International Council for Traditions of Music and Dance

A Non-Governmental Organization in Formal Consultative Relations with UNESCO

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Leo Plenckers:  Arabische muziek. Een overzicht van de geschiedenis en de hedendaagse praktijk Uitgeverij Bulaaq Amsterdam. Arab music, like its Western equivalent, displays a richness of traditions and genres. It does not only provide listeners and performers with plain pleasure but also arouses feelings of beauty and emotion. It plays a role in family circles as well as in public events. There is a wide range of performers of Arab music that varies from devoted amateurs to virtuous professionals. It also has many enthusiastic listeners.

Nevertheless the image of Arab music in the West is for a great deal defined by the so called oriental pieces that have been composed in 19th century Western Europe. The author of this book tries to give a more nuanced picture of the history of Arab music and its present-day practice.

This book presents a survey of the history and the theory of Arab music and discusses the different forms and types of the classical and popular music and various pop music genres, such as the Egyptian gīl, the Algerian raï and the Palestinian hip hop. Other topics touched upon are musical instruments and folk music. All discussed traditions, styles and forms are illustrated by musical notations. The corresponding recordings can easily be found in the National Public Record Library in Rotterdam.

Leo Plenckers' (1939) chief specializations are music theory and ethnomusicology. He obtained his doctorate with a dissertation on the Algerian classical nawba tradition and published articles about various aspects of Arab music and music theory. Until his retirement he worked at the Musicological Institute of the Amsterdam University.

 ISBN 978 90 5460 163 0 | NUR 660.