- Music of Palestine
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The music of Palestine (Arabic: الموسيقى الفلسطينية, al-musiqa-l-filastaniyya, "the Palestinian music") is one of many regional sub-genres of Arabic music. While it shares much in common with Arabic music, both structurally and instrumentally, there are musical forms and subject matter that are distinctively Palestinian.[1]
Contents
Historical development
Pre-1948
Palestinian shepherd flutist in traditional dress, c.1910-1920
In the areas now controlled by both Israel and the Palestinian National Authority, multiple ethnic groups, races and religions have long held on to a diversity of cultures. Palestinians (including Druze and Bedouin) constituted the largest group, followed by Jews (including Sephardim and Ashkenazim), Egyptians, Cypriots, Samaritans, Circassians Armenians, Dom, and others. Wasif Jawhariyyeh was one oud-player, famous for his post 1904-diary.
Early in the 20th century, Palestinians that lived in rural areas, either as farmers or as nomads. The farmers (fellaheen) sang a variety of work songs, used for tasks like fishing, shepherding, harvesting and making olive oil. Traveling storytellers and musicians called zajaleen were also common, known for their epic tales. Weddings were also home to distinctive music, especially the dabke, a complex dance performed by linked groups of dancers. Popular songs made use of widely-varying forms, particularly the mejana and dal'ona (see below Forms of Palestinian Songs).
Post-1948
See also: Palestinian musicAfter the creation of Israel in 1948, large numbers of Arab Palestinians fled to, or were forced into, refugee camps in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. The most popular recorded musicians at the time were the superstars of Arab classical music, especially Umm Kulthum and Sayed Darwish. The centers for Palestinian music were in the Palestinian (now Israeli) towns of Nazareth and Haifa, where performers composed in the classical styles of Cairo and Damascus. A shared Palestinian identity was reflected in a new wave of performers who emerged with distinctively Palestinian themes, relating to the dreams of statehood and the burgeoning nationalist sentiment.
In the 1970s, a new wave of popular Palestinian stars emerged, including Sabreen and Al Ashiqeen. After the 1987 First Intifada, a more hard-edged group of performers and songwriters emerged, such as al- Funoun, songwriter Suhail Khoury, songwriter Jameel al-Sayih, Thaer Barghouti's Doleh and Sabreen's Mawt a'nabi.
In the 1990s, the Palestinian National Authority was established, and Palestinian cultural expression began to stabilize. Wedding bands, which had all but disappeared during the fighting, reappeared to perform popular Egyptian and Lebanese songs. Other performers to emerge later in the 90s included Yuad, Washem, Mohsen Subhi, Adel Salameh, Issa Boulos, Wissam Joubran, Samir Joubran, and Basel Zayed with his new sound of Palestine and Turab group founded in 2004 with the CD Hada Liel. Reem Kelani currently performs Palestinian folk songs.
A large part of Palestinian music includes wedding songs. Due to the large amount of weddings in Palestinian culture, wedding singers have been able to maintain the tradition of Palestinian songs whilst incorporating modern vocals and rhythms. Wedding singers draw from a repertoire of ceremonial material including henna songs sung at the henna ceremony, wedding processionals (zeffat), and popular debkah and dance songs.
Music and identity
Palestinian music reflects Palestinian experience.[3] As might be expected, much of it deals with the struggle with Israel, the longing for peace, and the love of the land of Palestine. A typical example of such a song is Baladi, Baladi (My Country, My Country), which has become the unofficial Palestinian national anthem:
Palestine, Land of the fathers,
To you, I do not doubt, I will return.
Struggle, revolution, do not die,
For the storm is on the land.[4]Zareef et Tool is one of the most popular Palestinian songs of today and can be traced back decades. The song encourages Palestinians not to leave their homeland.[5]:
يا زريف الطول وقّف تاقلك ... رايح عالغربة و بلادك أحسنلك
خايف يا زريف تروح و تتملك .. و تعاشر الغير و تنساني أناO, elegant and tall one stop so I can tell you
You are going abroad and your country is better for you
I am afraid you will get established there
And find someone else and forget meForms of traditional Palestinian songs
Unlike many other cultures, traditional Palestinian songs have no set lyrics but rather a set rhythm to them. The singers are usually family members or close friends that make up the lyrics on the spot. At modern Palestinian events there may be a professional singer but the forms mentioned below, still very popular today, were created before the popularization of professional singers. Therefore, the song lyrics differ from city to city. Many types of Palestinian songs, including Atab/Mejana and Dal'ona, have transcended time. Due to the relevance of the subject matter and the need to maintain tradition and culture, traditional types of Palestinian songs can still be heard at events of today, such as weddings or gatherings. They still remain extremely popular throughout the Palestinian culture. These forms of songs include:[5]
1. Mejana or Ataba is the most popular type of song in Palestine. You can hear farmers, workers, and shepherds singing the Palestinian song while doing their jobs. However, weddings are the main environment for the songs. As with the other forms of songs, Mejana deals with poetry. Usually the singer starts with the long sound of, "Ooaaaff". Then the verses of ataba follow. Ataba is composed of four verses of poetry. The first three end with the same word in sound but different meanings. The fourth verse ends with a word that usually ends with a sound like, "Aab or Aywa!".[5]
2. Dal'ona is the second most popular type of song is Palestine. It is easier to compose than ataba because it does not require the similar sound of the ends of the first three verses. However, like ataba, dal'na had four verses of poetry where the first three have similar endings and the fourth usually ends with a sound like, "Oana". Dal'ona is the sound of the Palestinian popular dance, dabka, where the dancers sing it along with the sound of the shubbabah (flute), yarghool or mijwiz.[5]
3. The Sahja is another popular form of Palestinian song usually sung at weddings. It may be done by men or women and involves clapping to the rhythm of song that is being sung to the bride for women, or groom for men. The men gather in two lines and facing each other or surround the groom. Then the zajal leads the sahja. The zajal is a talented singer or close family member who sings the sahja on the spot. The zajal leads the sahja with a verse, and the entire group repeats. The sahja done by women consists of the same idea but with many women leading (usually older women) while the young women repeat. Also, the women may add a loud, "Lolololeey" during and at the end of the sahja. Also, there is no female zajal.
4. Zaghareet (pl) is one of the oldest forms of Palestinian songs. It is another important form of song during Palestinian weddings. The zaghreet is traditionally sung by women at weddings or important events. One woman starts the zaghroot with a loud, "Heeey Hee..." or "Aweeha...". She then continues with a small poem or few short rhyming words. After the women are done they all join with a loud, "Lolololoolololoeeeey" sound. Unlike the womens sahja, the zaghroot involves no clapping an only one women must take turns to offer a zaghareet.
Palestinian hip hop
Main article: Palestinian hip hopBeginning in the late 1990s, Palestinian youth forged a new Palestinian musical sub-genre - Palestinian rap or hip hop - which blends Arabic melodies and Western beats, with lyrics in Arabic, English and even Hebrew.
Borrowing from traditional rap music that first emerged in the ghettos of Los Angeles and New York in the 1970s, "young Palestinian musicians have tailored the style to express their own grievances with the social and political climate in which they live and work"[6]
DAM were pioneers in forging this blend. As Arab citizens of Israel, they rap in Arabic, Hebrew, and English often challenging stereotypes about Palestinians and Arabs head-on in songs like "Meen Erhabe?" ("Who's a terrorist?")
More peculiar is the West Bank group Ramallah Underground, found by the two brothers Aswatt, Boikutt and Stormtrap. Their sound is a mix of hip hop, trip hop, downtempo alongside traditional Arab music.
Some Palestinians have even broken into the Western hip hop world, like DJ Khaled. Khaled, born of Palestinian immigrants, is a DJ, radio personality, hip hop producer, and record label executive. In 2009, Khaled became the president of record label Def Jam South. He has worked with many artists, including, Usher, Lil' Wayne, Drake, T-Pain, Akon, Fat Joe, Rick Ross and more.
Repression under Hamas rule
According to the human rights organization Freemuse, Palestinian musicians feared the same was going to happen in the Palestinian territories where Islamic fundamentalists have become increasingly assertive since the militant Hamas group scored political gains in the Palestinian Authority local elections of 2005.[7]
In 2005 an outdoor music and dance performances in Qalqiliya were suddenly banned by the Hamas led municipality, for the reason that such an event would be forbidden by Islam. The municipality also ordered that music no longer be played in the Qalqiliya zoo, and mufti Akrameh Sabri issued a religious edict affirming the municipality decision.[7][8] In response, the Palestinian national poet Mahmoud Darwish warned that "There are Taliban-type elements in our society, and this is a very dangerous sign".[7][8][9][10]
The Palestinian columnist Mohammed Abd Al-Hamid, a resident of Ramallah, warned that this religious coercion could cause the migration of artists, and said "The religious fanatics in Algeria destroyed every cultural symbol, shattered statues and rare works of art and liquidated intellectuals and artists, reporters and authors, ballet dancers and singers - are we going to imitate the Algerian and Afghani examples?"[8]
Musicians and instruments from Jerusalem, anno 1860
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Tambourine and Zills
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Oud player
See also
- List of Palestinians: Musicians
- Palestinian Arabic
- Palestinians
References
- ^ Rima Tarazi (April 2007). "The Palestinian National Song:A Personal Testimony". This Week in Palestine. http://www.thisweekinpalestine.com/details.php?id=2099&ed=139&edid=139.
- ^ William McClure Thomson, (1860): The Land and the Book: Or, Biblical Illustrations Drawn from the Manners and Customs, the Scenes and Scenery, of the Holy Land Vol II, p. 578.
- ^ Regev Motti (1993), Oud and Guitar: The Musical Culture of the Arabs in Israel (Institute for Israeli Arab Studies, Beit Berl), ISBN 965-454-002-9, p. 4.
- ^ Babnik and Golani, ed (2006). Musical View on the Conflict in the Middle East. Jerusalem: Minerva Instruction and Consultation Group. ISBN 978-965-7397-03-9.Lyrics by Ali Ismayel.
- ^ a b c d http://www.barghouti.com/folklore/songs/
- ^ Amelia Thomas. "Israeli-Arab rap: an outlet for youth protest". Christian Science Monitor. http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0721/p11s01-wome.html?s=widep.
- ^ a b c Palestine: Taliban-like attempts to censor music Freemuse – The World Forum On Music And Censorship. 17 August 2005.
- ^ a b c Afghanistan in Palestine, by Zvi Bar'el, Haaretz, 26.07.05
- ^ "Palestinians Debate Whether Future State Will be Theocracy or Democracy". Associated press, July 13, 2005.
- ^ Gaza Taliban? by Editorial Staff, The New Humanist, Volume 121 Issue 1, January/February 2006
Books
- Morgan, Andy and Mu'tasem Adileh. "The Sounds of Struggle". 2000. In Broughton, Simon and Ellingham, Mark with McConnachie, James and Duane, Orla (Ed.), World Music, Vol. 1: Africa, Europe and the Middle East, pp 385–390. Rough Guides Ltd, Penguin Books. ISBN 1-85828-636-0
Further reading
- Cohen, Dalia and Ruth Katz (2005). Palestinian Arab Music : A Maqam Tradition in Practice. University of Chicago Press. ISBN 0-226-11298-5.
- Mashmalon, Micah (1988). Palestinian Folk Songs (Morris Moore Series in Musicology, 4). Shazco. ISBN 9998300916.
External links
- Smithsonian Jerusalem Project: Palestinian Music Winter 1999, Issue 3, Jerusalem Quarterly
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