Some concepts...

oral tradition vs written tradition, mnemonics of scripts
ethnomusicology and comparative musicology
Hornbostel-Sachs system for classifying musical instruments
concept of frequency ratios and musical intervals (e.g. an octave is 2:1)
'Microtones', 'quartertones' (see www.maqamworld.com), equal temperament, frequency ratios
emic/etic distinction
ethnocentrism
Orientalism
critique:
- 'Arab' (people, music): who's an Arab? What counts as their music?
- 'Music' (What counts as music? etic vs. emic definitions)

History of Arab music

Role of Arab nationalism (since 19th c) in formulating "Arab music" as "al-musiqa al-arabiyya"
Some historical overview...
- Islamicate timelines and periods
- The history of Islamicate music (as presented by Touma)
- Critique of "Arab music" history
- Outline of the history of music in the Arab world (as presented by me)
What is an SC paper? - ex: Touma (critical reading & analysis, together...)
Film: the celebrated pan-Arab singer Umm Kulthum plays the role of the famous Abbasid-era qayna, Dananeer, in the film Dananeer (1940)

Three ways of reading this film

as an (explicit) representation of 9th c Abbasid culture
as an (implicit) representation of Egyptian perceptions of "Arab history" in 1940
as an (implicit) representation of Egyptian film music in 1940