The Musical Heritage of Al-Andalus is a critical account of the history of Andalusian music in Iberia from the Islamic conquest of 711 to the final expulsion of the Moriscos (Spanish Muslims converted to Christianity) in the early 17th century. This volume presents the documentation that has come down to us, accompanied by critical and detailed analyses of the sources written in Arabic, Old Catalan, Castilian, Hebrew, and Latin. It is also informed by research the author has conducted on modern Andalusian musical traditions in Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Egypt, Lebanon and Syria. While the cultural achievements of medieval Muslim Spain have been the topic of a large number of scholarly and popular publications in recent decades, what may arguably be its most enduring contribution – music – has been almost entirely neglected. The overarching purpose of this work is to elucidate as clearly as possible the many different types of musical interactions that took place in medieval Iberia and the complexity of the various borrowings, adaptations, hybridizations, and appropriations involved.

This is the only book in the English language on Tunisian music, or on any national tradition of Arab Andalusian music, and it is the only book in any language to survey changes in the ma'luf since its modern revival in the early 20th Century within the framework of social, political, and musical developments in Tunisia and the wider Middle East. The author explores topics such as Arab music theory, modernization, westernization, and Egyptianization; the use of notation in oral tradition; and cultural policy. The relations between traditional music and the mass media are also considered, and the conclusions of this study have a significance that will extend beyond Tunisian and Middle Eastern music to ethnomusicology as a whole.

Performing al-Andalus explores three musical cultures that claim a connection to the music of medieval Iberia, the Islamic kingdom of al-Andalus, known for its complex mix of Arab, North African, Christian, and Jewish influences. Jonathan Holt Shannon shows that the idea of a shared Andalusian heritage animates performers and aficionados in modern-day Syria, Morocco, and Spain, but with varying and sometimes contradictory meanings in different social and political contexts. As he traces the movements of musicians, songs, histories, and memories circulating around the Mediterranean, he argues that attention to such flows offers new insights into the complexities of culture and the nuances of selfhood.

This work explores the literary and musical connections between Hispano-Arabic strophic songs of the muwashshaha-zajal genre, and their medieval Romance cognates, the ballata, cantiga, dansa, rondeau, villancico, and virelai. The authors begin with a general essay based on recent scholarship in Arabic, Romance, and ethnomusicological studies and then present a translation of Al-Tifashi's key 13th-century Arabic treatise on the musical tradition of Arab Spain. The appendices provide texts and translations of ten poems that modern scholarship attributes to or authenticates as part of the Hispano-Arabic song repertory, and musical notations of these texts as sung in Arab countries today. The authors suggest that the living tradition of Andalusian music surviving in the Arab world preserves a priceless echo, be it ever so distorted, of the lost tradition of Hispano-Arabic songs. They conclude that this tradition was a subtle blending of imported Oriental elements combined with others native to the Romance-singing Iberian Peninsula.

It has been said that Marrakech awakens all of the senses. Whether it is seeing the intricate zellige tilework; smelling the various spices sold at the souks; hearing the call to prayer emanate from the nearby mosques; touching the supple leather used to make a pair of babouches (leather sandals); tasting a flavorful tagine, Marrakech never fails to excite. Located just west of the Atlas Mountains, the city has been inhabited by Berber farmers for centuries. It has been dubbed the “Ochre City” because of the proliferation of red sandstone buildings and the red city walls, which now enclose the Medina, home to Jemaa el-Fnaa, one of the busiest squares in Africa.

Ziryab, the Blackbird of Baghdad, born in a hovel to Ethiopian slaves, grew to be the greatest musician of the Golden Age of Arabia. On his way to greatness, he does battle with an evil wizard who hates music, vanquishes demons, outsmarts pirates, and uses the magic of music to rescue princesses and whole villages. This book is based on the true story of Ziryab, born Ali Ibn Nafi in Baghdad in the year 789 AD. Few facts are known about his life, but much is known about the Golden Age in which he lived: the age of Aladdin and Scheherazade and Sindbad the sailor, a world of Djinni and magic. So it is not unlikely - indeed it is probable - that the magic retold in this tale did indeed swirl about Ziryab, and that the magic of his music proved more powerful than all the other.For this story, as much as it is about Ziryab, is a story about music - the power of music to move the human heart, the magic of music to bridge from the material world to the spiritual world, the call of music to reach across barriers of nationality, religion and language to unify people. Indeed, Music is the Language of the Heart.

(Amadeus). Encompassing a history of more than 2000 years, the music of the Arabs is unique among the world's various musical cultures. This book presents an overview of Arabic music throughout history and examines the artistic output of contemporary musicians, covering secular and sacred, instrumental and vocal, improvised and composed music. Typical musical structures are elucidated, and a detailed bibliography, a discography (mainly covering the last 50 years) and a guide to the Arabic alphabet for English speakers are also provided. The paperback edition (00331635) includes a CD of seven traditional Arabic pieces performed by contemporary Arab musicians.