ترجمة

Sunday, February 28, 2010

BBC Weird Nature - Peculiar Potions

An astonishing exploration of nature's strangest behavior. From cartwheeling caterpillars to acrobatic skunks, nature reveals its wondrous, spectacular and undoubtedly bizarre side. In six engrossing episodes, many natural oddities of animal behavior are explored, interpreted and filmed in exquisite detail. Using a unique presentation that combines elements of drama and special effects to explaing each amazong subject, Weird Nature delves deep into the every day lives of living things to reveal that the bizarre is commonplace in the natural world. This complete series includes the following episodes: Marvellous Motion Bizarre Breeding Fantastic Feeding Devious Defences Puzzling Partners Peculiar Potions

Amazing! Aphid cloning - Battle of the Animal Sexes - BBC Wildlife



Amazing animal footage of the female aphid as it produces hundreds of clone daughters. Fascinating short video from BBC wildlife show 'Battle of the Sexes in the Animal World'.
 
 

List of First Nations peoples in Canada

List of First Nations peoples

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The following is a partial list of First Nations peoples organized by linguistic-cultural area. This list does not include Metis or Canadian Inuit groups. The areas used here are in accordance to those developed by the enthologist and linguist Edward Sapir, and used by the Canadian Museum of Civilization.[1]

Contents

[hide]

British Columbia Coast

These people traditionally ate fish, primarily salmon and silvery eulachon from the ocean, as well as fish from lakes and rivers, and roots and berries. Recently discovered clam gardens suggest that they were not limited only to hunting and gathering.'They made use of the forests of the Pacific to build dug-out canoes, and houses made of evenly-split planks of wood. They used tools made of stone and wood. The native peoples of the Pacific coast also made totem poles, a trait attributed to other tribes as well. In 2000 a land claim was settled between the Nisga'a people of British Columbia and the provincial government, resulting in the transfer of over 2,000 square kilometres of land to the Nisga'a. Major ethnicities include the:

 British Columbia Interior

Plains

These people traditionally used tipis covered with skins as their homes. Their main sustenance was the bison, which they used as food, as well as for all their garments. The leaders of some Plains tribes wore large headdresses made of feathers, something which is wrongfully attributed by some to all First Nations peoples. Major ethnicies include the:

Plateau

Western subarctic

These peoples live in the boreal forest in what are now Canada's western provinces and territories. They were originally hunter-gatherers dependent on caribou, moose and the fur trade. Most spoke Athapaskan languages except the Crees and Inland Tlingit. Major ethnicities in the Yukon, Northwest Territories and the northern parts of the western provinces (British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba) include the following:

 Woodlands and eastern subarctic

Major ethnicies include the:

Atlantic coastal region

 St. Lawrence River Valley

The largest First Nations group near the St. Lawrence waterway are the Iroquois. This area also includes the Wyandot (formerly referred to as the Huron) peoples of central Ontario, and the League of Five Nations who had lived in the United States, south of Lake Ontario. Major ethnicities include the:

See also

الشاعرة سعاد الصبّاح - "ليلة القبض على فاطمة"

تقول الشاعرة الصبّاح:

هذي بلادٌ تَختـنُ القصيدةَ الأنثى..
وتشنُقُ الشمسَ لدى طلوعها..
حفظاً لأمن العائلة..

وتذبحُ المرأة إن تكلمتْ..
أو فكرت..
أو كتبت..
أو عشقت..
غسلاً لعار العائلة.

هذي بلادٌ لا تريد امرأةً رافضة..
ولا تريد امرأة غاضبة..
ولا تريد امرأة خارجة..
على طقوس العائلة...

هذي بلاد لا تريد امرأةً..
تمشي أمام القافله...

-2-

هذي بلادٌ أكلت نساءها
واضطجعت سعيدةً
تحت سياط الشمس والهجير
هذي بلادُ الواقِ والواقِ..
التي تصادر التفكير.
وتذبحُ المرأةَ في فراش العرس كالبعير.
وتمنعُ الأسماك أن تسبحَ
والطيور أن تطير.

هذي بلادٌ تكرهُ الوردة إن تفتّحتْ..
وتكره العبير..
ولا ترى في الحلمِ إلاّ الجنسَ والسرير..


-3-
هذي بلادٌ أغلقت سماءها..
وحنّطت نساءها..
فالوجه فيها عورةٌ..
والصوتُ فيها عورةٌ..
والفكر فيها عورةٌ..
والشعر فيها عورةٌ..
والحب فيها عورةٌ..
والقمر الأخضر والرسائلُ الزرقاءُ..

هذي بلادي ألغت الربيع من حسابها..
وألغت الشتاء.
وألغت العيونَ والبكاء.
هذي بلادٌ هربت من عقلها
واختارت الإغماء.

-4-
ماذا تريد المدنُ النائمة الكسولة الغافله.
منّي،
أنا الجارحةُ الكاسرةُ المقاتله.
إن كان عقلي ما يريدون،
فلا يسعدني بأن أكون عاقله.

ما تفعل المرأة في أمطارها؟
ما تفعل المرأة في أنهارها؟
كيف تُرى يمكنها أن تزرعَ الوردَ
على هذه الجرود القاحله؟

-5-
ماذا من المرأة يبتغون في بلادنا؟
يبغونها مسلوقة
يبغونها مشوية
يبغونها معجونة بشحمها ولحمها
يبغونها عروسة من سكر
جاهزةً للوصل كلَّ لحظة
يبغونها صغيرة وجاهلة.
هذي هي الوصايا العشر
في حفظ تراث العائلة.

-6-

معذرة.. معذرة..
لن أتخلى قط عن أظافري..
فسوف أبقى دائماً..
أمشي أمام القافله...
وسوف أبقى دائماً..
مقتولةً.. أو قاتله.

من أجمل قصائد سعاد الصباح

نبذة عن الشاعرة سعاد الصباح

الدكتورة سعاد الصباح شاعرة و كاتبة و ناقدة ولدت في مايو عام 1942 , و هي الابنة البكر لوالدها الشيخ محمد الصباح الذي حمل اسم جده الشيخ (محمد الصباح) حاكم الكويت, وفي عام 1973 حصلت على البكالوريوس في الاقتصاد مع مرتبة الشرف من كلية الاقتصاد جامعة القاهرة, ثم حصلت على الماجستير من بريطانيا و موضوع الرسالة التنمية و التخطيط في دولة الكويت، ثم حصلت على الدكتوراه في الاقتصاد و العلوم السياسية من جامعة ساري جلفورد بالمملكة المتحدة وهي أول كويتية نالت الدكتوراه في الاقتصاد باللغة الإنجليزية و قد تم ترجمتها للعربية، وهي عضو مجلس الأعضاء لمؤسسة التعاون بجنيف، وعضو مؤسس للمؤسسة الثقافية العربية بلندن، و عضو جمعية الصحافيين و الخريجين الكويتية، عضو اللجنة التنفيذية للمنظمة العالمية للنساء المسلمات لجنوب شرق آسيا، و عضو الاتحاد العالمي لاقتصاديات الطاقة، و عضو مجلس الأمناء و اللجنة التنفيذية لمنتدى الفكر العربي في عمان، عضو مجلس الأمناء بمركز الدراسات العبرية - جامعة اليرموك، وعضو مؤسس للمجلس العربي للطفولة و التنمية بالقاهرة، عضو جمعية علم الاجتماع بتونس، و عضو المجلس الاستشاري للاتحاد الدولي لتنظيم الأسرة بلندن، رئيسة شرف لجمعية بيادر النسائية الكويتية الأمريكية - الكويت، و رئيسة فخرية لمركز الإبداع العلمي - البحرين، منحت درجة الزمالة من كلية سانت كاترين بجامعة أكسفورد، أسست دار سعاد الصباح للنشر و التوزيع.

يقولــــــون ؛
ان الكتابة اثــــم عظيـــم ...
فلا تكتبـــى .
وانّ الصلاة أمام الحروف ... حرام
فلا تقربـــى .
وانّ مداد القصائــــــد سمّ ...
فايّاك أن تشربى .
وها أنـــــذا
قد شـــربت كثيرا
فلم أتسمّم بحبر الدواة على مكتبى
وها أنـــــذا ...
قد كتبت كثيــــرا
وأضرمت فى كل نجم حريقا كبيرا
فما غضب الله يوما علىّ
ولا أســتاء منىّ النبىّ .....

يقولــــــون ؛
انّ الكلام امتياز الرجــال ...
فلا تنطقى !!
وانّ التغزّل فنّ الرجــــال ...
فلا تعشقى !!
وانّ الكتابة بحر عميق المياه
فلا تغرقى ...
وها أنذا قد عشقت كثيرا ...
وها أنذا قد سبحت كثيرا ...
وقاومت كلّ البحار ولم أغـرق ...

يقولـــــون :
انى كسرت بشعرى جدار الفضيله
وان الرجال هم الشعراء
فكيف ستولد شاعرة فى القبيله ؟؟
وأضحك من كل هذا الهراء
وأسخر ممن يريدون فى عصر حرب الكواكب ..
وأد النســاء ...
وأسأل نفسى ؛
لماذا يكون غناء الذكور حلالا
ويصبح صوت النساء رذيـــــله ؟

لماذا ؟
يقيمون هذا الجدار الخرافىّ
بين الحقول وبين الشــــجر
وبين الغيوم وبين المطر
ومابين أنثى الغزال ، وبين الذكر ؟
ومن قال ؛ للشعر جنس ؟
وللنثر جنس ؟
وللفكر جنس ؟
ومن قال ان الطبيعة
ترفض صوت الطيـــور الجميله ؟

يقولـــــون ؛
انّى كســـرت رخامة قبرى ...
وهذا صحيــــح .
وانّى ذبحت خفافيش عصرى ...
وهذا صحيــــح .
وانّى اقتلعت جذور النفاق بشعرى
وحطّمت عصر الصفيح
فان جرّحونى ...
فأجمل مافى الوجود غزال جريح
وان صلّبونى . فشكرا لهم
لقد جعلونى بصفّ المســـيح ...
يقولـــون ؛
ان الأنوثة ضعـــف
وخير النساء هى المرأة الراضيه
وانّ التحرّر رأس الخطايا
وأحلى النساء هى المرأة الجاريه
يقولـــون ؛
ان الأديبات نوع غريب
من العشب ... ترفضه الباديه
وانّ التى تكتب الشعر ...
ليســت سوى غانيــــه !!
وأضحك من كلّ ما قيل عنّى
وأرفض أفكار عصر التنك
ومنطق عصر التنك
وأبقى أغنّى على قمّتى العاليه
وأعرف أنّ الرعود ستمضى ...
وأنّ الزوابع تمضى ...
وأن الخفافيش تمضى ...
وأعرف أنّهم زائلــــــــون
وأنّـــــى أنا الباقيـــــــــه ....

Saturday, February 27, 2010

Ensemble Ibn Arabi - Sufi Music : Je T´Aaime De Deux Amours (My Love for You Is Twofold)




عرفت الهوى
I knew love
مذ عرفت هواك
Since I knew your love
واغلقت قلبي
And  I locked my heart
عمن عداك
To anyone but you
وقمت اناجيك
and I confided in you
يامن تري
You who can see
خفايا القلوب
What's hidden in the hearts
ولست اراك
and I cannot see you

احبك حبين
I love you two loves ;
حب الهوى
a love for the sake of love
وحبا لانك اهل لذاك
and a love because you are worthy of it
فاما الذي هو حب الهوى
as for the love for the sake of love;
فشغلي بذكرك عمن سواك
It is about having my mind busy with you
and no one else
واما الذي انت اهل له
and as for the love that you deserve
فلست ارى الكون حتى اراك
I cannot even see the Universe without seeing you
فلا الحمد في ذا وذاك لي
so the gratitude for this and that is not to me
ولكن لك الحمد في ذا وذاك
but to you is the praise for all this and that



ادم ذكري من اهوى
Keep the memory of whom I love 
ولو بمنامي
even if in my dream
فان احاديث الحبيب
for the conversation of the beloved
مدامي
is my wine
وانها بطيف منامي
and she is in the shadow of my sleep
ليشهد سمعي من احب
so that my hearing would witness whom I love
بروحي من اتلفت روحي
بحبها
I give my life to her
whose love with which
I ruined my soul
فحان حمامي
so my death arrived
قبل يوم حمامي
long before the day my death
ولم يبق الحب مني
and love didnt leave of me
الا حزني
except my sadness
و كابتي
and my depression

وفرط سقامي
and too much illness
لينجو خلي
so that my lover
من هوائي بنفسه
would save himself from my love
سليما
and be safe
ويا نفس اذهبي
and Oh Soul..Leave...
بالسلام
in Peace ....

The Rasmus - Shot




Tonight we escape
just you and me
we'll find our peace
somewhere across the seas?

enough of the fright
enough of the fuss
I'll be awake if he finds us
needless to say
I'll stand in your way
I will protect you
and I...

I'll take the shot for you
I'll be the shield for you
needless to say
I'll stand in your way
I'll take the shot for you
I'll give my life for you
I'll make it stop
I'll take the shot for you
for you

tonight we'll be free
I'll find us a home?
tonight we will be
finally on our own

enough of the hell
enough of the pain
I won't let him touch you
I love you
needless to say
I'll stand in your way
I will defend you
and I'll....

I'll take the...

enough of the scars
enough broken hearts
I will protect you
and I..

I'll take the shot
I'll make it stop

I'll make it stop
I'll take the shot

Wednesday, February 24, 2010

To an Inconstant One بالعربي

I LOVED thee once
حبيتك مرة في شي يوم
I'll love no more--
ما عدت احب كمان
Thine be the grief as is the blame;
ما جبتيلي غير الهم واللوم
Thou art not what thou wast before,
انت مش زي ما كنتي زمان
What reason I should be the same?
شو السبب انّي ما اتغير اليوم
واضلني نفس الانسان

He that can love unloved again,
اللي بيحب اللي حبه مرّة وبّطل
Hath better store of love than brain
في قلبه حب
اكتر ما في براسه عقل
يعني بالعربي
أهبل

Nothing could have my love o'erthrown
لما كان في قلبي عرشك
ما كان في قوة تهزه
When new desires had conquer'd thee
بس لما صار حد جديد فقلبك
و حل الجفا
And changed the object of thy will, It had been lethargy in me,
كان كسل مني
استمريت بحبك
Not constancy, to love thee still.
لا إخلاص ولا وفا

I'll neither grieve nor yet rejoice
لا بحزن ولا بفرح
To see him gain what I have lost:
لما أشوف اللي خسرتو
مع غيري
وبين ايديه
The height of my disdain shall be
قمة شماتتي رح تكون
To laugh at him, to blush for thee;
أخجل علي حالك
واضحك عليه

To love thee still, but go no more
وبضلني احبك
بس خلص ما عاد
عندي استعداد
A-begging at a beggar's door.
متل الشحاد
أدق علي ابوابكم
واقول يامين
والحقيقة انو
انتو اللي شحاذين

Sir Robert Ayton. 1570-1638
To an Inconstant One

Monday, February 22, 2010

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle - Waste not, want not!

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

rrr (4K) Waste not, want not! It is an old saying, but with new and important relevance as communities come to grips with mounting residential, industrial and green waste.
Reduce
The best way to help our environment is to reduce our waste. Here are some suggestions:
  • when you go shopping, use a cloth bag or take a cardboard box with you so you don't have to bring home lots of useless plastic bags;
  • you do not need to put different fruits and vegetables into separate plastic bags. Most of them are already wrapped in their own natural packaging. Put them all together in a box or cloth bag;
  • if you cannot avoid using plastic bags, use them as garbage bags instead of buying bin bags especially designed to be thrown away.
Reuse
By reusing bottles and cans, you can save money and contribute to a better environment. For example, some jams are sold in reusable drinking glasses. You can even bottle your own jams or preserved fruits in reusable jars.
Tins and jars are also useful in the shed for storing nuts and bolts or even mixing paint. Some people use cut-off milk cartons because they stack together better.
Recycle
Recycling can help the environment in many ways. For example, it takes much less power to recycle an aluminium can than it does to make one from raw materials. Less coal is burned to produce the power to make the cans, and so there is less pollution.
Try to purchase products that come in recyclable containers. Check to see if the packaging can be recycled.

http://nawma.sa.gov.au/education/reduce.asp
Reduce Reuse Recycle.jpg
The best way to reduce your impact on the Earth is to be conscious of the waste you produce.  To do this, it takes more than just recycling, but you also need to first Reduce the amount of waste you produce, reuse things as much as possible and when you cannot do either of those, then recycle what is left over!   Check out the tips below for integrating the REDUCE, REUSE, RECYCLE philosophy in to your life.
REDUCE, REUSE, RECYCLE
This common phrase has real significance if you are looking to live more sustainably.  Here are a few ways to do just that:
REDUCE-  Don't Use It In The First Place
The best way to stick to the plan is not to generate the waste in the first place.  If you don’t create waste, you wont need to get rid of it! Here are some alternatives to disposable items.
Instead of... Try This...
Paper lunch bags A reusable, washable canvas bag or lunchbox
Baggies or plastic wrap A reusable container
Paper / plastic cups Bring a washable mug and use it instead!
Paper memos / reports Use e-mail (don’t print).  Print double sided reports
Copies, papers and reports Make all possible copies double sided
Using virgin paper in fax machines or printers Reuse the blank side of bad copies. If needed you can make a clean copy later
Buying new scratch pads Reuse the other side of excess documents
Electronics Energy Pigs Use Energy Star rated office equipment and UNPLUG everything when you aren’t using it!
REUSE - Use It As Many Times As Possible
Most things are like cats--they have multiple lives. It's up to us to let them live out those lives!
  • Reuse old product binders for other papers
  • Computer disks and file folders can be used over and over.
  • Empty tissue boxes can hold pens, pencils, etc.
  • Stop using disposable paper towels, coffee cups and water bottles – use something you can refill instead!
  • Skip the plastic bags at the Hub, grocery store or book store! Use your backpacks,
RECYCLE - Do It Again
Once a product has exhausted its lives, make it part of the great cycle--send it back to start over again as something new! The material you have already used can be broken down to use as raw material for another product – but only if you recycle it first!
Here at Purchase there are a multitude of bins to accept all your recyclables generated on campus. (See our recycling page for locations)
DID YOU KNOW???
·   Making aluminum cans out of raw materials takes 19 times the amount of energy than it takes to recycle a can
·   Recycling one ton of paper saves 7,000 gallons of water, 380 gallons of oil and 3 cubic yards of landfill space and 15 trees
·   Glass never wears out. It can be recycled forever.
·   Every 1,050 recycled milk jugs can make one six foot plastic park bench
·   Recycling one glass bottle saves enough energy to light a 100 watt bulb for four hours
Here are some tips for:
Reducing in you home
  • Instead of always taking new bags at the grocery store, use canvass bags instead!  Then bring the old plastic ones back to be recycled.
  • Shopping in bulk is good. Just be sure to buy bulk goods that use less packaging.
  • Instead of tissues, use cloth hankies
  • Flow reducers on faucets and shower heads save as much as 3 gallons of water per minute. The old "bottle in the toilet" trick saves water there too.
  • Use Compact Fluorescent Lightbulbs! They may be more expensive, but they last at least 10 times longer and use 1/10th the energy of a regular bulb.
  • Before you buy something new, ask yourself if you really need it, if the answer is no, leave it on the shelf!
Reusing in your home
  • Plastic milk jugs make great bird feeders
  • Broken clothes pins become magnets
  • Spring clip on hangers make great paper clips for large bundles
  • Paper towel tubes are a pet rodent's and small animal's delight
  • That old rug will work great in the garage to keep oil off the floor, make a soft spot for Spot, and keep kitty litter where it belongs
  • Baggie ties are great emergency shoelaces
  • Baggies are great for taking tissues with you and a lot cheaper than buying purse packs
  • Coffee cans can be used to bake bread, store small toys, decorated and used for small garden tools, sewing accessories, etc. Just be sure to smooth the cut edges
Recycling and composting
printable guidelines for recycling on campus are that the top of this page, under "Recycling flyers."
Also, while you are at it, start collecting your food waste for the Campus Garden Compost! Place all of your food scraps in a container and bring them to the Campus Garden.  However, meats, dairy and eggs should not be placed in the compost!  (Egg shells are okay). 

from https://www.purchase.edu/Departments/EnvironmentalSustainability/rrr.aspx

Sunday, February 21, 2010

The Rasmus - The Fight


Everything is still and calm
In the dead of night
Right before for the fight
Clouds are gathering for the storm
Destiny decides who will live or die



I've been waiting for this moment
It's time for the battle
Even if I never make it
Take me home
I might never get my story
Carved in stone
But I will rise again
The fight is to the end

Pounding of the drums of war
Turns your tears to mud
Rivers turns to blood

If you live to see another day
Take another breathe
Make it life or death

I've been waiting for this moment
It's time for the battle
Even if I never make it
Take me home
I might never get my story
Carved in stone
But I will rise again
The fight is to the end

Give me strength to carry on
'till my life is done

Everybody wants the glory
But you better remember
The fight is to the end
The fight is to the end

Thursday, February 18, 2010

اهو ده اللي صار

 p.s I like the video but what ruins it is having sadat and the soccer shit at the end..

كلمات سيد درويش
غناء علي الحجار
الحان سيد درويش

اهو ده اللي صار
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Maqam in Arabic Music

from Maqamworld.com
What is a Maqam ? In Arabic music, a maqam (plural maqamat) is a set of notes with traditions that define relationships between them, habitual patterns, and their melodic development. Maqamat are best defined and understood in the context of the rich Arabic music repertoire. The nearest equivalent in Western classical music would be a mode (e.g. Major, Minor, etc.)
The Arabic scales which maqamat are built from are not even-tempered, unlike the chromatic scale used in Western classical music. Instead, 5th notes are tuned based on the 3rd harmonic. The tuning of the remaining notes entirely depends on the maqam. The reasons for this tuning are probably historically based on string instruments like the oud. A side effect of not having even-tempered tuning is that the same note (by name) may have a slightly different pitch depending on which maqam it is played in.
What are Quarter Tones ?
Many maqamat include notes that can be approximated with quarter tones (depicted using the half-flat sign or the half-sharp sign ), although they rarely are precise quarters falling exactly halfway between two semitones. Even notes depicted as semitones sometimes include microtonal subtleties depending on the maqam in which they are used. For this reason, when writing Arabic music using the Western notation system, there is an understanding that the exact tuning of each note might vary with each maqam and must be learned by ear.
Another peculiarity of maqamat is that the same note is not always played with the same exact pitch. The pitch may vary slightly, depending on the melodic flow and what other notes are played before and after that note. The idea behind this effect is to round sharp corners in the melody by drawing the furthest notes nearer. This effect is sometimes called the law of attraction or gravity, and is common in other musical traditions (e.g. in Byzantine music).
Are maqamat transposable ?
When Arabic maqamat are taught and documented, each maqam is usually associated with the same starting note (tonic). For example, maqam Bayati is almost always shown as starting on D in reference textbooks.
In general maqamat are transposable, but only to a handful of other tonics. For example, maqam Bayati usually starts on D, but it can also start on G and A. When transposing Arabic maqamat, musicians mention the tonic name after the maqam name for clarity (e.g. "Bayati on G" or "Bayati on A"). For this reason also, only a few quarter tones are exploited (with the understanding that the term quarter tone is approximate, and that many semitones include microtonal variations). The most frequently used quarter tones are: E, A and B.
This is unlike scales in Western classical music, where for example each scale can have 11 possible tonics. Total freedom to transpose requires playing Western music on even-tempered instruments (e.g. the piano) where all semitone intervals are exactly equal.
The reasons behind this limitation are probably technical and pragmatic, and have to do with the difficulty of transposing freely on classical Arabic instruments (oud, nay, qanun). On the oud for example, it is important to be able to exploit open strings to play tonics, 4th and 5th notes, since the sound on open strings is always in tune and louder. In addition, since the oud tuning is not even-tempered but based on harmonic 4th and 5th intervals between open strings, maqamat dont sound equally in tune and pleasant on every tonic.
Some maqamat change names when transposed because they vary in their feel or mood. A maqam could also have a different melodic development (sayr) when transposed, including a different dominant note, etc. For example maqam Rahat El Arwah is a transposed version of maqam Huzam, but they have different moods. To describe the difference using very subjective terminology, the first is lower, more mellow and spiritual, the second is higher, lighter and funkier.
Another reason for different transposed versions of a maqam having different names might be historic, since each name (and tonic) may have been used in a different region (Arab, Persian, Turkish. etc.). An example of this is the Hijaz Kar, Shadd Araban, Shahnaz, and Suzidil maqamat, which all have the same tonal intervals.
While on the subject of transposition, musicians often retune their instruments a few semitones higher or lower than the absolute reference (e.g. A = 440 Hz) rather than transpose a maqam, especially in old 1920's and 1930's recordings. The reason for doing this is that melodies sound much better when their tonics and 4th/5th notes fall on open strings, because of the way string instruments like the oud or violin resonate. This is not the case with voice, for example.
How can maqamat be broken down ?
The building blocks for maqamat are sets of 3, 4 or 5 notes, called trichords, tetrachords and pentachords, respectively. The Arabic word for these sets is jins (plural ajnas). The word jins means the gender, type or nature of something. In general each maqam is made up two main ajnas (sets) called lower and upper jins. These can be joined at the same note, at two adjacent notes, or can overlap each other. A maqam may also include other secondary ajnas which are very useful for modulation. Instead of thinking of a maqam as a collection of 8 or more individual notes, it's often useful to think of it as a group of two or more ajnas (sets).
See the Ajnas (Sets) section.

Is there harmony in Arabic music ?
Arabic music is mostly melodic, which means it rarely includes harmony and chords. There are a few exceptions, read more in this excellent article about Harmony and Arabic Music. The main reason why harmony is rarely used is that chords dont sound very pleasant when they include quarter tones or microtonal variations. Harmony sounds best when notes have a natural harmonic relationship (3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th harmonic, etc). In Arabic music, this is true for a tonic and its fifth (3rd harmonic), but most of the time not true for any other note combination.
What is the difference between a maqam and a scale ?
The Arabic maqam is built on top of the Arabic scale. The maqam is generally made up of one octave (8 notes), although sometimes the maqam scale extends up to 2 octaves. But the maqam is much more than a scale:


  • A maqam may include microtonal variations such that tones, half tones and quarter tones in its underlying scale are not precisely that. E.g. the E in maqam Bayati is tuned slightly lower than the E in maqam Rast. These variations must be learned by listening not by reading, which is why the oral tradition is the correct way to learn Arabic music.



  • Each maqam has a different character which conveys a mood, in a similar fashion to the mood in a Major or Minor scale, although that mood is subjective. Since classical Arabic music is mostly melodic (excludes harmony), the choice of maqam greatly affects the mood of the piece.



  • Each maqam includes rules that define its melodic development (or sayr in Arabic). These rules describe which notes should be emphasized, how often, and in what order. This means that two maqamat that have the same tonal intervals but where one is a transposed version of the other may be played differently (e.g. maqamat Kurd and Hijaz Kar Kurd, or maqamat Nahawand and Farahfaza).

  • Each maqam includes rules that define the starting note (tonic, or qarar in Arabic), the ending note (or mustaqarr in Arabic), which in some cases is different to the tonic, and the dominant note (or ghammaz in Arabic). The dominant is the starting note of the second jins (in general the 5th, but sometimes the 4th or 3rd note), and serves as the pivot note during modulation.
See the Modulation section.
How many maqamat are there ?
There are dozens of Arabic maqamat, too many to list, including many Persian and Turkish hybrids. It's difficult to find a definitive list of Arabic maqamat that all textbooks agree on, or a definitive reference on which maqamat are strictly Arabic and which are Turkish or Persian. There are also many local maqamat used only in some regions of the Arab world (e.g. Iraq and North Africa), and unknown in others. But the most widely used and known maqamat are about 30 to 40, and these are the ones covered in this web site
See the Maqam Index section.
How is the intonation of the Arabic maqam changing with time ?

There is no absolute reference for the Arabic scale. In 1932, the Arabic Music Conference in Cairo established that regional variations existed in the intonation of Arabic maqamat. Within each region, oral traditions continued and created de-facto standards, although these standards converged to some extent with the advent of recording and broadcasting.

The phenomenon that greatly influenced intonation in Arabic music was the introduction of even-tempered instruments (some of which were altered to produce quarter tones), mostly in the second half of the 20th century. The accordion, electric guitar, electric (fretted) bass, piano, guitar, electric piano, electric organ and synthesizer were gradually introduced to the Arabic ensemble. The main incentive behind this change was innovation, modernization, and the desire to add harmony to Arabic music.
When Arabic maqamat are performed on even-tempered instruments, they sound different in subtle ways for the following reasons:


  • The intonation of the same quarter tone can vary with each maqam. For example, the E in maqam Rast has a higher tuning than the E in maqam Bayati. Even tempered instruments eliminate these subtle variations, producing dry and rigid quarter tones.


  • Moreover, the Arabic maqam has regional variations that make up a lot of its color. For example, the E in maqam Rast has a higher tuning in Aleppo than in Cairo. Even tempered instruments eliminate these regional variations, reducing the Arabic maqam to its lowest denominator.


  • Even semitones in the Arabic scale often include microtonal variations. A prime example are the 2nd and 3rd notes in the Hijaz tetrachord, which are played closer together so as to shrink the 1½ tone interval. These variations cannot be performed on even-tempered instruments. In case of harmonic music, microtonal variations are even undesirable since they reduce harmony.
With time, the original tuning of maqam Hijaz had been lost except in a handful of new recordings, and was replaced with what is called “piano Hijaz” (a derogatory term.) Equally bad is the “piano Ajam”, where the 3rd note should be slightly lower and more mellow. Maqamat like Jiharkah are rarely played on even-tempered instruments, even on ones that have been altered to produce quarter tones.
In conclusion, the new generation of Arabic musicians, singers and listeners is losing touch with the traditional intonation of the 1920s and 30s largely because of the introduction of even-tempered instruments and harmony in Arabic music.


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