Maqam al-iraqi
Encyclopedia
Al-Maqam Al-Iraqi is a four hundred year old genre of Arab music
found in Iraq
and often considered the most perfect form of maqam
. The instrumentation of the ensemble used in maqam al-iraqi, Jalghi baghdadi, includes a qari' (singer), Iraqi Santur
(hammered dulcimer), jawza (spike fiddle), tabla or dunbak (goblet drum), and sometimes riqq (tambourine
). The focus is on the poem sung in classical Arabic or Iraqi dialect (then called zuhayri). A complete maqam concert
is known as fasl (plural fusul) and is named after the first maqam: bayat, hijaz, rast, nawa, or husayni. (Touma 1996, p.55, 57)
A typical performance includes the following sections (ibid, p.56):
Some well known Iraqi maqam performers include: Mulla Hasan al-Babujachi, Rahmat Allah Shiltagh, Khalil Rabbaz, Rahmain Niftar, Rubin Rajwan, Ahmed Zaydan, Mulla Uthman al-Mawsili, Jamil al-Baghdadi, Salman Moshe, Rashid al-Qundarchi, Yusuf Huresh, Najm al-Shaykhli, Abbas Kambir, Mohammed al-Qubbanchi, Yusuf Omar, Hamed al-Sa‘di, Farida, and Husayn al-A‘dhami.
Arab music
Arabic music or Arab music is the music of the Arab World, including several genres and styles of music ranging from Arabic classical to Arabic pop music and from secular to sacred music....
found in Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
and often considered the most perfect form of maqam
Arabic maqam
Arabic maqām is the system of melodic modes used in traditional Arabic music, which is mainly melodic. The word maqam in Arabic means place, location or rank. The Arabic maqam is a melody type...
. The instrumentation of the ensemble used in maqam al-iraqi, Jalghi baghdadi, includes a qari' (singer), Iraqi Santur
Iraqi Santur
The santur is a hammered dulcimer of Mesopotamian origin. It is a trapezoid box zither with a walnut body and ninety-two steel strings. The strings, tuned to the same pitch in groups of four, are struck with two wooden mallets. The tuning of these twenty-three sets of strings extends from the...
(hammered dulcimer), jawza (spike fiddle), tabla or dunbak (goblet drum), and sometimes riqq (tambourine
Tambourine
The tambourine or marine is a musical instrument of the percussion family consisting of a frame, often of wood or plastic, with pairs of small metal jingles, called "zils". Classically the term tambourine denotes an instrument with a drumhead, though some variants may not have a head at all....
). The focus is on the poem sung in classical Arabic or Iraqi dialect (then called zuhayri). A complete maqam concert
Concert
A concert is a live performance before an audience. The performance may be by a single musician, sometimes then called a recital, or by a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra, a choir, or a musical band...
is known as fasl (plural fusul) and is named after the first maqam: bayat, hijaz, rast, nawa, or husayni. (Touma 1996, p.55, 57)
A typical performance includes the following sections (ibid, p.56):
- tahrir, sometimes badwah
- taslum
- finalis
Some well known Iraqi maqam performers include: Mulla Hasan al-Babujachi, Rahmat Allah Shiltagh, Khalil Rabbaz, Rahmain Niftar, Rubin Rajwan, Ahmed Zaydan, Mulla Uthman al-Mawsili, Jamil al-Baghdadi, Salman Moshe, Rashid al-Qundarchi, Yusuf Huresh, Najm al-Shaykhli, Abbas Kambir, Mohammed al-Qubbanchi, Yusuf Omar, Hamed al-Sa‘di, Farida, and Husayn al-A‘dhami.
Famous Maqam Singers
- Ahmed Zaydan
- Rashid al-Qundarchi
- Mohammad al-Qubbanchi
- Najm al-Shaykhli
- Hassan Khaiwka
- Hashim al-Rejab
- Yusuf Omar
- Abdulrahman Khidhr
- Hamed al-Sa‘di
- Nazem Al-GhazaliNazem Al-GhazaliNazem El Ghazali was one of the most popular singers in the history of Iraq and his songs are still heard by many in the Arab world. He was born in the Haydar Khanah quarter in Baghdad, and studied at the Institute of Fine Arts in Iraq. He started his career as an actor, and after a few years...
Source
- Touma, Habib Hassan (1996). The Music of the Arabs, trans. Laurie Schwartz. Portland, Oregon: Amadeus Press. ISBN 0931340888.