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3 Translation of GIT committish: FILL-IN-HEAD-COMMITTISH
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21 @subsection Arabic music
26 * Arabic music notation overview::
28 * References for Arabic music::
32 @node Arabic music notation overview
33 @unnumberedsubsubsec Arabic music notation overview
36 @cindex medium intervals
40 Arabic music so far has been mainly an oral tradition. When music
41 is transcribed, it is usually in a sketch format, on which
42 performers are expected to improvise significantly. Increasingly,
43 Western notation, with a few variations, is adopted in order to
44 communicate and preserve Arabic music.
46 Some elements of Western musical notation such as the
47 transcription of chords or independent parts, are not required to
48 typeset the more traditional Arabic pieces. There are however
49 some different issues, such as the need to indicate medium
50 intervals that are somewhere between a semi-tone and a tone, in
51 addition to the minor and major intervals that are used in Western
52 music. There is also the need to indicate different maqams which
53 are more similar to the ancient modes, than modern musical scales,
54 in the sense that certain flows, intervals, quality of intervals,
55 musical patterns and finalis are part of the maqam, and may
56 distinguish two maqams that have the same scale intervals.
58 In general, Arabic music notation does not attempt to precisely
59 indicate microtonal elements that are present in musical practice.
60 The mode, if present, may indicate the quality of intervals,
61 including medium intervals.
65 @unnumberedsubsubsec Note names
67 @cindex Arabic note names
69 The more traditional Arabic music note names indicate an absolute
70 position on an instrument, for example the note name of kardan
71 refers to the pitch produced when the first (and highest in pitch)
72 open string on a traditional oud is plucked. This is notated as
73 @code{do''}, ie a C note that fits in the treble clef, but the
74 actual pitch produced on the oud is equivalent to the middle C on
75 a piano if Western tuning is used (since the oud sounds an octave
76 lower than notated). Many of the more familiar Arabic note names
77 are associated with maqams for which they serve as the finalis.
79 @multitable {Arabic Note Name} {symbol}
138 The Arabic note names can be quite long and are not suitable for
139 the purpose of music writing, so they are not defined by the
140 inclusion of "arabic.ly". English note names @code{a, b, c, d, e,
141 f, g} are not very familiar in Arabic music education. Italian or
142 Solfege note names @code{do, re, mi, fa, sol, la, si} are more
143 familiar, and can be used when @code{"arabic.ly"} is included.
144 Modifiers may be used, as discussed in
145 @ref{Note names in other languages}.
147 For example, this is how the Arabic rast scale can be notated:
149 @lilypond[quote,verbatim]
150 %\include "arabic.ly"
152 % do re misb fa sol la sisb do sisb la sol fa misb re do
162 @ref{Note names in other languages}.
165 @node References for Arabic music
166 @subsubsection References for arabic music