2. A Brief History of Arabic Music

Transcription

1 An Introduction to MIDDLE EAST & ARABIC MUSIC Research Paper Compiled by Ashley Jackson

2 1 CONTENTS: 2. A Brief History of Arabic Music 5. Arabic Instruments 13. General Characteristics 14. Theory: Maqam 18. Theory: Iqa 20. Pseudo-Arab Music in Films 21. Watch, Listen & Learn 21. Credits 22. Middle East Map

3 2 A Brief History of Arabic Music Arab music is a broad concept that encompasses everything from music history, theory, genres and instruments through to music related philosophies, attitudes, and social contexts within the Arab World. It is also worthy to note that geographically it covers a vast region of countries including Turkey, Syria, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, Sudan, Ethiopia, Somalia, Yemen, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan and even parts of India. There are various Arab musical traditions that originated in antiquity and gained sophistication and momentum during the height of the Islamic Empire between the eighth and the thirteenth centuries. It evolved from five main processes, some from intellectual and cultural changes, political changes and others from the evolution of humankind and its relationship to music. The first process took place in Syria ( AD) and in Iraq ( AD). The ethnic blending that occurred during this time brought music from Arabia into close contact with the musical traditions of Syria, Mesopotamia, Byzantium, and Persia. This contact resulted into a hybrid of new Arab music. While retaining strong local elements, such as the singing of poetical lyrics in Arabic, this new evolution featured new performance techniques, new aspects of intonation, and some new musical instruments. Pioneers of this new trend included Persians and others from non-arabian backgrounds. The second process was marked by the introduction of scholars of the Islamic world to ancient Greek treatises. This began in the ninth century ( AD) and the ruler of that time constructed the Bayt al-hikmah (House of Wisdom). An institution responsible for translating a vast number of Greek classics, including musical

4 3 treatises by Plato, Aristotle, Plotinus and major Pythagorean scholars works into Arabic. The result of this exposure to Greek past music was enduring. The Arabic language was expanded by a wealth of treatises on music. Al-musiqa (music) emerged as a discipline and became one of alulum al-riyadiyyah (the mathematical sciences) which paralleled arithmetic, music, geometry, and astronomy the West. Greek treatises also provided an extensive musical nomenclature, most of which was translated into Arabic and retained in theoretical usages from then on up to the present day. Between the ninth and thirteenth centuries there became an established system of eight melodic modes. Each had its own diatonic scale derived from an octave span of Pythagorean half and whole steps (western music theory). One major contributor to the science of music was Abu Nasr al- Farabi known for his famous Kitab al-musiqa al-kabir (Grand Treatise on Music), where he presented several systems of pitch, including one diatonic tuning to which certain microtones, or "neutral" intervals, were added. Other theorists of that time incorporated small subdivisions within the Pythagorean scale. The third process to influence Arab music was the contact between the Islamic Near East and Europe during the Crusades from the eleventh to thirteenth centuries and during the Islamic occupation of Spain ( ) This contact had major impact on both Arabic and European traditions. The west starting incorporating eastern instruments and in some cases modified them to create new instruments. The lute came from al-'ud; the kettledrums from naqqarat; and the anafil (natural trumpet) from the al-nafir. The fourth process influencing Arabic music was the invasion and eventual ruling of the Ottoman Turks over Syria, Palestine, Iraq, the coasts of Arabia, and much of North Africa ( ). During these four centuries the power of the Islamic world shifted to the Ottoman court in Turkey. Musically this period was

5 4 characterized by a gradual assimilation of Arab music with Turkish music. The sama'i (or Turkish saz semai) and the bashraf (or pesrev), which are both instrumental genres used in Turkish court and religious Sufi music, were introduced into the Arab world before the late nineteenth century. As a result theory and nomenclature in the Arab and Turkish musical systems overlapped considerably. The fifth process became the contact between Arab music and the modern West following Napolean s conquest of Egypt ( ) and as a result Western instruments and musical notation were employed and increased in usage all the way through to the twentieth century. It also marked the continuation and growth of a medium that had begun in the nineteenth century and flourished in Egypt: the musical theater. Dramas mainly by European authors were translated and arabized. With the emergence of independent Arab states following European domination, many Arab governments accepted Western music as a fine art and as an important component in formal music education. Even in many Arab capitals today, traditional Arab music and Western music are taught in government institutions in a similar way to Western conservatory tradition.

6 5 A Brief Overview of Arabic Instruments The buzuq, typically used as a solo instrument, is not considered a member of the standard Arab orchestra. It is found in both folk and urban contexts and is associated with Gypsy musicians. The Buzuq

7 6 A long-necked fretted lute, the buzuq is usually furnished with two courses of metal strings and played with a thin piece of horn or a plastic plectrum. The metal strings give the instrument a bright sound quality, while the fret distribution (24 movable frets) offers many microtonal possibilities. The kamân or kamanjah is identical to the European violin. It was adopted into Arab music during the second half of the 19th century, replacing an indigenous two-string fiddle that was prevalent in Egypt also called kamanjah. The Kaman The playing style is highly ornate, with slides, trills, wide vibrato, and double stops, often using an open string as a drone. The timbre ranges from rich and warm, similar to the sound of the Western violin, to nasal and penetrating, reminiscent of the sound of the rababah, a type of Arab folk fiddle. It is also worthy to note that Cellos and Double Basses are also often used in Arabic music. The Mijwiz (Arabic for "dual") is a double-pipe, single-reed instrument (sometimes referred to as a "double-clarinet") popular in Syria, Lebanon, and Palestine. It is predominantely used to accompany the dabkah, or line dance, at weddings and other festive celebrations and is one of the oldest wind instruments.

8 7 The Mijwiz The mijwiz consists of two identical cylindrical cane pipes bound together with a tar or beeswax coated string. Each pipe is fitted with a single vibrating reed. The instrument is played continuously (without stopping) through a technique known as "circular breathing", with the entire mouthpiece inside the mouth. It has five to six holes, a range just under an octave and considerable radiating power. The pipes are traditionally played in unison and produce a nasal sound that has distinct rustic connotations and an almost magical effect upon the listeners. The nây (Farsi for reed ) is an open-ended, obliquely blown flute made out of reed, and played with the pads of the fingers. It has six finger holes and a thumbhole with a wide range of over two octaves. Nâys come in different lengths, each one being tuned to a specific pitch and named after the note produced with the 1st finger hole open.

9 8 The Nay It is blown using a unique lip technique called bilabial blowing, with both upper and lower lip used to partially close the end of the bevelled tube and although the nây carries some pastoral associations, it is considered an urban instrument. It is the only wind instrument used in Arab art music, widely appreciated for its warm, breathy sound and its subtle tonal and dynamic inflections. The qânûn is a trapezoidal zither used in urban art and dance music with 25 to 27 courses of nylon and silk-wound strings. Each course has three strings tuned in unison although the highest and lowest courses may have two strings each. The qânûn's range spans more than three octaves and strings are often plucked in octaves with two thin pieces of horn, held through a metal ring worn on each of the player's index fingers. The qânûn Since the beginning of the 20th century, sets of small levers ('urab) have been fixed on the left-hand side of the instrument, which are raised or lowered to microtonally adjust each string course. Before the introduction of these levers, performers would produce accidental notes by pressing a left-hand finger on the strings. The five feet of the qânûn's lengthy bridge rest on five taut rectangular pieces of fish skin set along the right side of its face, providing the instrument with a natural amplification system.

10 9 The riqq (also called daff) is a small tambourine traditionally covered with goat or fish skin and equipped with five double rows of brass cymbals however in the late 1980s, a mylar-headed, aluminum (or wooden) bodied instrument was introduced and was adopted by a number of professional riqq players. The Riqq The riqq is especially valued for the variety of sounds it can produce and appreciated for the subtle yet virtuosic manner in which it is performed. In the first half of the 20th century it was common for the riqq to be the sole percussion instrument in artmusic ensembles. In the second half of the 20th century, with the addition of the tablah and other percussion instruments to these ensembles, riqq players adopted a technique that emphasizes the cymbal over the membrane sounds. The tablah (also known as darbukkah or dumbak) is a singleheaded hand-drum found in most Arab music ensembles. The goblet-shaped body was traditionally made out of fired clay, and the sounding head out of goat, calf, or fish skin, stretched and glued permanently on the body.

11 10 Tablah Using both hands, an accomplished percussionist can produce a great variety of sounds: Usually the right hand strikes the tablah at the centre of the skin to produce the dum (resonating lower tone) or the slap (muted dum), or on the edge to produce the tak (high, crisp tone). The fingers of the left hand strike close to the circumference for the various fillers. Syncopated rhythms and rolls are also common. Since the mid 1980s, an instrument with a plastic head and a cast iron body with modifiable skin tension has become the standard. The târ The târ is a circular frame drum with a head that has been traditionally made from goat skin, but more recently also from

12 11 plastic. Frame drums such as the târ are especially featured in some forms of religious music and wedding processions. The târ, although very supple, is less virtuosic that the riqq. The 'ud is a short-necked lute found throughout the Middle East, where the basic design was developed in the 8th century. Brought by the Arabs to Spain, the instrument gave both its name (al ud: laud: lute) and form to the European lute. The Ud (sometimes spelled Oud) The modern 'ud has a large, wooden, pear-shaped body with five double courses of nylon or gut, and metal-wound silk strings which are plucked or strummed with a quill plectrum (traditionally an eagle's feather). A new technique introduced at the end of the 19th century includes plucking the strings with the fingers of the neckplaced hand. The short, fretless neck facilitates both the production of microtonal intervals and the creation of vibrato and portamento. The Rebaba, sometimes spelled Rababa, is a stringed instrument with one or two strings and played with a horsehair bow. It is pronounced "ruh BAH buh". This is a stringed instrument, typically used in music of the Said (Upper Egypt). It has a quadrilateral sound box covered with skin and a single string (or two) made from horsehair.

13 12 Historically it is the earliest known bowed instrument and was first mentioned in the 10th century. It is commonly called the Arab Fiddle and is not only found in the Middle East but also from China to Central Asia where it is often inlaid with mother in pearl geometric designs. The Rebaba

14 13 General Characteristics of Arabic Music Note: Please bear in mind that Arabic composers, especially since the dawn of 20th century, may borrow techniques from Western music as they seek to new sources of inspiration. So the structure described here applies mainly to older, folkloric music but more recent works may incorporate elements of a Western influence. One major difference between Western music and Arab music is that Western music tends to be based on a scale (sometimes called a key), while Arab music is based on a maqam which translates to something more than a scale and something less than a tune. In typical Western music, there are twelve possible notes to choose from but only seven of these notes are normally used in a given song. These seven notes comprise a scale and there are certain specific rules regarding which 7 notes can be used in a certain scale. For example: D Major will use only the notes D, E, F#, G, A, B, and C#. The scale also defines certain relationships between the notes for determining which notes the chords will consist of, and which chords will serve as the basic building blocks for a given song. In Arabic music, the maqam utilizes only selected notes from the full range of possible notes available, so in that respect it resembles the Western scale. But the maqam goes farther in its influence on the resulting music. It also consists of a melody scrap based on certain key notes from that scale and a certain tendency of movement. So a song written in a certain maqam must not only use the particular notes in that maqam, but it must also incorporate the melody scrap for that maqam into the melody line of the song. To make this even more complicated many (but not all) Middle Eastern songs use quarter tones. A quarter tone is a pitch that is halfway between two adjacent semitones. So, instead of having 12 possible notes to use as the basis of building a scale, Arab music

15 14 has twice as many possible notes to choose from in building a maqam. Western music makes extensive use of chords, which are constructed according to certain rules from the notes in the scale that the song is in. However in traditional Middle Eastern music chords are not used. When multiple instruments play one instrument will carry the primary melody while the others will layer melody scraps or rhythm segments over it. For example, while one instrument is holding a note in the primary melody line, another might play a little trill over the top of it, with the trill constituting a separate but compatible melody scrap. However some more modern music, influenced by Western music, may bring an exception to this. Middle East Theory Part 1: Maqam Maqam (Arabic) can be explained for the most part as composition rules. They are definite scales which are governed by certain rules to be discussed shortly. Maqam principally distinguishes the eastern classical tradition from western musical practice. Based on the use of untempered intervals (with as many as 53 microtones amplifying the western octave, or more commonly understood as 24 quarter-tones), a given makam follows a particular scale and a set of associated musical practices. Certain rules/characteristics of a maqam may include the entry note (Mabda); the final tone (Garar) which may or may not be the same tone as the entry tone; the leading tone; dominant and tonic as well as stressed secondary tonal centres. The zahir (path, way) of a maqam is determined by the direction of the melody, which may be either ascending or descending or a combination of both. Range (maqam may be extended above and below the octave without repeating), modulation, temperament, melody types, and cadential endings may also determine a maqam's make-up. Conservatories, musicians and theorists in different countries use different scale systems which leads to the differences in the

16 15 notations of accidentals and maqam names which, to an outsider, complicates everything even more. The following are five representative maqâmât: Râst Râst means "straight" or "right" in Persian. It is similar to the major scale but with the 3rd and 7th degrees flattened by, roughly, a quarter tone. During descending the 7th degree is usually fully flattened. ( half flat) Nahawand Nahawand is similar to the harmonic minor scale during ascending and to the natural minor scale during descending: Bayyâtî Bayyati uses D as tonic with the 2nd and 6th degrees flattened by, roughly, a 1/4 tone. During descending the 6th degree is usually fully flattened. Hijâz

17 16 Hijâz uses D as tonic. During descending the 6th degree is usually fully flattened. Sabâ The word Sabâ refers to the easterly breeze and the mode is often associated with a feeling of sadness. Notice that the mode does not include the octave interval. To sum up what has been explained so far: Each maqâmât is based on a theoretical scale, specific notes of emphasis, and a typical pattern of melodic movement, in many instances beginning around the tonic note of the scale, gradually ascending, and finally descending to the tonic. Explanation of Arabic Accidentals:

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19 18 Middle East Theory Part 2: Iqa The modal conception and organization of melody (Maqam) is paralleled by a modal treatment of Arab rhythm. In Arab music, metric modes are employed in various metric compositions and are widely known by the name iqa'at (singular iqa'). Influencing the nature of phrasing and the patterns of accentuation of a musical composition, these modes are rendered on percussion instruments within the ensemble, including the tablah and the riqq. Each iqa' has a specific name and a pattern of beats ranging in number from two to twenty-four or more. As presented in contemporary music theory, an iqa' consists primarily of rests and beats distinguished by timbre. The dum (represented by a note with a downward stem) indicates a deep sound produced by hitting closer to the central position of the drum or tambourine head. The tak (represented by a note with an upward stem) is a high pitched crisp sound produced by beating or tapping near the rim of the instrument. Although the theoretical representation of a metric mode is essentially simple, the interpretation can be highly complex and varied. While maintaining the essential features of organization and emphasis within the pattern, percussion players usually improvise further rhythmic subdivisions and create numerous variants using a vast vocabulary of timbral effects. Here are descriptions of some of the most popular iqâ'ât. Dum Right handed centre strike, low clear tone Right handed edge strike, high tone Tek Ka Wahdah Left handed edge strike, high tone Wahid means "one" in Arabic and Wahdah has a single 'dum' at the beginning. The Wahdah is primarily just an initial accent with varying fills, and can exist in various lengths. ( ) dum dum

20 19 Masmûdi Masmûdi consists of two main variants. One is 4 beats long and has a lively character (Masmûdi Saghîr, which means small Masmûdi.) It is fairly common in dance music. The other variant is 8 beats long with a slow, more solemn character (Masmûdi Kabîr which means big Masmûdi.) The following is an example of the Masmûdi Kabîr: ( ) dum dum tak dum tak Samâ'i Thaqîl Samâ'i Thaqîl means "heavy Samâ'i" and is commonly heard in both Ottoman and Arab classical musics. It consists of a 10 beat pattern usually transcribed as 10/8. ( ) dum tak dum dum tak Maqsûm Maqsûm is one of the most prevelant Arab rhythmic modes, typical of dance music. It consists of a 4 beat pattern usually transcribed as 4/4. A simple version is: ( ) dum tak tak dum tak Malfûf Malfûf is a fast rhythmic pattern, typical of popular and folk music. It is usually transcribed as 2/4 or 4/4 and may accompany lively dancing. ( ) dum tak tak

21 20 Western Pseudo-Arab Music in Films Being a student of film scoring I thought it would be silly not to include a paragraph on how film composers have used arabic musical instruments and incorporated them into modern day orchestral scores while staying within the realms of the Western 12 note system. I call this Pseudo-Arab Music. It s not the real thing but is often used as an intellectual reference to characters or locations in films. It can also be used for it s darkness and haunting qualities especially with string glissando, while making no reference to anything Arabic or middle-eastern on screen. Here are some scales I have experimented with: Harmonic Minor = 1 2 b3 4 5 b6 #7 Key of E Minor = E F# G A B C D# Harmonic Minor (5 th Mode) = 1 b b6 b7 Key of E = E F G# A B C D Phrygian Mode = 1 b2 b3 4 5 b6 b7 Key of E Minor= E F G A B C D Harmonic Minor (Hybrid) = 1 b b6 7 Key of E= E F G# A B C D#

22 21 Time to Listen, Watch and Learn On the accompanying disc are several video files and audio files. You will see and hear demonstrations of each instrument as well as see them in a performance concert. There are also some great home made audio and video sections by Simon Saheen and Dwight Reynolds discussing everything you have read but in more practical situations, and even more in depth. There are also a selection of Turkish Sufi mp3 s as well as some film music demonstrating the Pseudo-Arab Music concept. A big thank you to the following sites where a lot of material was taken and adapted: To contact Ashley Jackson: ajackson777@live.com.au

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