Arab Modernity and popular musical transformations: 5 themes
Contents
- 1 Westernization and colonization: sounds of the 20th century, and the decline of tarab
- 2 Rise of commodification and music media
- 3 Shifts in representation of women: the male gaze in music, veiling and unveiling...
- 4 Bifurcations: Religious/secular; Sufi/Salafi
- 5 Nationalism, pan-Arabism, and the media
Westernization and colonization: sounds of the 20th century, and the decline of tarab
Rise of commodification and music media
- late 19th c: musical plays, operettas, ticketed concerts, caberets
- Abu Khalil Qabbani (1835-1902)
- Salama Hijazi (1852 - 1917)
- Badia Masabni1892- 1974 [2]
- 1904 phonograms
- 1920s radio (1934 national radio)
- 1932 musical films: first Unshudat al-Fu’ad, starring Nadra and Shaykh Zakariya Ahmad, then Al-Warda al-Bayda, starring Muhammad Abdel Wahhab.
- Midaq Alley (film 1963 starring Shadia, setting 1940s) Watch the film from 15:00.
- Samia Gamal and Tahia Carioca and 78sf
- 1960 Egyptian television
- late 1970s, 1980s and 90s: cassettes, CDs; Ali Hamida
- 2000s: satellite, internet and mobile distribution
Shifts in representation of women: the male gaze in music, veiling and unveiling...
- Almaz and Abdu al-Hamuli [3][4] with accompanying text.
- Umm Kulthum
- Samia Gamal[5]
- Ruby
Bifurcations: Religious/secular; Sufi/Salafi
- "Shaykh" vs "Effendi"
- Decline of religious training for singers
- Religious genres
Nationalism, pan-Arabism, and the media
- Benedict Anderson and communities "imagined" via mass media (19th c print capitalism)
- 19th c Arab nationalism and the first "Arab music" (via media)
- Nasser's Egypt-centric pan-Arabism (top down, ideological), and associated music (Abdel Halim, Umm Kulthum)
- satellite revolution's new pan-Arabism (bottom up, capitalistic, distributed production)