View source for Outline of the history of music in the Arab world

* '''Pre-Islamic period (jahiliyya) (to 622)'''
** Arab consciousness not yet established
** Music of Arabic-speakers:  poetry-centric, localized
* '''Early Islamic: rise of Great Tradition (to 750)'''
** Multicultural influences:  Persian Sasanian, Byzantine, Syrian, Egyptian...
** Rise of Arab consciousness and expansion of Arab character
* '''Abbasid and Andalusian "golden age" of Great Tradition (750-900)'''
** Multicultural society
** Increased Persian influence
** Decline in Arab character and identity
** Increase in Islamicate character and identity
* '''Political fragmentation (from late 9th c)'''
** Decline of Arabic-speaking powers 
** Rise of non-Arabic speaking dynasties
*** Turks
*** Persians
*** Berbers
*** Circassian Mamlukes
** Destruction of Baghdad (1258)
** Foreign domination of Cairo
** Reconquista (Christian reconquest of Spain, completed 1492)
** Contraction of "Arab"
* '''Emergence of regional art music traditions (esp. after 13th c)'''
** Gradual divergence from Great Tradition, and development of regional art music tarab traditions
** Arabic-speaking world
*** North Africa (influence of Andalusia) = maghrib (vs. eastern areas = mashriq)
*** Egypt 
*** Levant
*** Iraq
*** Arabia/Gulf
** Turkic world (Ottomans)
** Persianate world (Safavids, Qajars)
* '''Rise of "turath" and pan-Arab music (1900+)'''
** Factors: Arab nationalism, recording era, economy of music
** Reclamation of an "Arab" heritage, despite regional diversity
** "Old" art music labelled as Arabic "al-turath al-`arabi al-qadim" (old Arab heritage)
** Influence of radio, film, commodification, western music
** Rise of a new modern music: mediated tarab, via films, radio, later TV
** Few media producers/channels, centralized
** Therefore:  appearance of pan-Arab music (top-down, Cairo-centered), inducing ideological pan-Arabism
* '''Appearance of cassette tape, greater private sector freedom (1970s)'''
** Explosion of decentralized producers/channels with limited distribution
** decline of pan-Arab music
* '''Rise of new mass media  (1990s)''' 
** Satellite TV, mobile phone, Internet
** Private ownership
** Distributed ownership
** Return of pan-Arab music, inducing emergent pan-Arabism