- Arab tone system
The modern Arab tone system, or system of
musical tuning , is based upon the theoretical division of theoctave into twenty-four equal divisions or 24-toneequal temperament (24-TET), the distance between each successive note being aquarter tone (50 cents). Each tone has its own name not repeated in different octaves, unlike systems featuringoctave equivalency . The lowest tone is named "yakah" and is determined by the lowest pitch in the range of the singer. The next higher octave is "nawa" and the second "tuti". (Touma 1996, p.17-18) However, from these twenty-four tones seven are selected to produce a scale and thus the interval of a quarter tone is never used and the three-quarter tone orneutral second should be considered the characteristic interval. (ibid, p.23)By contrast, in the European equally tempered scale the octave is divided into twelve equal divisions, or exactly half as many as the Arab system. Thus the system is written in European
musical notation using a slashed flat forquarter flat , a flat for half-toneflat , a slashed flat and a flat forthree-quarter tone flat , sharp with one vertical line forquarter sharp , sharp (♯) for half-step sharp, and a half sharp and a sharp forthree-quarter sharp . A two octave range starting with "yakah" arbitrarily on the G below middle C is used. (ibid, p.24)In practice far fewer than twenty-four tones are used in a single performance. All twenty-four tones are individual pitches differentiated into a
hierarchy of important pitches, "pillars", which occur more frequently in thetone row s of traditional music and most often begin tone rows, and scattered less important or seldom occurring pitches (seetonality ). (ibid, p.24-25).The specific notes used in a piece will be part of one of more than seventy modes or
maqam rows named after characteristic tones which are rarely the first tone (unlike in European-influenced music theory where the tonic is listed first). The rows areheptatonic and constructed from augmented, major, neutral, andminor second s. Many different but similar ratios are proposed for the frequency ratios of the tones of each row and performance practice, as of 1996, has not been investigated using electronic measurements. (ibid, p.18) Actual practice is estimated to vary within a quarter tone from notation.The current tone system is derived from the work of
al-Farabi (d. 950 CE) (heptatonic scales constructed from seconds) who used a 25 (unequal) tone scale (seetetrachord ), withMikha'il Mishaqah (1800-1889) first presenting the 24 tone equal tempered division. (ibid, p.19)References
*Habib Hassan Touma (1996). "The Music of the Arabs", trans. Laurie Schwartz. Portland, Oregon: Amadeus Press. ISBN 0-931340-88-8.
ee also
*
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