Music: Arabic Music Resources
Print Books
Inside Arabic Music: Arabic maqam performance and theory in the 20th century by
How can Arabic music be so rich and diverse without resorting to harmony? Why is it so challenging to transcribe Arabic music from a recording? Inside Arabic Music answers these and many other questions from the perspective of two "insiders" to the practice of Arabic music, by documenting a performance culture and a know-how that is largely passed on orally.
Call Number: ML330.5 .F37 2019ISBN: 9780190658359Publication Date: 2019-08-15
Music of the Arabian Peninsula by
Music and Traditions of the Arabian Peninsula provides a pioneering overview of folk and traditional urban music, along with dance and rituals, of Saudi Arabia and the Upper Gulf States of Kuwait, Bahrain, and Qatar. The nineteen chapters introduce variegated regions and subcultures and their rich and dynamic musical arts, many of which heretofore have been unknown beyond local communities. The book contains insightful descriptions of genres, instruments, poetry, and performance practices of the desert heartland (Najd), the Arabian/Persian Gulf shores, the great western cities including Makkah and Medinah, the southwestern mountains, and the hot Red Sea coast. Musical customs of distinctive groups such as Bedouin, seafarers, and regional women are explored.
Call Number: ML348 .U75 2015ISBN: 9780415888707Publication Date: 2014-12-17
The percussion ensemble of the Arabian Peninsula by
This book provides transcriptions of 36 rhythms from Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, and Yemen with the aim to shed light on the versatile musical practices of the Arabian Peninsula. Some of the rhythms covered were widely popular while others were largely unknown.
Call Number: M177 .Y36 2017ISBN: 9789948232506Publication Date: 2017
Basics of Oud by
An in-depth instruction manual for the Arabic oud, the ancestor of the lute and guitar. A companion instructional DVD is included showing key points to playing the Oud.. Contents include: Holding the oud, Plucking the Strings, Basic Plucking Rules in Arabic Tradition, Positions of Left Hand Fingers, Basic Notes on the oud, Advanced Left-Hand Techniques, Maqamat, and much more. Over 40 tunes are included in the book.
Call Number: MT654.O9 T68 2008ISBN: 9780786678631Publication Date: 2008-08-26
Henry George Farmer and the First International Congress of Arab Music (Cairo 1932) by
Henry George Farmer (1882-1965) was a pioneering musicologist who specialized in Arab music. In 1932, he participated in the First International Congress of Arab Music in Cairo, during which he maintained a journal recording his daily activities, interactions with fellow delegates and dignitaries, and varied perambulations throughout the city. This journal, and the detailed minutes he kept for his chaired Commission on History and Manuscripts, were never published. They reveal aspects and inner-workings of the Congress that have hitherto remained unknown. The illustrations and photos contained therein, as well as additional photos that were never seen, provide visual documentation of the Congress's participants and musical ensembles.
Call Number: ML189.F3 K37 2015ISBN: 9789004263192Publication Date: 2015-03-27
Music in the World of Islam by
The story of music told in this book begins in pre-Islamic times with musical forms that bear strong imprints of the Bedouin's tribal way of life. Pre-Islamic music can be viewed as the forerunner of the art music that acquired a foothold after the advent of Islam. The history of Arab music then became inextricably entwined with the musical traditions of the conquered lands. The merging of diverse forms into a unique common style marked the advent of the Great Musical Tradition that gained favor throughout an extensive geographical area. By the end of Islam's third century, distinct autonomous styles began to appear involving Persians and Turks in particular.
Call Number: ML3545 .S486 2003ISBN: 0814329705Publication Date: 2001-08-01
eBooks
Music and Media in the Arab World by
Since the turn of the twentieth century the dramatic rise of mass media has profoundly transformed music practices in the Arab world. Music has adapted to successive forms of media dissemination--from phonograph cylinders to MP3s--each subjected to the political and economic forces of its particular era and region. Carried by mass media, the broader culture of Arab music has been thoroughly transformed as well. Simultaneously, mass mediated music has become a powerful social force. While parallel processes have unfolded worldwide, their implications in the Arabic-speaking world have thus far received little scholarly attention.This provocative volume features sixteen new essays examining these issues, especially televised music and the controversial new genre of the music video.
Call Number: ML348.5 .M87 2010ISBN: 9789774162930Publication Date: 2010-11-15
Umm Kulthum by
In 1967 Egypt and the Arab world suffered a devastating defeat by Israel in the Six-Day War. Though long past the age at which most singers would have retired, the sexagenarian Egyptian singer Umm Kulth m launched a multifaceted response to the defeat that not only sustained her career, but also expanded her international fame and shaped her legacy. By examining biographies, dramas, monuments, radio programming practices, and recent recordings, Laura Lohman delves into Umm Kulth m's role in fashioning her image and the conflicting ways that her image and music have been interpreted since her death in 1975.
ISBN: 9780819570710Publication Date: 2010-12-01
Reference Sources
An Arabic Musical and Socio-Cultural Glossary of Kitab Al-Aghani by
George Dimitri Sawa's Arabic Musical and Socio-Cultural Glossary of Kitāb al-Aghānī is the first comprehensive lexicographical study of Umayyad and early Abbāsid-era music theory and practices. It defines melodic and rhythmic modes, musical forms, instruments, technical terms and metaphors used in evaluating compositions and performances, and the emotional effects of ṭarab. It explains the processes of composition and learning, performance practice, musical change and aesthetics, and addresses the behavior of court musicians to help understand societal views of music. Medieval dictionaries, reference works on Arabic literature, theoretical treatises as well as full quotations from the Aghānī are used.
Call Number: ML348.2 .S28 2015ISBN: 9789004277502Publication Date: 2015-04-30
Bloomsbury Encyclopedia of Popular Music of the World by
The Bloomsbury Encyclopedia of Popular Music Volume 10 is one of six volumes within the 'Genre' strand of the series. This volume discusses the genres of Africa and the Middle East in relation to their cultural, historical and geographic origins; technical musical characteristics; instrumentation and use of voice; lyrics and language; typical features of performance and presentation; historical development and paths and modes of dissemination; influence of technology, the music industry and political and economic circumstances; changing stylistic features; notable and influential performers; and relationships to other genres and sub-genres.
Call Number: ML348.6 .B56 2015ISBN: 9781501311468Publication Date: 2015-12-03
Field Recordings from Qatar, Kuwait and Oman on the Qatar Digital Library
- Music from QatarThese videos on traditional music in Qatar were recorded, edited and produced by Rolf Killius for the Qatar Digital Library in November and December 2013.
- Music from KuwaitThese videos on traditional music in Kuwait were recorded, edited and produced by Rolf Killius for the Qatar Digital Library in in May and June 2014.
- Music from OmanThese videos on traditional music in Oman were recorded, edited and produced by Rolf Killius for the Qatar Digital Library in February and March 2014.
Digitized Shellac Recordings from the Middle East on the Qatar Digital Library
Expert Articles on Arabic Music in Qatar Digital Library
Learn more about Arab musical heritage in these expert articles from the Qatar Digital Library. They include both archival material from the British Library and recent video recordings of musical performances from the Arabian Peninsula.
Organizations
All over the Arabic-speaking world, institutions and individuals are dedicated to promoting and preserving Arab music culture. Below is a selection of relevant institutions, conferences and projects both in and outside of Qatar.