Chapter 8 Notes – Islam, Arabic, Persian Musical Traditions in the Middle East

• This set of notes covers major religious traditions that influence music in the Middle East and prominent classical music in Iran and the Arabic world, focusing on Turkey, Iran, Egypt, and Israel, with broader applicability to West Asia and North Africa.
• The Middle East (often used to mean West Asia and North Africa) has been historically united by empires and Islam; three monotheistic faiths (Islam, Christianity, Judaism) worship the same God but differ on the divinity and role of Jesus; Judaism does not view Jesus as the Messiah.
• The region is a cradle of civilization with empires such as Ancient Egypt, the Persian Empire, the Empire of Alexander the Great, the Roman Empire, Byzantium, the spread of Islam, and the Ottoman Empire. These empires created extensive cultural exchange with Europe; Greek culture drew on Egyptian influence, and the European Renaissance has roots in the Islamic intellectual tradition. Arabic musical traits influenced music from South Asia to Spain and Portugal. Despite common traits, there are distinct regional identities: Arabic-speaking North Africa/West Asia, Turkish culture, and Persian culture, each with Islamic influence but notable musical differences.
• The first two sites introduce Islam and the Arabic-speaking world. The focus is on the Islamic theological perspective on music and sound.
• Muslims distinguish worship sounds (non-music) from secular music. Instruments are prohibited in worship; Quranic chant and other worship-related sounds are not considered music.
• After Muhammad’s death, his revelations were compiled into the Quran, regarded as the word of God and a source for musical and other art forms. Quranic chant is considered among the most spiritually powerful non-music worship activities.
• The azan (adhan) is the call to prayer, performed five times daily; the Hajj is the annual pilgrimage to Mecca. Ritual chants associated with Hajj are not music.
• Eulogy chants and chanted poetry with Islamic themes are categorized as non-music worship.
• The adzan is a heightened form of speech; it emphasizes Allah; the first line often includes Allahu Akbar ( الله أكبر ) meaning “God is great.”
• Vocalists in these contexts often sing in the upper register to project, sometimes with a strained timbre (described here as a distinctive “m slide” family of terms beginning with m).
• Muhammad is the central figure of Islam, considered the mouthpiece of God delivering God’s will orally. Muslims are followers who surrender to God.
• A mosque is a building for Islamic worship. Ayyamakah is described as a primary regional mosque, while a masjid is a local mosque. Inside a mosque is a Mihrab, a niche oriented toward Mecca; the Kaaba (built by Abraham and Ishmael, not Isaac) is the holiest site and central to the Hajj. Ideally, mosques have a minaret (muret) to call the faithful to prayer.
• The azan is called five times daily to remind worshipers to pray.
• The Blue Mosque (Sultan Ahmed I) in Istanbul: founded in $1609$ and completed in $1616$; nicknamed for its blue tilework and regarded as a major architectural achievement.
• Secular musical activities exist and are accepted across Islamic sects when they serve a social function beyond entertainment. (Turkey’s Mekhtar is a notable military music example associated with the janissaries.)
• The Turkish janissaries were elite guards who also performed music for royal occasions. Characteristic instruments include bass drum, cymbals, trumpets, and zurna (a double-reed aerophone).
• In musical analysis, chordophones like the oud and basook are contrasted. The oud is a fretless plucked lute with deep resonance; the basook is fretted with a brighter timbre. The European lute derives from the oud in name and concept (al-oud → al-lute).
• Makam (often defined as mood) governs improvisation and composition in Arabic music and, like the Indian raga and Persian dastgah, carries an associated sentiment. A maqam consists of scales, pitch hierarchies, melodic phrases, and ornamentations. A taqsim is an unmetered instrumental improvisation within a maqam.
• A typical Western suite consists of freely rhythmic sections (taqsim) followed by metered compositions.
• The Arabic tuning system divides the octave into 24 pitches (microtones) rather than 12, causing some listeners to perceive certain pitches as out of tune on equal-tempered instruments.
• Attitudes toward music vary: liberal practitioners may accept the non-worship musical activities, while conservative sects consider non-worship music (outside social or religious function) spiritually degrading.
• Iran and Egypt slides present additional controversy around sacred vs secular music; haram (محرم) is commonly translated as prohibited, though some translations imply “protected.” The historical context of harem (sacred or protective seclusion) contributed to confusions about music associated with women and palace life.
• In terms of musical aesthetics, performances that emphasize voice, melisma, and free rhythm are viewed as more spiritually uplifting; instrument-driven or metered performances may be viewed as less spiritually elevating in conservative contexts.
• The Sham Mosque in Isfahan, Iran is shown as an example representing Iranian architectural and religious culture. Iran’s population is around $75{,}000{,}000$, with relatively arid climate and frequent earthquakes; it was formerly known as Persia and has ancient ties to the region’s empires (Cyrus the Great’s era in the 6th century BC).
• Iran’s language is Farsi (Persian), an Indo-European language, with a script that resembles Arabic; the population is predominantly Shi’a Islam, which is characterized as more conservative than Sunni Islam in neighboring regions.
• Iran became a theocratic state after the 1979 Revolution led by Ayatollah Khomeini, including the hostage crisis where $66$ Americans were held for $444$ days.
• Persian classical music is ornamented and often emotionally poignant, reflecting Iran’s harsh environment. The santur is a hammered zither (dulcimer) believed by some scholars to be ancestral to hammered zithers in other cultures (e.g., yangqin in China, qin in Thailand, timbala from Hungary, etc.) and is sometimes linked to the piano’s development as a descendant of earlier stringed instruments (harpsichord, clavichord).
• Tasca (likely dastgah-related term) denotes a mode in Persian classical music; Persian pedagogy differs from Arabic in that Persian tradition relies more on written, composed melodies (gushe) within a dasca, while Arabic tradition emphasizes oral transmission and improvisation within modal frameworks.
• A radif is a collection of gushe for all the dasca used by a school; each school has its own radif, guiding how gushe are linked into longer works. Persian classical music emphasizes freely rhythmic (non-metered) music, with some schools allowing more improvisation within the modal structure.
• After the 1979 revolution, many Iranian musicians performed mostly in private or in homes due to restrictions; public performances remain restricted though some liberalization has occurred.
• Egypt’s cultural landscape includes the ancient and the modern. The Sphinx image and the legacy of the pharaohs contribute to global interest; the Suez Canal (completed in $1869$) separated Egypt from the Sinai Peninsula and significantly impacted global commerce and tourism (Nile cruises are popular).
• Modern Egypt blends ancient heritage with contemporary life; tourism remains a major economic driver.
• Takht ensembles in Egypt perform metered music and may include a vocalist. Typical instruments in Takht: the ud (fretless lute), the kamanjah/kamanser (bowed lute/violin-like), the qanun (zither), the nay (vertical end-blown flute), the riqq or rick (tambourine), the tabla (a goblet drum, not to be confused with the Indian tabla), the dombak/darabuka (another goblet drum), the kudum (kettle drum), and halil symbols (cymbals or similar). The canun (cuneiform zither) and other instruments form the core texture of these ensembles.
• Melodic forms in Egyptian Takht are common, with dulab (instrumental introduction) and bashraf (a form with recurring melodies). Ikha’at (rhythmic modes) are used; multiple modes can be used within a single performance, changing meter and tempo. The canun is typically held on the lap and the drum is played on the knee; dancers (women in the back) may accompany performances; cymbals and coins often adorn dancers’ costumes to add an audible dimension.
• The ney (reed flute) is central among Egyptian sounds; other typical tacht ensemble instruments include the oud, kamanja, canun, nay, riq, duff (frame drum), kudum (kettle drum), and halil symbols. The ney is often soloed and considered highly spiritual due to breath control; Sufi practices emphasize breath and cyclical rhythmic patterns.
• Sufi music features a steady pulsation and three vocal categories in the example: an opening swirl with rising/falling melodic contour, followed by a section where most instruments drop out and singers chant on the syllable meaning “Allah” (in Arabic), combining with a freely rhythmic chant that resembles the heightened speech of Quranic recitation.
• Melisma (multiple notes on a single syllable) is a key feature of the soloist’s performance. In Sufi practice, dhikr (also written as zikr) means remembrance of Allah. Tahir is translated as remembrance, referring to remembering Allah (الله). Sufi belief in oneness with Allah leads to ecstatic trance states often described as spiritual ecstasy.
• The public Sufi whirling dance (Sufi dervishes) is a ritual designed to detach from the secular world; dhuhr or zakir rituals may involve acts of spiritual devotion, sometimes private with extraordinary acts (e.g., self-inflicted pain) to demonstrate divine protection. Public whirling helps educate the broader public about Sufi beliefs.
• The final section shifts to Judaism and Israel. Israel was established in 1948 as a homeland for Jews; Jerusalem is a focal point for worship for Jews, Christians, and Muslims. The Dome of the Rock is a pilgrimage site believed to house the altar where Abraham nearly sacrificed Isaac.
• The Jewish diaspora includes Sephardic Jews (Middle Eastern ancestry) and Ashkenazi Jews (European descent). Klezmer music is the best-known Jewish music associated with Ashkenazi communities; Sephardic music shares similarities with Arabic traditions.
• Quranic chant can be compared to Jewish liturgical chant. The audio track begins with a shofar (ram’s horn) used to mark divisions in a service. The kantor (cantor) leads in a form of holy speech that is not considered singing; cantors learn melodic formulas and render them flexibly according to the text.
• The Torah comprises the five books of the Pentateuch, together with sacred literature and oral tradition. Cantillation is used in synagogue services, which occur primarily on Saturdays and at other times throughout the day. The synagogue is the Jewish house of worship.
• Overall, Jewish liturgical practice and music share structural and functional similarities with some Islamic chant traditions, while the repertoire and instruments differ (e.g., shofar, cantor’s chant, and Hebrew text) and connect to broader regional musical sensibilities.

Key terms and concepts to remember:

• Qaṣ id or maqam, taqsim, gushe, dastgah (Persian vs Arabic modal systems) and related performance practices; radif (Persian collection of gushe) and dasca (Persian modal family).
• Haram (prohibited) in Islamic law; the complexity of sacred/secular boundaries and differing interpretations across communities.
• Dhikr (zikr), Sufi practices, whirling dervishes, and two-robe symbolism (outer black and inner white robes).
• Instrument glossary: oud, basook, kamanja/kamanser, qanun, nay, riqq/duff, kudum, canun, halil, mush/tabla/darabuka, mekhtar (Turkish military music).
• Important historical facts: $1609$-$1616$ Blue Mosque; $1869$ Suez Canal; $1948$ Israel independence; $1979$ Iranian Revolution; $66$ Americans hostage; $444$ days; $75{,}000{,}000$ Iranians.
• Notable cultural lines: Makam vs. Raga vs. Dastgah; microtonality (24-tone Arabic octave) vs Western 12-tone system; role of ornamentation and timbre in religious vs secular contexts.

Real-world connections and implications:

• Music in religious contexts shapes social norms and legal boundaries within Islam and Judaism across the region.
• The political history of Iran (1979 Revolution) and Turkey’s relationship to Sufism and secular governance influences contemporary musical expression.
• The cross-cultural flows between Arabic, Persian, Turkish, and European musical practices highlight shared modal concepts (maqam/dastgah/gushe) and improvisational traditions while preserving distinct regional identities.
• The discussion of haram vs halal and the social policing of music reveals ethical and philosophical debates about spirituality, art, gender, and social order in Muslim-majority societies.
• The global influence of the region’s music—through maqam, gushe, and takht ensembles—shapes world music scholarship, instrument design, and cross-cultural appreciation.