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Arabic choral sighting?

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Periodically we get requests on ChoralNet’s forums by well-meaning directors who want to be inclusive of a variety of traditions and include some Arabic music in their programs. The usual answer is that there really isn’t any choral music in Arabic. There has never been any significant tradition of choral music in Arabic-speaking countries, and Muslims take a dim view of using religious texts in concert settings. But now we have an a cappella hit on our hands based on a Lebanese popular song.
 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bUaIswblpSA
 
Admittedly, your choir probably won’t be able to perform this (there may not even be sheet music in existence), and we can debate all day whether this is, properly speaking, choral music — but now we can’t say there’s no ensemble vocal music in Arabic.
 

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  1. Here’s hoping that John Perkins will make some of his arrangements publicly available in the very near future!!! While we await them, many of Shireen Abu Khader’s arrangements are available directly from her choir, Dozan wa Awtar, by emailing
     
     
    The website of her choir is
     
     
    and a CD of many of the folksongs (sung by solo voices and performed with instrumental accompaniment) can be found at
     
     
    We performed two of her arrangements (Lama Bada Yatathanna and Lao Rahal Soti) on our tour in January 2010 and they were very well received. From what I understand, the intention is for more and more of these arrangements to be available through earthsongs, but in the meantime, Dozan’s own editions of the songs are eminently usable for those seeking to explore the repertoire.
     
    As regards Fayha, many of their arrangements can be heard at
     
     
    and sheet music obtained by emailing
     
     
    In my own experience with some of these pieces, giving the students access to the recordings through a system such as Moodle allowed them to absorb the style and the language more quickly and greatly aided the rehearsal process. I heartily recommend them to those of you who are interested.
     
    Bill Culverhouse
    Earlham College
    Richmond, Indiana

  2. If you want to email me, I have been arranging Arabic choral music for the last three years since arriving in Sharjah, UAE (American University of Sharjah, outside of Dubai).   There are about 6-7 Arabic choruses in the Middle East now and some of them are quite good (Fayha Choir, Dozan al Wtar, and my newly formed group Nassim Al Saba – shameless self-promotion :)). There is a new publication by Andre de Quadros/Shireen Abu Khader published on Earthsongs (I haven’t ordered it yet), as well as “Fog El Nakhel” arranged by Salim Bali.
     
    The idea of Arabic choral music is exceedingly interesting as Arabic music contains a general lack of harmony. It is, however, an important note that choral music is societal as well as artful, meaning, that a community builds around choral music, manifesting in a miriad of ways. When Nassim Al Saba performs, we do not say that we are presenting “traditional Arabic music”, but we attempt to educate non-Arabs to the rich genre of Arabic music in a setting which many non-Arabs relate to – the choral setting, that is. Arab audiences also particularly enjoy hearing music they grew up with in a different setting. It is a win-win in terms of cultural preservation/education. From this place, audiences can then seek out more traditional settings/recordings of Arabic music.
     
    Re: John Howell – I also mentioned to an Arabic musician friend of mine about the reciting of the Q’ran as a musical form (or not). He said that many Muslims seperate it from music because it is reserved for an exclusively holy act. On the other hand, he said that Q’ranic reciters learn the maqam (Arabic music scales) in order to recite. It is certainly an interesting discussion, and one that is slightly different with every person.
     
    Very Best,
    John Perkins

  3. Knut Riersrud from Norway recorded a song called “Iraqi Peace
    Song” which I arranged for SSA and published on Santa Barbara
    Press. This piece opens with a solo in Arabic and then has English
    interwoven. Check out the recording “Lullabies frm the Axis of
    Evil” for some interesting folk music.

    Lori Tennenhouse

  4. Dear Dr. Jacobson,
     
    Thank you very much for posting the link for the symposium. Fascinating and inspiring. Thank you for this important work. I have been yearning to perform more of Arabic music for many years and especially after a recent conducting experience in Qatar. 

  5. Interesting Allen, and you quite properly point out that it is in the popular tradition, and specifically that of Western a cappella and doo wop vocal groups.  And of course firmly grounded in Western harmonic content and popular vocal techniques, regardless of the language employed.  And certainly the few vocal ornaments used, which we might legitimately consider to be Arabic or Near Eastern in origin, are different only slightly from what someone like Reba McIntire would use.  And the use of body percussion–which it is implied is a requirement for some reason (religious?)–is clearly in imitation of Western drumming (in the McFarrin tradition) and not the often more complex Near Eastern and Indian drumming.
     
    The fundamental difference, to someone who has not studied Arabic or Near Eastern music in any depth, is the attitude found in the predominant religions.  In both the Western and Eastern Christian churches, chant was considered “music,” and formed the basis for the development of polyphony, which in turn formed the basis for the development of harmony as an essential component of music.  Even the “reformers” who required only unison singing underscored this by forbidding what was the USUAL kind of performance.  Apparently in Islam chant is NOT considered “music,” per se, but a kind of speaking reserved for religious texts (difficult for us to grasp), so that same develomental path was never followed.
     
    And of course it was polyphony and harmony, starting in the mid-9th century and first explained in the Enchiriadis treatises, that turned the entire development of Western music away from the large bulk of World Music, which remains focused on melody rather than harmony as its essential building block.
     
    Interesting.
     
    All the best,
    John

  7. Allen,
     
    Intriguing!   Chicken egg chicken egg chicken egg ………..   Arabic Ar..iic Eric Ar..ic Eric        McFerrin            Swirling thoughts!!!!!     Quite a trip!!!
     
    Thanks, Allen and Thanks to Nancy Ajram – Fi Hagat for sharing your fun.    Seriously Enjoyable!!  (and it’s 7 a.m.)
     
    Ed Palmer
     
     

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