About Classical Arabic Music

Arabic Classical Music

Arabic classical music is one of the world’s major musical systems. It has a long history, and some musicologists believe it is substantially similar to what was performed in the Eastern Mediterranean during the Roman era. Unfortunately, the truly classical forms are dying out, and there are few first rate performers left for purely authentic improvisation. This does not imply that other forms & genres are not prospering, although they are not the focus of my interest here. This page is not comprehensive in any sense.

Arabic music 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 infrachromaticism expressed in “neutral thirds”). The favorite modes (maqamat) come from throughout the greater Arab world. Classical Arabic theory & practice can be seen as a great synthesis of both the earlier classical traditions as well as regional melodic forms.

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 ‘ud, which is where Europeans got the lute). In addition, there are instrumental & vocal ensembles with a wide regional variation.

Egypt produced some of the primarly classical treatises, and continues to have a strong music tradition. This recording is a fine anthology with a nice selection of instruments and forms:

Egypt: Cairo Tradition

Taqâsîm & Layâlî
Naïve Anthology of Traditional Musics (UNESCO) D8038

The World Music Library label also has several recordings of Arabic classical music from Egypt and Iraq, but they are not quite as dynamically charged. However, it is only a matter of degree, and I have kept this list extremely brief.

An individual recital of more recent provenance by an Egyptian singer and ensemble:

Proche-Orient – Arabesques vocales

Aïcha Redouane / Ensemble Al-Adwâr
Institut du Monde Arabe 321015

This is one of the most compelling examples of the wasla suite on record, and shows a real dynamism in terms of synthesizing forms from the greater Arabic world. Synthesis was one of the main principles of the Arabic classical tradition, and so this recital is especially valuable.

Perhaps the most compelling recording of improvisatory Arabic instrumental classical music currently available on CD:

Taqasim: Improvsation in Arab Music

Ali Jihad Racy / Simon Shaheen
Lyrichord 7374

Some Arabic instrumentalists have suggested that this is the only sufficiently strong & truly improvisatory modern recording of their music, but for many others it is a pointless remark, due to the quality of relatively obscure archival material. Ali Jihad Racy is an ethnomusicologist from Lebanon who teaches at UCLA.

Another improvisatory artist of some merit:

Munir Bachir: Live in Paris

Naïve Inedit W 260006

Munir Bachir: Maqamat

Naïve Inedit W 260050

Munir Bachir (1930-1997) was an Iraqi ‘ud player with a very contemplative playing style. His recitals can be quite potent and evocative.

An improvisatory recording which seeks out a more systematic contemporary technique based on modal relations:

Syria – Maqâmat insolites

Muhammad Qadri Dalal
Naïve Inedit W 260105

Muhammad Qadri Dalal plays with the ensemble “Al Kindi” and has produced a rather personal elaboration of classical style in seldom-used modes.

For some older styles of this region, some of which played a role in the development of what became the Arabic classical music, see the list for the ancient Mediterranean.

There are also many recordings of classically-influenced Arabic popular music, as well as orchestral recordings. These are beyond the scope of the present discussion. Finally there are archival recordings being released, from the beginning of the century, before the traditional styles went into decline.

I will try to keep up on other releases which might appear. Unfortunately, time constraints have prevented me from doing a good job updating this page, but hopefully I will have a real opportunity to gather a wider variety of material eventually. For now, I emphasize that it makes a rather poor survey, and I genuinely hope I can find the time to research some of the more obscure recordings which are available with effort.