Musical features

• Unifying Traits of Music at core of Islamic world (Arab/Turkish/Persian worlds)
  • Centrality of language
  • Centrality of melody
    • Heterophony
    • Ornament
  • Modality (maqam)
    • Microtonality
    • Improvisation
  • Rhythm and cycles
    • Free rhythm forms
    • Simple cycles
    • Complex cycles
  • Compound and other forms
    • Fasil (Syria, Turkey)
    • Nawba (North Africa)
    • Wasla (Egypt)
    • Dastgah (Iran)
  • Instruments, arranged in small heterogenous ensembles (e.g. takht)
    • qanun (a trapazoidal plucked zither)
    • 'ud (a fretless plucked lute)
    • nay (a reed flute)
    • Western violin
    • folk instruments

• Theory
  • History of theory in Islamicate philosophy (al-Kindi, al-Farabi, ibn Sina...)
    • Acoustical and musical theory
    • Cosmological (macro and micro) theory: ethos, therapy
  • General theory
  • Maqam
• Practice
  • Arab-Persian
  • Shajarian

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