Islamic performance genres

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Islamic vocal performance traditions of Egypt : LANGUAGE PERFORMANCE IN ISLAM

Tilawa, ibtihalat, adhan, ad`iyya, tawashih, dhikr, aghani diniyya, inshad dini, inshad sufi

Michael Frishkopf

short link: http://bit.ly/islamperf


Note that the semantic scope of each of these words is different, and (except for aghani diniyya) none of them overlaps with either musiqa or ghina' - indeed to imply an overlap is somehow sacrilegious:

  • musiqa: (a) theoretical-philosophical tradition (historical definition), or (b) melodic instrumental music, possibly combined with vocals (contemporary definition).
  • ghina': singing (for entertainment or aesthetic pleasure)

Nevertheless, the religious genres almost always center on a sophisticated use of the maqamat.

Not only that, but
(a) because religious genres center on solo vocal performance (highlighting the text), often ametric, and
(b) because there is a preference for spontaneous expression of emotion in reaction to spiritual texts and contexts, and
(c) because in the case of the Qur'an there is also an aversion to any melodic composition, which could be considered an "association" (shirk) with God), therefore...

...vocal performance tends to feature melodic flexibility (~improvisation), developing the maqamat, and audience responses reminiscent of secular tarab (though that word may be rejected in favor of something more spiritual, e.g. nashwa ruhiyya, spiritual refreshment, or wajd, spiritual ecstasy).

Metered singing appears in corporate inshad dini (primarily in the Sufi orders, as a technique for the liturgical unification of the group), and in some religious songs (aghani diniyya) straddling the boundary of "singing" and "religion".

All genres may be categorized under what I call "Language Performance" (see Frishkopf 2013, Frishkopf 1999). Here are some examples:

Mainstream sounds of Islam

Qur'anic recitation (tilawa)

Call to prayer (adhan)

Supplications in prayer (ad`iyya)

Sung supplications (ibtihalat)

The dawn prayer rite (salat al-fajr)

Ramadan: the pre-dawn misahharati (recorded 20 July 2015 in Cairo)

Inshad dini: traditional chanting/singing of religious poetry

Nasheed: more contemporary genre of sung religious poetry, influenced by popular music production standards

Soundscapes

At particular times of the day, week, or year, a number of sound sources converge on the listener, producing a rich and evocative soundscape.

Listen to a few examples of such Islamic soundscapes.

Sufi sounds

Inshad sufi: part of a larger ceremony called hadra or dhikr

Five Sufi Hadras from my fieldwork

The weekly Saturday hadra at the saha of Sidi Ali Zayn al-Abidin (Cairo, Egypt, 1998)

Popular Islamic music (in the "Muslim world" and elsewhere...)

Aghani diniyya: religious songs, usually performed by secular artists, in a tarab (traditional emotional) musical style representative of elevated music in the region.

The work of others is closer to contemporary popular music, often incorporating melodic instruments, and featuring contemporary arrangements. Unlike nasheed proper, such music builds in part or in whole upon contemporary non-religious genres, often western-- from hip hop and neo-soul to folk, metal and even country -- or upon more localized genres. The boundaries are somewhat arbitrary, but one can say that generally speaking nasheed is an extension of traditional inshad genres (e.g. ibtihalat, or Sufi dhikr), whereas the newer popular genres move beyond those into other musical domains.

Popular Islamic music performers include the British-Azeri Sami Yusuf. In one album (My Umma) he scrupulously avoided use of musical instruments, but later made use of them as in this clip, though not without invoking criticism. Here he deliberately makes use of several languages, emphasizing unity in the Muslim Ummah. Other performers of this type include Zain Bhikha from South Africa, Mesut Kurtis from Macedonia, the Indonesian Haddad Alwi and the phenomenal Malaysian boy band, Raihan. Note use of traditional gongs in some southeast Asian nasheed.

Islamic versions of Western popular music genres, usually created by Muslims living in the West, maintain musical style, while inserting Islamic texts and intentions. Examples include Islamic performance poetry and hip-hop (Amir Sulayman, who recently performed poetry at the University of Alberta and also raps), Islamic punk rock (Taqwacore) (e.g. the Kominas, Islamic folk-rock (Dawud Wharnsby Ali, and of course Yusuf Islam, aka Cat Stevens), even Islamic country (Karim Salama) (Buysse, 2007, Swedenburg, 2002, Miyakawa, 2005, Abdul Khabeer, 2007). These musics tend to engage social issues afflicting diasporic Muslim communities, e.g. racism and drug use, addressing non-Muslims as well.

Popular Islamic nashid, in a variety of languages e.g.

4shabab, a music video TV channel carrying Islamic themes, including nasheed. Watch on YouTube, e.g. [3]

There is also a wide range of Islamically-themed western popular styles (hip-hop, rock, metal, punk, folk...even country!) See:

A fascinating underground trend is the relation of five percenter Islam (Nation of Gods and Earths) to hip hop...