. Many western scholars were trained in its

schools, and here is where any ori"inal Latin translations of

atheatics, usic, and #hiloso#hy fro %ree1 te)ts were created, aswell as Latin translations of Arabic te)ts on usic, atheatics,

edicine, etc.

c. There was uch usical transference of conce#ts, instruents, and idease'en before the crusades due to Al Andalus. The $troubadour& conce#t and

art was directly influenced by this sharin" of ideas. Many western

instruents were either co#ied, or influenced by older Arabic instruents.

+ore on that later +free tidbit! any -A western usic scholar will tellyou where they "ot the ori"inal uro#ean -olfe""io. 3hat they don5t tell

you is the conce#t was "i'en to %uido dNAreo by his studies of Arabic

te)ts. Here5s an interestin" thin". The naes of the Arabic notes, 'ersustheir %uidonian counter#arts are below. Do you see a siilarity2

%uidonian! Mi. Fa. -ol. La -i. DoOut Re

Arabic! Mi,Fa, -ad, La, -in, Dal Rad. There is 'alue in studyin" $odern& Arabic usic and trans#osin" those

ideas on the #ast. There is also dan"er. It is i#ortant to understand the

theory and tonal systes are fairly consistent fro GG AD to the 0K8G5s.


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ast that, one ust be careful to identify and understand the #er'asi'e

western influence on this usic.

-ection conclusion! 3e ha'e >ust s1ied o'er 7GGG years of usical history with 'ery

little detail. There is an aain" aount of inforation that can be studied andcorrelated. To this day, there has not been a "ood aount of study on the influence of

Arabic usic theory, and instruents on the western culture. onte#orary scholars such

as Dr. Henry %eor"e Farer ha'e hinted at it, but sadly died before he could fully studyand #ublish on the idea. There is so uch richness to studyin" this history. 3e 1now of

usical feuds that lasted "enerations, oisonin" of court usicians because they had new

ideas, Beheadin"s, and >ealousy, Brilliance and artistic ecstasy. There is so uch to study

it is soeties hard to fi"ure out where to start. Ho#efully this section has whetted youra##etite. As we o'e forward, >ust reeber when we study usic theory, there are

any huan stories behind why and how this usic is and was constructed.

-ection 8! Instruents

Throu"h the chan"es of history, we see a hoo"eniation of theory, #ractice, andinstruents throu"h the Middle east, 4orth Africa, soe of eastern uro#e, Tur1ey,

ersia, etc. This siilarity of theory created a faily of instruents that can be found in

any utations o'er these different areas. Cou will soon find there are differences ofinstruents and theory e'en fro one #ro'ince to the ne)t, but soe thin"s are constant.

A "ood e)a#le would be a "uitar. A bass "uitar and a 08 strin" acoustic are still both

"uitars, but there are differences. )tra#olate that o'er 7GGG years and ore cultures than

can be counted here, and you will find a L(T of different naes for the sae thin", aswell as a L(T of re"ional 'ariances. It is i#ortant to understand, o'in" forward that

there is no $RI%HT& way, or thin". As you will soon see, e'en the naes are not the

sae for the sae instruent. In Arabic usic, there is ne'er (4 TR? 3AC. There isco#le)ity, fle)ibility, and o##ortunity. 3e will be"in by loo1in" at ty#es of instruents

that are relati'ely $uni'ersal&

A. The 'oice

a. As we ha'e seen in our #re'ious studies, the 'oice was the first

instruent of the


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ii. 4ey! nd blown reed flute. A de'il to "et any noise out of, but

'ery e)#ressi'e and ca#ti'atin". Fin"erin"s, and holes 'ary

de#endin" on the a/a bein" #layed.

iii. Mi>wi! a 1ind of double barreled clarinet

c. -trin"s

i. ?d! The $1in" of instruents&, it is the ori"inator of the #re:

ytha"orean influenced usical theory, and is considered the"randfather of the lute. It has "one throu"h any utations

throu"h history, but its basic for was co#leted by the afore

entioned alal. A"ain, an ancient for of instruent.

ii. anoun! -iilar to a haered dulcier, only it isn5t$haered& but #luc1ed. It has o'eable brid"es to ad>ust to

the Ma/a that is bein" #layed.

iii. -a +buu1, Ba"laa, etc! The Tur1ish reference instruent. It

ser'es the sae #ur#ose as the ?d does for usic theory.A"ain, an ancient instruent of the ste##es. Lots of 'ariations.

d. Bowed instruents!i. Rababa! The earliest 1nown bowed instruent and the #arent

of the edie'al uro#ean rebec, it was first entioned in the

0Gth century. In #eriod the word Rababa was used for anybowed instruent. It has a ebrane belly ade of anial

s1in or wood and one, two or three strin"s. There is norally

no fin"erboard, the strin"s bein" sto##ed by the #layerNs

fin"ers.e. ercussion

i. Frae dru! There are L(T- of 'ariations on this. There are

e'en ore naes for the. The tar, Duff, Daff, tc. ?suallyround +althou"h there are e)ce#tions this is the #riary

e)#ressi'e dru for any cultures.

ii. Ri/! strictly s#ea1in", a frae dru, with the addition of fi'esets of cybals ibedded on the ed"e. It sees to be a fairly

uni'ersal sta#le. There are any reli"ious connotations to this

dru.

iii. %oblet dru! Dube1, doube1, Tonba1, etc. L(T- ofdifferent drus in this class, and the local #layin" styles 'ary.

For instance, the "y#tian style of #lay is 'ery different fro

the ersian style, althou"h the "eneral sha#e of the instruentis in the sae class

i'. Da'ul! or Tu#an, de#endin" on where you are. Double sided

bass dru used for any thin"s. %enerally used for 1ee#in"solid beats, and leadin". ?sed e)tensi'ely ilitarily.

A"ain, there are any 'ariations on these basic "rou#s. And any ore instruents. -o

any, it soeties bo""les the ind. For instance, strictly s#ea1in", there are alost as


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any neys as there are Ma/as to #lay on theP Local, re"ional, and cultural 'ariations

abound, as well as a'ailable aterials. ertainly there are archety#al instruent "rou#s,

but don5t ista1e the instruent #ictured on the internet as $TH& instruent.

-ection 7! Ma/a usic Theory

Ma/a is the foundation of e)#ression for Arabic usic theory, but It is not confined to

the Arabian #eninsula by a L(4% shot. Ma/a usic can be found fro the Atlasountains and #arts of the -ahara in Africa, to the Arabian "ulf, astern uro#e, and

%reece. It has been referred to as $ore than a scale and less than a son"& 3e will s1i

throu"h a lot of fundaental conce#ts that should foent /uestions in your ind. In

soe ways, if you ha'e western usic theory trainin", you i"ht find it ore difficult to"ras# certain thin"s. I5 "oin" to throw a lot of thin"s at ya, and I don5t e)#ect you to

understand it all at once. I 4(3 I don5t understand it all, es#ecially soe of the

interrelationshi#s of conce#ts. Let us be"inP

A. Re"ional ariances! -ince the 0K8G5s there has been a #ush for standardiation of

Ma/a, and s#ecific #itches. +ore on that later There is a direct correlationwith this #ush, and the be"innin" of western usic influence. To understand

soe theory, we need to understand the conte)t. The first and foreost of these is

re"ional 'ariance. For instance, Ma/a Hi>a in "y#t is not the sae as in Ira/.Here is a /uote fro Dr %eor"e -awa! $It is i#ortant to note that in e'ery

country I ention, there are si"nificant re"ional 'ariants in the a1a syste.

There is 4(T one a1a systeP It is ore accurate to say that a1a

re#resents a way of concei'in" of tunin" and ode that creates a fraewor1 tounderstand a lot of different fol1 and classical traditions, #articularly in countries

that ha'e been ruled under Isla or were #art of the (ttoan #ire.& Cou will

notice Dr. -awa e'en -LL- Ma/a differently. 3elcoe to the co#le) ande)citin" world of Ma/a usicPP More on this later, but at this #oint understand

there is 4( -?H THI4% as a set scale.

B. I#ro'isational based usic! By definition, Ma/a theory is a syste ofi#ro'isation. To /uote -cholar Habib Hassan Toua= $The a/a

#henoenon, in which the #erforance of a sin"le:'oiced elody line is a lar"ely

i#ro'ised conce#tualiation of a #articular odal structure. The fundaental

characteristic of the a/a #henoenon is that the tonal:s#atial co#onent has abindin" and #re'iously fi)ed or"aniation. 3hereas the rhythic:te#oral

co#onent is essentially free. entral to the a/a #henoenon is the tonal:

s#atial odel, which 'aries fro one a/a to another and can always bereduced to a nucleus of uni/ue inter'als. This nucleus deterines the elodic line

and hel#s create the characteristic eotional ood for the #articular a/a.&

3HAT2Pa. 3hat he eans is, Ma/as are en"ines of eotion. The inter'als between

the notes are s#ecifically desi"ned to foent a s#ecific eotion. They are

a fraewor1 to i#ro'ise u#on. This is one of the reasons I belie'e we do

not see uch #eriod $notation&. The focus was on ta1in" a a/a, and


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e)#ressin" it to its utost eotional and e)#ressi'e #otential at the tie of

the #erforance, not necessarily to du#licate a s#ecific elody line. 3hen

a "reat Ma/a usician #lays a #iece, it will ne'er be the sae twice. Ifyou as1 the why2 They will tell you $because that is what I felt then, and

this is what I feel now.&

. How any Ma/as are there2 If you factor in the re"ional 'ariances, and all the1nown historical odels, there are o'er KGG different a/asP But don5t worry=

there really are only 7G or G fundaental Ma/as that are used. -oeties,

there are a/as for s#ecific dances, or elodies. -oe of the Ma/as arenaed after #eo#le. It can be diyin", but u#on further ins#ection, a ethod of

cate"oriin" and understandin" the becoes a##arent. This ethod has to do

with the conce#ts of $A>nas& +#lural for the word 9ins. These are sall buildin"

bloc1s of trichords, tetrachords and #entachords which a1e u# a/as. 3ewon5t "o too far down that road ri"ht now, but I did want to introduce the words

to you. It5l "i'e you soethin" to study. +win1 BT3P If you see the word $chord5

and a li"htbulb "oes off, thin1in" this i"ht be soethin" li1e western chords, "o

ahead and turn the li"ht bac1 off. They aren5t the sae conce#t at all. +ore onthat later

D. Haronic Differences! Arabic usic does not use harony, as we see it. Althou"hthere is e'idence of its theoretical use in the Music schools of al:Andalus, and it5s

transference to the west in the tenth century. +Free tidbit! The eastern nae for

harony is $Tad5If&. It was an outcro##in" of the %ree1 conce#t of$a"randiin"& or $or"aniin"&. Truthfully, harony as we see it, would not

wor1 well at all in Arabic usic because of the inter'allic and #itch systes that

are e#loyed +ore on that later

a. Arabic usic 'alues increasin"ly co#le) elodic se/uences as o##osedto harony, althou"h there is a "reat aount of use of $drone& tones, and

harony does cro# u# as a by#roduct of co#le) elodies.

b. Cou will 4R find H(RD- +as we define the in western usictheory in Arabic usic.

. Inter'allic relationshi#s! As scales are constructed by notes with s#ecific

inter'allic relationshi#s and distances in 3estern usic theory, to soe e)tent,Ma/as are built this way as well, but the rules are different. Firstly, there is a

L(T ore notes #er $octa'e& than in western scales. Most scholars refer to these

as icrotones. In the #ost western:influenced Arabic scale, there are 8 chroatic

notes #er $octa'e&. It is i#ortant to note that an (cta'e is not necessarily anocta'e, as western usic defines it. This is based on fundaental differences in

the #itch syste used.

a. Ma/a inter'als are 4(T B?ILT on e'en:te#ered tunin", unli1e thechroatic scale used in western usic theory. This fact has wides#read

and fascinatin" results. Instead of an artificial atheatically e/ual

inter'allic schee, the thnotes are tuned based on the 7rdharonic. Thereainin" notes entirely de#end on the a/a. Most of the tunin"s are

#robably historically based on the ?d. A side effect of this is that the sae

note +by nae ay ha'e a sli"htly different #itch de#endin" on which

a/a it is #layed in. These inter'als also shift based on re"ional


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differences, which notes follow and #recede, etc. in fact, the sae note

i"ht not be #layed with the sae #itch in the sae son"P +free tidbit!

This is i#ortantPPPP 'en:te#ered tunin" is a by#roduct of 0 thcenturywestern usical theoreticians tryin" to find a 'iable way to construct the

assi'e orchestras we en>oy today. In other words, e'en if you are #layin"

a #eriod western #iece fro #eriod sheet usic, the tunin" of the notes onyour recorder are 4(T TH -AM. Therefore, the usic is not the sae.

9ust wanted to throw that one out. +win1

b. itch %ra'itation! #itch is de#endent on the notes surroundin" the notethat is bein" #layed. De#endin" on the conte)t, the #itch could shift. This

is called the $law of #itch "ra'itation&.

F. itch Differences! The #itch standard is relati'e to en'ironental odifiers. In

other words, there is no such thin" as aQG. This eans the #itch of the tonic +orost i#ortant note in the a/a is usually set by the ran"e of the huan 'oice

of the sin"er +if there is 'ocal acco#anient or other en'ironental 'ariables.

+the ood at the tie, the /uality of instruent, etc How do you tune a lar"e

nuber of instruents so they can #lay to"ether li1e thisPPP22 3ell, the answer is,you can5t. Arabic usic culture focuses on sall ensebles, or sin"le #layers that

can tune to the #itch they wish at the tie. This was one of the reasons for the#ush to $standardie5 the Ma/a syste after the 0K8G5s, so lar"e orchestras

could be constructed. Much of the current Arabic dance usic coes fro this

$fusion&. ?nfortunately, without the co#le)ity and /uir1iness of the tunin"s, the#itch de'iations, icrotones, co#le) elody, lac1 of harony etc, uch of the

a"ic of this usic is lost. It5s u# to us, as #reser'ers of history, to understand,

and hel# #reser'e the artistry of the #ast.

%. Rhythic differences! As you ost li1ely 1now, Arabic and M.. rhyths are notsyetric, uch of the tie. The lists and lists of rhythic cycles a'ailable on

the internet are fascinatin", and a co#le) study in and of thesel'es. There is a

conce#t in Ma/a usic theory called the I/a. It ser'es the sae function torhyth as the conce#t of a/a ser'es to elody. I currently do not understand

how this wor1s. 3e can study the #atterns, re#licate the, and use the with

elody or by itself, but the theory behind their construction is wra##ed u# in thisword $I/a&. I ha'e soe half understandin"s, but this is a "reat area for further

study.

In closin", I ha'e atte#ted to flit u#on each conce#t with the li"htness of a bee, "i'in"

you a taste of the honey to be had fro each flower. There is so uch to study, and eachof these conce#ts and historical facts are entwined with thesel'es, the socio:#olitical

history of the re"ion, and of western culture, for that atter, and the way we

counicate #assion and eotion throu"h usic. There is so uch to study and ar'elat, I ho#e this has #ro'ided you with a #lace to start your own studies. If you find

soethin" out thou"h, #roise e you will show ePPP

'er hubly your ser'ant

Lord Robert Downey of Forfar

House Fallenstar

Barony of Illiton, Middle 1in"do


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%ood sources to be"in studyin"!

$Music #erforance #ractice in the arly Abbasid era&

By! Dr. %eor"e Diitri -awa

ublished! ontifical institute of ediae'al studies

$Music in 4ineteenth:century "y#t! An historical s1etch&

By! Dr Ali 9ihad Racyublished! ?ni'ersity of hica"o ress

$Music of the Arabs&

By! Habib H. Touaublished! Aadeus ress

$Arabian influence on Musical Theory&

By! Henry %eor"e Farer, M.A.ublished! 9ournal of the Royal Asiatic society, 0K8

$Music in the 3orld if Isla= A socio:cultural study&

By! Anon -hiloah

ublished! 3ayne state uni'ersity #ress, 0KK

3eb sites!

www.a/aworld.co +an aain" site

htt#!OOwww.faradweb.coOi:articles.ht +A few "reat articles on the atheatics of

odern a/a theory

htt#!OOwww.a/a.coO"es:iddle:east.shtl4eed sheet usic to start your >ourney2

htt#!OOwww.touchtheearth.co 4eed a "ood instruent2 -he/ue infuses each one of his

instruents with a s#ecial blessin".. Friendshi#. +yeah, it5s a shaeless #lu" for a friend.

+sile
http://www.maqamworld.com/http://www.maqamworld.com/http://www.farzadweb.com/i-articles.htmhttp://www.maqam.com/gems-middle-east.shtmlhttp://www.touchtheearth.com/http://www.maqamworld.com/http://www.farzadweb.com/i-articles.htmhttp://www.maqam.com/gems-middle-east.shtmlhttp://www.touchtheearth.com/

introduction to arabic music history and theory v3

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