Arabic Music
Part one
Arabic music is amongst one of the most difficult topics to discuss, primarily due to the large number of countries and musical styles which the term nominally covers. In this case, the classical label is helpful in a fairly specific way, as opposed to the rather more vague manner in which it is applied to other world listings. Classical Arabic music was defined by theorists during the classical age of the Arab Empire, and that definition continues to play a role today. While such a Pan-Arab intellectual style is not as strong today as it once was, the various modern regional styles have all arisen from similar roots.
Indeed, the idea of classical Arabic music was culled from a variety of regional traditions in the first place. It is modal and monophonic. The modal system is sometimes based on theoretical octave scales of 17, 19, or 24 notes, although the temperament is not generally equal, and the practice is essentially diatonic (the infra-chromaticism expressed in “neutral thirds”.) The favorite modes (maqamat) come from throughout the greater Arab world. Classical Arabic theory and practice can be seen as a great synthesis of both the earlier classical traditions as well as regional melodic forms. Those constituent melodies were united in a theoretical way, such that they could be combined fluidly in performance.
The most serious musical expression has historically been solo instrumental improvisation (taqsim,) although there are related vocal forms (layali.) Musicians modulate frequently, and indeed a performance which remained in a single mode would not be considered fully artistic in nature. Much of the art is in the way a performer will select and prepare his modulations, especially in terms of following a tangential train of thought and back again. There are a wide variety of instruments, although plucked strings are the most visible (including the Aud, ancestor of the European lute.)
Whereas improvisation was exalted in the classical period, and remains an important part of modern musicianship, classical and modern poetry set to song is an important part of the Arab tradition. This style typically involves suites of songs, connected by improvisation, both vocal and instrumental.
Egypt produced some of the primary classical music treatises, and continues to have a strong music tradition. Egypt is arguably the leading country for classical vocal art, as interpreted by ensembles of this type. Music has been a part of Egyptian culture probably since its beginning. Tomb and temple paintings show a variety of musical instruments in both sacred and secular environments, and many of the dead were buried with instruments. This leads to the thought that music formed an integral part of not only Egyptian rituals, but also daily life and recreation. Sadly, no written pieces of music have survived, and no system of notation is known to have been developed by the ancient Egyptians. It would seem that music in ancient Egypt was, like so many of the arts at that time, passed down from one person to another in a form of “oral” tradition.
Instruments known to have existed in ancient Egypt are very similar to those that have been created by nearly all civilizations. Lyres, harps, flutes, horns (not “true” horns as we know them, but instruments similar to the didgeridoo of the Australian Aborigines, the dragon-horn of Tibet, and the shofar of the Hebrew people,) and of course, drums, cymbals, and other percussion. As the ages passed, new instruments were added as they were developed or introduced from other cultures. Given Egypt’s importance in the ancient world, one can easily assume that at one time or another, every kind of instrument ever created has been played within its borders.
Arabic music, insofar as can be inferred reliably, traces its ancestry in part to the music of the 3rd century Persians and early Byzantine Empire (AD 4th-6th century.) These traditions in turn can trace themselves back in part to the works of the Greeks, themselves great lovers of poetry and song. But both are traced to the ancient Semitic traditions which may have had their origins in the music of the ancient Egyptians. The 10th Century music theorist Al-Farabi translated the major works of ancient Greek music into Arabic: Aristotle’s Problems; Themistiu’s commentaries on The Problems; Ptolemy’s Harmonics and The Elements of Music by Euclid to name a few.
Arabic music, like most other forms of African tradition, is based largely on variation and improvisation of and upon a central theme. This makes it very similar in structure to Jazz, which also has deep roots in African music. Central to the musical piece is a complex skeletal rhythm comprised of strong downbeats (dom,) rests and upbeats (tak.) This base structure, the maqamat (modes,) can be played on a variety of instruments, though the drum and the guitar are the most common. On the framework, the performers build a sequence of unharmonized melodies, varying the original rhythm and improvising new ones.
An intriguing side-effect of improvisational music forms is the use of notes actually present in the formal scale used by the artist. Arabic music makes extensive use of what are called microtones, or half-flats and half-sharps, resulting in music that has more notes than many other styles.
However, the evolution of Arabic music was not one-way. Being one of the oldest musical traditions in the world still existing, it naturally has had its influence on other forms. Spanish music shows a strong ancestry of Arabic music due to the conquest of Spain by the Islamic empires, as does the “Mediterranean” music of Greece and Italy. The effects of Arabic music can even be felt as far as the United States as traditional maqamat (modes) surface in nightclub techno music and the Tejano music of the Southwest.
What is Classical Middle Eastern Music Like?
- Tones: The Arabic scale is very different from the Western scale. On Western piano, for example, there are 8 “white keys” and 5 “black keys.” This octave (from middle C to high C, for example) then has 13 notes. In Arabic classical music, the music can be played with 17 notes, 19 notes, or 24 notes in an octave! Therefore, the human voice and stringed instruments can more easily achieve those notes that are “half way between” the notes on the piano’s octave. These are called “quarter tones.”
- No harmony: Classical Arabic music does not use harmony. The music is sung or played in a solo, or by a single musician. Sometimes there is a group of musicians who repeat what the soloist sang or played, but without harmony. Part of the reason why no harmony exists is because the soloist often improvises or makes changes in the music each time he/she plays or sings it.
- Rhythm: Middle Eastern rhythms are very exciting and complicated. Rhythm is usually played by tapping the center or the edge of the drum or tambourine. The center gives a deep sound, the edge gives a higher sound. Sounds can be hit harder to make an accent. Because the rhythm is so complicated, with at least 32 different beat styles, musicians have to memorize them. Rhythm can add to the emotional tone of the song: sad, energetic, or romantic.
Compiled by Mohamed Sadek
Music and Percussion Director