Arabic string instrument. A short excursion through the world of oriental musical instruments and the origin of the duduk. Types of Arabic musical instruments

Of course, you may ask why we need to study arabic musical instruments, if we are not musicians, but dancers, but it’s better not to ask :) Because music has the most direct relation to us - we dance to music, and it is precisely this that we must feel and express with our dance. Theoretical knowledge about the instruments that are used in oriental melodies will help us to perceive even more deeply what we hear, and to play it out with movements in a more grammatical and interesting way.

Egypt also has frame drums RIC (tambourine) and DEF.

RIC - a small frame drum that looks like a tambourine. It can be heard in classical, pop and dance oriental music. Also used as a Typically, the rick is 17 cm in diameter, and the depth of the rim is 5 cm. The outer side of the rim is inlaid with mother-of-pearl, just like in the classic Egyptian tabla. The rim contains five pairs of copper plates, creating an additional ringing sound. Therefore, ricks are often quite heavy in weight.

DEF – a large-diameter frame drum without metal cymbals along the rim, used for bass rhythmic accompaniment.

There is also a big drum DOKHOL - a percussion musical instrument consisting of a hollow cylindrical body, about 1 m in diameter and 25-30 cm in height. Both ends of the cylinder are covered with highly stretched skin. On until the end sound is produced either with or with two sticks, one of which looks like a cane, and the other like a thin rod.

Sometimes you can see how belly dancer during a performance, she accompanies herself with small metal cymbals placed on her fingers - this is SAGATES. These are two pairs of plates, usually made of brass, placed on the middle and thumb fingers of each hand, small for dancers, larger for musicians.
Sagatas - this is a very ancient musical instrument that has analogues in many countries (Russia - spoons, Spain - castanets). IN Arabic dances they have very often been part of the dancer's musical accompaniment since Ghavezi times. Now in oriental dances sagata used in folklore and classical performance (raks sharqi, beledi).

SISTER - a musical instrument from the percussion category (a type of castanets); Ancient Egyptian temple rattle. Consists of a metal plate in the shape of an oblong horseshoe or staple, to the narrower part of which a handle is attached. Through small holes made on the sides of this horseshoe, metal rods of different sizes were threaded, the ends of which were bent with a hook. Plates or bells attached to hooks on metal rods tinkled or jingled when shaken.

Well, now, after such loud and percussive instruments, let’s move on to more melodic ones :)

EVE - This harp-like stringed musical instrument. It is placed horizontally and played using metal tips placed on the fingers. It's quite difficult to play. And when they hear a qanun in a composition, and it usually sounds in a certain part on its own, solo, they use various combinations of shaking in their improvisation.

UDD is a fretless plucked lute with a short neck, shaped like half a pear. Super popular in Egyptian and Turkish music for many hundreds of years, the oud is also common in North Africa, the Middle East, Central Asia and the Sahara.

MIZMAR - wind musical instrument. It has two reeds and two tubes of equal length. Mizmar belongs to the world of folk music and is most often heard in eastern folklore, especially in Saidi.

NAY - This is a flute open on both sides. It comes in different sizes and is traditionally made from reed or bamboo. However, nowadays plastic or even metal are used instead of traditional materials. The structure and use of this instrument is deceiving in its simplicity: most often nay has one finger hole at the bottom and six at the top, and the musician simply blows into the tube. Thanks to a special technique, the musician can play within more than three octaves. Base tone naya depends on the length of the tube.

RABABA - a stringed bowed instrument of Arabic origin, with an almost round body and a small round hole for resonance on the soundboard. Typically has one or two strings. Often used in Gulf music.

"RABABA"

Delving deeper into the world of musical instruments from the Gulf countries, one cannot help but talk about TAR – the most important instrument of the classical musical tradition of Iran. Tar - a string instrument played with a metal plectrum, mezrab, inserted into a ball of wax. In past Iranian tar had five strings, but currently they make six strings. Most often the resonator (soundboard) container carved from seasoned mulberry (mulberry) wood. The older and drier the wood becomes, the better the instrument will sound. The frets are usually made from a certain type of sheep intestine, and the neck and headstock container - made of walnut wood. The shape of the instrument's resonator is like two hearts put together; from the reverse side it looks like a sitting person. The stand for the strings, called the “donkey’s foal,” is made from the horn of a mountain goat. Camel bone is used on both sides of the front of the neck.

"TAR"

DUTAR (translated from Persian as “two strings”) is an Iranian plucked string instrument that, as its name suggests, has two strings. When playing this instrument, one usually uses a fingernail rather than a plectrum. Dutar It has a pear-shaped body and a fairly long neck (about 60 cm). The pear-shaped part of the dutar is made of black mulberry wood, and its neck is made of apricot wood or walnut wood.

"DUTAR"

Similar to the previous tool, SETAR (from Persian “three strings”) is an Iranian plucked string instrument, which is usually played using a fingernail rather than a plectrum. In past setar had three strings, now there are four (the third and fourth strings are located close to each other, when played they are touched simultaneously, as a result of which they are usually “united”, called the bass string).

"SETAR"

Having named quite a considerable number Arabic musical instruments, I would like to say that this is not all yet :) East large, and almost every country, every region has its own characteristic national instruments. But with the main ones, with whom we often meet, dancing our favorite Eastern dance, We've probably introduced you. Also, in addition to truly oriental instruments, in songs for belly dance we can often hear sounds that are more familiar to us accordion, synthesizer, violin, trumpet, saxophone, guitar and even organ.

Each musical instrument has its own character, its own personality and its own charm. We wish you a pleasant listening and getting to know them, and further fruitful creative collaboration in belly dancing:)

In Arab countries, a fairly large number of different musical instruments are used, each of which has its own individual characteristics and unique sound.

Despite the fact that people are increasingly signing up for courses through the guitar school website, some prefer this particular direction of music, as they consider some instruments more interesting or beautiful.

There are several basic instruments used in Arab countries:

Tabla

This drum is very similar to the Central Asian dumbek or darbuka, and is made of ceramics with various mother-of-pearl inlays or individual painting. The sizes can be very varied, but on average the height of such instruments reaches 35 cm, while the diameter is about 25 cm. Expensive models of such drums are stretched with fish skin, while more budget models use goat skin. This instrument is one of the indispensable instruments in the process of performing belly dancing.

Sagatas

Sagat are used by belly dancers during their performances to accompany themselves. These instruments themselves are small metal plates that fit onto your fingers. They are made in the majority of cases from brass, and their size directly depends on who is performing the performance - the musician or the dancer herself.

Sistrum

Specialized percussion instrument

Which in its nature resembles castanets and is a kind of temple rattle, used back in the times of Ancient Egypt. This tool is a metal plate, on the narrow part of which a handle is attached. Small metal rods were threaded through the base, bells or plates were placed on the ends of which, after which a certain melody was played.

Eve

This musical instrument is quite reminiscent of a dulcimer. Has 24 strings. The body is made of walnut. Before playing, it is laid horizontally, after which it is played, having previously put specialized wooden or metal tips on the fingers - richés.

Dutar. Du - two. Tar - string. An instrument with fixed frets and two sinew strings. Do you think the fewer strings, the easier it is to play?

Well, then listen to the play of one of the best dutar players - Abdurakhim Khait, a Uyghur from Xinjiang, China.
There is also a Turkmen dutar. The strings and frets of the Turkmen dutar are metal, the body is hollowed out, made from a single piece of wood, the sound is very bright and sonorous. The Turkmen dutar has been one of my favorite instruments for the past three years, and the dutar shown in the photo was brought to me from Tashkent quite recently. Amazing tool!

Azerbaijani saz. The nine strings are divided into three groups, each of which is tuned in unison. A similar instrument in Turkey is called baglama.

Be sure to listen to how this instrument sounds in the hands of a master. If you are short on time, then watch at least from 2:30.
From the saz and baglama came the Greek instrument bouzouki and its Irish version.

Oud or al-ud, if you call this instrument in Arabic. It is from the Arabic name of this instrument that the name of the European lute comes from. Al-ud - lute, lute - do you hear? A regular oud does not have frets - the frets on this example from my collection appeared on my initiative.

Listen to how a master from Morocco plays the oud.

From the Chinese two-string violin erhu with a simple resonator body and a small membrane made of leather came the Central Asian gijak, which in the Caucasus and Turkey was called kemancha.

Listen to how the kemancha sounds when Imamyar Khasanov plays it.

Rubab has five strings. The first four of them are doubled, each pair is tuned in unison, and there is one bass string. The long neck has frets corresponding to the chromatic scale of almost two octaves and a small resonator with a leather membrane. What do you think the downward curved horns coming from the neck towards the instrument mean? Doesn't its shape remind you of a ram's head? But okay form - what a sound! You should have heard the sound of this instrument! It vibrates and trembles even with its massive neck; it fills the entire space around with its sound.

Listen to the sound of the Kashgar rubab. But my rubab sounds better, honestly.

The Iranian tar has a double hollowed body made from a single piece of wood and a membrane made of thin fish skin. Six paired strings: two steel, then a combination of steel and thin copper, and the next pair is tuned to an octave - the thick copper string is tuned an octave below the thin steel. The Iranian tar has intrusive frets made of veins.

Listen to what Iranian tar sounds like.
The Iranian tar is the ancestor of several instruments. One of them is the Indian setar (se - three, tar - string), and I will talk about the other two below.

The Azerbaijani tar has not six, but eleven strings. Six are the same as the Iranian tar, another additional bass and four strings that are not played, but they resonate when played, adding echo to the sound and making the sound last longer. Tar and kemancha are perhaps the two main instruments of Azerbaijani music.

Listen for a few minutes starting at 10:30 or at least starting at 1:50. You have never heard this and could not imagine that such a performance is possible on this instrument. This is played by Imamyar Khasanov’s brother, Rufat.

There is a hypothesis that the tar is the ancestor of the modern European guitar.

Recently, when I talked about the electric cauldron, I was reproached that I was taking the soul out of the cauldron. Probably, about the same thing was said to the person who 90 years ago guessed to put a pickup on an acoustic guitar. Some thirty years later, the finest electric guitars were created and remain the standard to this day. Another decade later, the Beatles, the Rolling Stones appeared, and after them Pink Floyd.
And all this progress has not hindered acoustic guitar manufacturers and classical guitar players.

But musical instruments did not always spread from east to west. For example, the accordion became an extremely popular instrument in Azerbaijan in the 19th century, when the first German settlers arrived there.

My accordion was made by the same master who created instruments for Aftandil Israfilov. Listen to how such an instrument sounds.

The world of oriental musical instruments is large and diverse. I have not even shown you part of my collection, and it is far from complete. But I must definitely tell you about two more tools.
A pipe with a bell at the top is called a zurna. And the instrument underneath is called duduk or balaban.

Celebrations and weddings begin with the sounds of zurna in the Caucasus, Turkey and Iran.

This is what a similar instrument looks like in Uzbekistan.

In Uzbekistan and Tajikistan, zurna is called surnay. In Central Asia and Iran, the lingering sounds of another instrument, the karnay, are necessarily added to the sounds of the surnay and tambourines. Karnai-surnai is a stable phrase denoting the beginning of the holiday.

It is interesting that an instrument related to the carnai exists in the Carpathians, and its name is familiar to many - trembita.

And the second pipe, shown in my photograph, is called balaban or duduk. In Turkey and Iran, this instrument is also called mei.

Listen to how Alikhan Samedov plays the balaban.

We will return to the balaban later, but for now I want to talk about what I saw in Beijing.
As you understand, I collect musical instruments. And as soon as I had a free moment during my trip to Beijing, I immediately went to a musical instrument store. What I bought for myself in this store, I will tell you another time. And now about what I didn’t buy and what I terribly regret.
On the display case stood a pipe with a bell, the design exactly reminiscent of a zurna.
- How does is called? - I asked through the translator.
“Sona,” they answered me.
“How similar it is to “sorna - surnay - zurna” - I thought out loud. And the translator confirmed my guess:
- The Chinese do not pronounce the letter r in the middle of a word.

You can learn more about the Chinese variety of zurna
But, you know, zurna and balaban go hand in hand. Their design has a lot in common - maybe that's why. And what do you think? Next to the son instrument there was another instrument - guan or guanji. This is what he looked like:

This is what he looks like. Guys, comrades, gentlemen, this is what duduk is!
When did he get there? In the eighth century. Therefore, we can assume that it came from China - the timing and geography coincide.
So far, all that is documented is that this instrument spread eastward from Xinjiang. Well, how do they play this instrument in modern Xinjiang?

Watch and listen from the 18th second! Just listen to the luxurious sound of the Uyghur balaman - yes, here it is called exactly the same as in the Azerbaijani language (there is also such a pronunciation of the name).

Let's look for additional information in independent sources, for example, in the Iranica encyclopedia:
BĀLĀBĀN
CH. ALBRIGHT
a cylindrical-bore, double-reed wind instrument about 35 cm long with seven finger holes and one thumb hole, played in eastern Azerbaijan in Iran and in the Republic of Azerbaijan.

Or does Iranika sympathize with Azerbaijanis? Well, the TSB also says that the word duduk is of Turkic origin.
Did Azerbaijanis and Uzbeks bribe the compilers?
Well, okay, you definitely won’t suspect the Bulgarians of sympathizing with the Turks!
on a very serious Bulgarian website for the word duduk:
duduk, dudyuk; duduk, dudyuk (from Turkish düdük), pishchalka, svorche, glasnik, additional - People's djerven musical instrument of the type on aerophonite, semi-closed trubi.
They again point to the Turkish origin of the word and call it their folk instrument.
This instrument, as it turned out, is widespread mainly among the Turkic peoples, or among the peoples who were in contact with the Turks. And every nation rightfully considers it its folk, national instrument. But only one takes credit for its creation.

After all, only the lazy have not heard that “duduk is an ancient Armenian instrument.” At the same time, they hint that the duduk was created three thousand years ago - that is, in the unprovable past. But facts and elementary logic show that this is not so.

Go back to the beginning of this article and take another look at the musical instruments. Almost all of these instruments are played in Armenia too. But it is absolutely clear that all these instruments appeared among much more numerous peoples with a clear and understandable history, among whom the Armenians lived. Imagine a small people living scattered among other nations with their own states and empires. Will such people create a complete set of musical instruments for an entire orchestra?
I must admit, I also thought: “Okay, those were large and complex instruments, let’s leave them aside. But could the Armenians even come up with a pipe?” But it turns out that no, they didn’t come up with it. If they had come up with it, then this pipe would have a purely Armenian name, and not the poetic and metaphorical tsiranopokh (soul of the apricot tree), but something simpler, more popular, with one root, or even onomatopoeic. In the meantime, all sources point to the Turkic etymology of the name of this musical instrument, and the geography and dates of distribution show that the duduk began its spread from Central Asia.
Well, okay, let's make one more assumption and say that the duduk came to Xinjiang from ancient Armenia. But how? Who brought it there? What peoples moved from the Caucasus to Central Asia at the turn of the first millennium? There are no such nations! But the Turks were constantly moving from Central Asia to the west. They could well have spread this instrument in the Caucasus, and in the territory of modern Turkey and even in Bulgaria, as the documents indicate.

I foresee another argument from defenders of the version of the Armenian origin of the duduk. They say that real duduk is made only from apricot wood, which in Latin is called Prúnus armeniáca. But, firstly, apricots are no less common in Central Asia than in the Caucasus. The Latin name does not indicate that this tree spread throughout the world from the territory of the area bearing the geographical name Armenia. It’s just that it was from there that it penetrated into Europe and was described by botanists about three hundred years ago. On the contrary, there is a version that the apricot spread from the Tien Shan, part of which is in China, and part in Central Asia. Secondly, the experience of very talented peoples shows that this instrument can even be made from bamboo. And my favorite balaban is made from mulberry and sounds much better than the apricot ones, which I also have and were made in Armenia.

Listen to how I learned to play this instrument in a couple of years. The recording was attended by People's Artist of Turkmenistan Hasan Mamedov (violin) and People's Artist of Ukraine, my fellow Fergana resident, Enver Izmailov (guitar).

With all this, I want to pay tribute to the great Armenian duduk player Jivan Gasparyan. It was this man who made the duduk a world-famous instrument; thanks to his work, a wonderful school of playing the duduk arose in Armenia.
But it is legitimate to say “Armenian duduk” only about specific instruments, if they are made in Armenia, or about the type of music that arose thanks to J. Gasparyan. Only those people who allow themselves unsubstantiated statements can point to the Armenian origin of the duduk.

Please note that I myself do not indicate either the exact place or the exact time of the appearance of the duduk. It is probably impossible to establish this and the prototype of the duduk is older than any of the living peoples. But I am building my hypothesis about the spread of duduk, based on facts and elementary logic. If someone wants to object to me, then I would like to ask in advance: please, when constructing hypotheses, rely in the same way on provable and verified facts from independent sources, do not shy away from logic and try to find another intelligible explanation for the listed facts.

Many may ask, why do dancers need to study musical instruments? And what kind of instruments – Arabic! In fact, there is an answer, and it is quite simple. It is unlikely that anyone will be able to dance without music, but in order to dance to music, you must be able to feel and understand it. After all, it is by feeling it, like Arabic musical instruments, that you can express all your emotions during the dance.

Eastern music is unique and truly exciting. If you have knowledge about the instruments with which it is produced, you will be able to understand how you can play it in the dance process.

Types of Arabic musical instruments

In Egypt and other Eastern countries, the most common instrument is the Tabla. This is a drum that resembles a dombek in many ways.

The tabla, which is used specifically in Egypt, is often made of ceramics and covered with hand painting. As for the dimensions of the tool, they can be different. The length of the tabla can vary in size from 30 to 40 cm, and in diameter from 20 to 35 cm. Different leathers are also used, if the drum is expensive, then fish skin is used, if the drum is cheap, then goat skin is used.

It is necessary to emphasize that only natural tabla is made of ceramics. As for fakes, such as darbuka, it is often made of metal and has a plastic membrane for better sound.

The instrument is played using two types of strokes. The first blow is doom, it is the heaviest and is struck in the center of the instrument. The second blow is a tek, it is softer and is applied at the rim.

All songs in which belly dancing is performed are played using the tabla, as it has the ability to set the rhythm. It should be noted that some experienced dancers often perform a solo called “tablo-solo”, which is performed only to the drum. In addition to the fact that in this performance, Arabic musical instruments set the rhythm, they can also correctly fill the melody with accents depending on the movements of the dancer.

Frame drums, DEF and RIK, are also popular in Egypt.

1. DEF is a frame drum that is used to sound bass when creating a melody.
2. RIK is a small drum that is somewhat similar to a tambourine. By the way, in oriental music it is used quite often, both in classical sounds and in modern styles. It is also often used as a kind of accessory for belly dancing. It is often a drum with a diameter of 17 cm and a rim depth of 5 cm. This rim contains cymbals, 5 pieces, which create an interesting additional sound. These cymbals can make the instrument quite heavy.

DOHOL is another instrument that is often used in Egypt. This is a drum, like all the predecessors described above. It is a hollow body one meter in diameter and 30 cm in height. The cylinder is covered on both sides with leather, which is stretched almost to the limit. The instrument is played in two ways. Either with your hands, or with two sticks. One of these sticks is like a cane, the other is like a rod.

SAGATES are small little plates that make sounds after being placed on the fingers. The instrument is often used when a dancer shows his solo dance and accompanies himself independently in order to surprise the audience. Only two pairs of sagata are used, which are made of brass. They are worn on the middle and thumb. For dancers, sagatas have a minimum size; for musicians they are made a little larger.

In general, sagat is probably one of the instruments that was created quite a long time ago and has a whole history. In general, I would like to note that in almost every country there are analogues of the instrument.

But still, sagat appeared much earlier; dancers used them to accompany themselves even during the reign of the Ghawazi. As for the modern world, the instrument is used only in classical reproductions.

Despite the fact that a truly large number of musical instruments have already been named, the East is so diverse that it is almost impossible to mention everything. Indeed, in addition to such unusual instruments that belong only to this part of the world, instruments that are familiar to us are often used in musical instruments:

• guitar,
• saxophone and even violin.

If we delve even more deeply into the existence and history of Arabic music, it should be noted that there is also an oriental wind instrument, but it is used quite rarely.

The TAR is a string instrument that is held in high esteem. It has 6 strings and is made of wood, and the better the wood is dried, the better the sound.

Video: tabla music

K. K. Rosenshield

The creators of the great ancient cultures - the peoples of China, India, Egypt and other eastern countries - were the creators of wonderful music, colorful, original, rich, which is thousands of years older than European music.

Classical Chinese dances with instrumental accompaniment.

Many beautiful musical works were composed by the Chinese people in ancient times. The famous book “Shijing” contains labor, everyday, ritual, and lyrical songs from the 2nd–1st millennia BC. e. Folk song in ancient China was such a powerful social force that kings and emperors established special “music chambers” to study songs: after all, from them one could guess about the mood of the people. Many songs directed against the tyranny of the rich and the oppression of officials have been banned for centuries. The song about the folk hero Nie Zhen, who killed the cruel king, was so hated by the rulers of China that even an instrumental performance of its melody threatened danger for the performer. The music of Chinese songs is monophonic in nature. It is dominated by a five-step half-tone scale. But melodies of a different, more diverse and complex structure are not uncommon. Folk songs are usually composed for high voices and are light in sound. Their melody, clear, patterned, elegant in design, moves strictly rhythmically. The melodies of lyrical songs are especially melodic; they are full of great, restrained feeling.
The Chinese people took precedence in the creation of rhymed verse and song, in the development of the theoretical foundations of musical art (IX–IV centuries BC).
The first musical theater in human history was born in China during the feudal era from folk dances and festive games. Along with operas on religious themes and plots from court life, there were many that were close in spirit and music to folk art. It was not for nothing that there was a custom in old China: people innocently condemned to death sang heroic songs from their favorite folk “operas” on the way to the place of execution.

Huqin is a Chinese bowed string instrument, a type of violin.

We have the largest theaters of Beijing, Shanghai and Shaoxing "opera". In their original productions, orchestral music plays a vital role. It unites everything: the melodious speech of the actors, their movements and facial expressions, the grouping of characters on stage, their dances and virtuoso acrobatics. The characters pour out their feelings during the course of the plot in melodic arias. It is interesting that similar experiences, feelings, situations, characters in different plays are usually expressed by variations of the same melodies. The main instruments in the orchestra are percussion (gongs, drums, wonderful sets of bells); they give music a unique national flavor and vivid emotionality.

Pipa is a Chinese plucked lute-type musical instrument.

Chinese musical instruments are ancient and original. The four-stringed lute "pipa" was probably given its name in imitation of its quiet, easily scattered sounds.
The tabletop “qixianqin” (or “qin”), beloved by poets and philosophers, produces very gentle sounds: it usually has seven silk strings. According to legend, the great philosopher Confucius (551–479 BC) played this instrument masterfully. The Chinese also have their own original folk violin - the two-string “huqin” (in the south of China - “erhu”), which is played not like our violinists, but by threading a hair of the bow between the strings. The Chinese people also love their wind instruments - the bamboo flute "Xiao" with six holes, the multi-barreled flute "Paixiao" and the famous "Sheng", which has existed for thousands of years. It is a bowl-shaped instrument with seventeen tubes and bronze reeds that vibrate when air is blown into the mouthpiece. This device allows you to play polyphonic and chord-based music on the shen. The soft, delicate colors of the sound of Chinese instruments expressively recreate both lyrical experiences and graceful musical landscapes.


Qixianqin is a plucked musical instrument, a type of zither.

In the 20th century, Chinese composers Xi Xing-hai, Liu Tzu, and Nie Er became famous. "March of the Volunteers" Ne Era is today the national anthem of China.
Classical music of Korea, its instrumental genres, choral and solo singing, developed in the distant past. Poetic works were also recited to the music - short tercets "sizho". The songs of the Korean people are close to the Chinese in their five-step structure. Their peculiar features are the abundance of guttural sounds, the trembling sound of the singers’ voices (vibrato), and the fast and smooth glides of sounds (glissando). Korean fishing songs are amazingly beautiful. In their melodies one can hear the movement and splashing of waves. Among their musical instruments, Koreans especially love the plucked string gayageum, flutes and various percussion instruments that accompany wonderful Korean dances.


Gayageum is a Korean multi-string plucked musical instrument.

The formation of Japanese national music dates back to the 6th–7th centuries. The penetration of cult music from the mainland along with Buddhism played a major role in its formation. Since the 16th century. European music appeared in Japan, but the influence of Western art on Japanese musical life became especially strong in the second half of the 19th century. Traditional Japanese musical instruments include the shamisen and koto string instruments. When performing music on the Japanese fue flute, the holes in the instrument are closed not with the pads of the fingers, but with the phalanges.

Japanese musical instruments: three-string plucked "sha misen" and flute.

The creator of the richest musical culture in Southeast Asia is the people of Indonesia. Indonesian vocal music is very melodic. Her richly patterned, wide tunes in five- and seven-step tunings leave a vivid impression. The famous folk "gamelan" orchestras consist mainly of percussion instruments: metallophones, xylophones, gongs, drums, rattles and others, which give the music a particularly colorful sound, intense emotionality, and a variety of rhythmic patterns. In folk theater performances, gamelans are accompanied by solo and choral singing and mass dances, which are distinguished by their extraordinary beauty.
The music of India reflects the history of the people, their way of life, character, morals, and nature. Musical folklore includes songs of peasants, artisans, and fishermen. The centuries-old dominance of religion influenced all aspects of Indian life and gave rise to various forms of religious music (sacred hymns, ritual songs, etc.).


Gamelan is a traditional Indonesian orchestra and a form of instrumental music.

More than once the Indian people had to defend their native land from the invasions of invaders and fight against foreign oppression. This is how heroic songs and tales arose among different Indian peoples. Storytellers traveling throughout India sang excerpts from the legends of the Mahabharata and Ramayana.
Even in ancient times, many melodies of various types developed in India - each with a certain mode, rhythm, intonation, and pattern. They are called "raga" (awakened feeling). Each raga evokes in listeners one or another mood or idea about the phenomena of the environment. Indians recognize images of birds, flowers, and stars in their sounds. The performance of raga is timed to specific seasons, days, and hours. There are ragas that are sung only during the rains, there are ragas that are sung at dawn, at noon, and in the evening.
Indian lyrical songs with their varied rhythms and luxurious melodic embellishments are captivatingly beautiful.
Music is closely related to classical dances of all local styles, where legends about heroes are embodied and their moods and feelings are revealed. The dancer interprets the melody with “speaking” movements, and the music completes the image of the dance.

This type of raga, an Indian classical melody, is performed only at midnight. In the woman’s hands is the national string instrument “veena”. Two pumpkins at the ends of the body of the wine serve to enhance its sound.

India, like China, is one of the cradles of folk musical theater. Descriptions of it can be found in the epic Mahabharata. There was also the ancient mystery "jatra" with songs and the accompaniment of an instrumental ensemble, and a folk puppet theater with musical accompaniment.
Ancient and modern literature had a huge influence on the musical art of the country. The great poet Tagore wrote musical dramas and songs.


Mridangam is an Indian musical instrument (drum).

India created its own musical instruments. Particularly original are the spindle-shaped “mridangam” drums and the “tabla” drums, which are struck with the palms of the hands. The Indian style of playing percussion instruments is so masterfully subtle and expressive that they are often accompanied by solo singing. The bowed string “sarangi” sounds beautiful, the color of the sound reminiscent of the human voice. But the plucked seven-string “veena” with a gentle, melodious “silver” sound is especially revered in India.
With the fall of colonialism, many folk and classical songs that the Indian people had cherished for centuries came to life. The country's musical life became more diverse and richer, music printing began to develop, and schools of music, dance, and drama were opened. In the 20th century, composers H. Chattopadhyay, R. Shankar, S. Chowdhury became famous, creating new songs, operas, and music for films.
One of the ancient and formerly rich cultures of Asia is Persian. In the Middle Ages it reached a brilliant peak. Persian lyrical songs, decorated with ornamental patterns, were famous throughout the cultural world. Persian folk singers, storytellers, and virtuosos of “kamanche” and “surna” have gained fame far beyond the borders of their homeland. Brilliant poets and musicians Saadi, Hafiz and others sang their poetic works, accompanying themselves on the “chang”.
There were many musicians at the Shah's court, but their lot was hard. The great poet Ferdowsi captured a truly terrible picture in the poem “Shakhname”: the king tramples to death with a camel a girl who, with gentle music, almost prevented him from hitting the game with an arrow while hunting. After the Mongol invasion, Persian music entered a period of centuries-long decline.


Egyptian harp. (Image found in the tomb of Ramses IV.)

In the countries of the Arabian Peninsula and in northern Africa, before the Arab conquests, there were cultures dating back thousands of years with highly developed musical art. The oldest of all the musical monuments of humanity known to us belongs to Babylon. This is the music of a song of praise recorded in wedge-shaped signs about the appearance of man on earth.
Syria is the birthplace of inspired lyrical hymns, widely popular in the ancient world. The famous poet-musician John of Damascus was from there.
Egypt was famous for agricultural and river "Nile" songs, folk performances with music in honor of the gods Osiris and Isis. Instrumental art flourished there. The Egyptian harp had an arched shape, its palm fiber strings sounded unusually tender.

The lute is an ancient plucked string musical instrument with frets on the neck and an oval body.

Arabic music originated in the Arabian Peninsula. Bedouin nomads created songs of drivers, songs of praise and lamentation, songs of revenge. The first famous Arab singers and virtuosos appeared in Arabia, who had no equal in playing the “lute” - a plucked instrument that later went around the entire cultural world. Poetry and music among the Arabs went hand in hand, improving each other.
In the Middle Ages, the music of the Arabs absorbed various elements of the art of the peoples they conquered, many of their tunes, modes, and genres. "Rubai", lyrical "ghazals", short "kita" of rhyming couplets, long, lush "qasidas" - all of them were set to music. The Arabic melody is based on a special 22-step system, unfamiliar to the musical art of Europe. Its distinctive features are a flexible, changeable rhythm, the intricate figures of which are beaten out by percussion instruments, a wealth of improvisations, and the guttural speech of the singer. In combination with magnificent melodic patterns, this creates the impression of bright colors and ardor of feelings.
Subsequently, the Turkish conquest, and even later colonial oppression (French, British, etc.) doomed Arab music to half a millennium of stagnation.