The Arabian music ( Arabic: موسيقى عربية ) was formed as a result of the merger of Arabian art itself with the art of countries that were once part of the Arab Caliphate. In the early “Bedouin” period, music and poetry represented a single whole. Information has been preserved about the ancient Arab poets-singers ( shairs ), about caravan songs (hida), songs of horsemen (hubab), about musical instruments - duff (tambourine), rebab (single-stringed violin), mishar (lute) [1] .
History
Historians call various forms of music of the Arabian Peninsula of the pre-Islamic period the term shuar al-jahiliya (شعراء الجاهلية), that is, “poets from the time of ignorance” [2] . At that time, it was believed that genies passed them poetry and music.
Having conquered the territory of the Middle East (Iran, Byzantium), Central Asia and Egypt, the Arabs assimilated the traditions of more developed cultures. They perceived the foundations of Greek musical theory [3] , and the Arabic scale expanded to two octaves. Since the end of the 7th century the flowering of classical Arabic music begins, which is based on 7-step frets. In addition to the main sounds, they use intermediate intervals - commas. Arabic music is characterized by flowery melismatics, which gives it an original flavor. In the Arabic manner of singing, gliding from sound to sound (gliding) is widely used [1] .
The most common genre of Arabic classical music is the vocal and instrumental ensemble. The leading role in it belongs to the singer. During the reign of the Umayyad dynasty, the most famous singers were Ibn Musajih, Muslim ibn Mukhriz, as well as singer Jamile and her students. At the time of the Abbasids - Ibrahim al-Mausili (742–804), his son Ishaq al-Mausili (767–850), as well as Mansur Zalsal [1] .
Arab music science has reached a high level. Among the prominent musical theorists of the Middle Ages, al-Kindi (801–873), al-Isfahani (897–967) and Safiaddin Urmawi (about 1230–1294) can be noted. Information about Arabic music is contained in the writings of al-Farabi , Ibn Sina , etc. Medieval Arabic music influenced the musical art of Spain and Portugal [1] .
Notes
- ↑ 1 2 3 4 Arabian culture // Great Soviet Encyclopedia : [in 30 vol.] / Ch. ed. A.M. Prokhorov . - 3rd ed. - M .: Soviet Encyclopedia, 1969-1978.
- ↑ Singing in the Jahili period - khaledtrm.net (ar.)
- ↑ Habib Hassan Touma - Review of Das arabische Tonsystem im Mittelalter by Liberty Manik.
Literature
- Arabian culture // Great Soviet Encyclopedia : [in 30 vol.] / Ch. ed. A.M. Prokhorov . - 3rd ed. - M .: Soviet Encyclopedia, 1969-1978.