Arabic Classical Music
When you first hear the phrase “Arabic music”, some of the
things which first come to mind are perhaps belly dancing or snake charming. In
reality, though, Arabic music is much, much more than that.
Arabic music is an extremely broad genre encompassing musical forms and styles from a vast geographical area over the span of many centuries. As a result, there is enormous diversity in the sort of music which is included in the genre of Arabic music. There are, however, a number of key characteristics which are common to the classical Arabic musical tradition as a whole and make it broadly distinct from other musical cultures.
Most significant among these is the Arabic maqam, a system of modes which nearly all Arabic art music is based upon. Each maqam serves as the basis for a piece, indicating the pitches which are to be played as well as the primary notes which are used to construct the melody. Maqams are based upon the Arabic octave, which is divided into 24 sub-divisions, twice as many as the Western octave, which has 12 sub-divisions. As a result of this, Arabic composers are able to create uniquely chromatic melodies through the use of half-flats and half-sharps (Hines).
The genre of Arabic music consists of a broad variety of forms from different time periods and regions. In particular, the piece that I chose, Samaii Muheiar, is an example of the Samaii form of Arabic composition, which is believed to have been adopted from the Ottoman Empire. It typically consists of 4 movements, the first three of which are played in 10/8 time and the final one of which is usually played in a different time such as 9/8, as in this case (Arabic Musical Forms).
Rhythmically, Arabic (and Ottoman) music generally possesses an underpinning rhythmic cycle called an usul, which is played in the drums. However, usul can be very long and complex, sometimes even several dozen measures long, meaning that a strong pulse may not be established within shorter phrases (Turkish).
As far as instrumentation, common Arabic instruments can include various stringed lyres, for example the oud, harp-like zithers such as the qanun, as well as various forms of percussion instruments such as tambourines and drums. Reed flutes such as the Ney are also common (Turkish).
Arabic music is an extremely broad genre encompassing musical forms and styles from a vast geographical area over the span of many centuries. As a result, there is enormous diversity in the sort of music which is included in the genre of Arabic music. There are, however, a number of key characteristics which are common to the classical Arabic musical tradition as a whole and make it broadly distinct from other musical cultures.
Most significant among these is the Arabic maqam, a system of modes which nearly all Arabic art music is based upon. Each maqam serves as the basis for a piece, indicating the pitches which are to be played as well as the primary notes which are used to construct the melody. Maqams are based upon the Arabic octave, which is divided into 24 sub-divisions, twice as many as the Western octave, which has 12 sub-divisions. As a result of this, Arabic composers are able to create uniquely chromatic melodies through the use of half-flats and half-sharps (Hines).
The genre of Arabic music consists of a broad variety of forms from different time periods and regions. In particular, the piece that I chose, Samaii Muheiar, is an example of the Samaii form of Arabic composition, which is believed to have been adopted from the Ottoman Empire. It typically consists of 4 movements, the first three of which are played in 10/8 time and the final one of which is usually played in a different time such as 9/8, as in this case (Arabic Musical Forms).
Rhythmically, Arabic (and Ottoman) music generally possesses an underpinning rhythmic cycle called an usul, which is played in the drums. However, usul can be very long and complex, sometimes even several dozen measures long, meaning that a strong pulse may not be established within shorter phrases (Turkish).
As far as instrumentation, common Arabic instruments can include various stringed lyres, for example the oud, harp-like zithers such as the qanun, as well as various forms of percussion instruments such as tambourines and drums. Reed flutes such as the Ney are also common (Turkish).