Amnon Shiloah – författare

A fascinating aspect of the study of music in medieval Islamic and Judaic writings is the broad and interdisciplinary nature of the works and treatises in which it is covered. In addition, such works verbalize an art that was transmitted orally and took shape spontaneously, typically with improvisation during performance. As a result of this outlook the musical concept (or science) is often intertwined with practice (or history). This second collection by Amnon Shiloah brings together twenty-two studies exemplifying such multi-faceted viewpoints on the world of sounds and its virtue. The first studies concern the origin and originators of music and to how its essential constituents came into being; included here is the art of dance along with the controversial attitudes towards it. Next comes the symbolic, philosophical and metaphorical interpretation of music; one of the major ideas epitomizing this approach claimed that the pursuit of knowledge is the path to human perfection and happiness. There follow studies on the transmission of knowledge, along with some annotated key works dealing with therapeutic effects. The last articles focus on cultural traditions elaborated on European soil developing a particular style and musical practice, centred on the Iberian Peninsula, which was the scene of one of the most fascinating examples of cultural interchange.

This work provides an analysis of Jewish music. Drawing upon hundreds of sources, it explains what constitutes Jewish music and the socio-cultural context in which it evolved.

The story of music told in these pages begins in pre-islamic times with musical forms that bear strong imprints of the Bedouin's tribal way of life. Pre-islamic music can be viewed as the forerunner of the art music that acquired a foot-hold after the advent of Islam. The history of Arab music then became inextricably entwined with the musical traditions of the conquered lands. The merging of diverse forms into an unique common style marked the advent of the Great Musical Tradition that gained favour throughout an extensive geographical area. By the end of Islam's third century, distinct autonomous styles began to appear involving Persians and Turks in particular. Chapters six and seven are devoted to the different local styles. Chapters eight examines the tendency toward reform and modernisation that starts at the nineteenth century. The last four chapters deal with the basic theoretical, formal and technical issues, e.g. scales, modes and rhythms; forms and genres; dance and folk music. This material often supplements the more general information treated in historical context in the first chapters. In conceiving this book we have aspired to portray a comprehensive picture emphasising the how and why, a picture drawn in the light of major historical and cultural events. We have endeavoured to present concepts about music, and conflicting attitudes toward it, as they prevailed in their time. To this end, we have taken fullest advantage of the great number of sources now available. Our overview of the music and musical life of an immense geographical area over a time-span that lasted roughly from the fifth century to our days, attempts to describe outstanding musical events and stylistic developments against the background of major historical and political happenings, and to indicate their relationship to other cultural fields.

Though we can no longer hear how it sounded, the written sources that remain provide much information on the music of the medieval Islamic and Jewish worlds, on how it was regarded and on the importance that was attached to it. Amnon Shiloah has been a pioneer in the exploration of these sources, and the present volume brings together some of the results. The opening studies examine, with annotated translations, several key works expounding the meaning of music and its power, in terms of its ethical and therapeutic effects and properties. The following articles focus on scientific writings about music and on the transmission of musical knowledge, while the final section approaches the subject from the angle of religion, noting how the power attributed to music occasioned the distrust of many religious figures, who feared its capacity to deprave and debase its audience. Bien que nous ne puissions plus de nos jours l’entendre, les sources écrites qui ont survécu apportent énormément d’information sur la musique des mondes juifs et islamiques, sur l’importance qui y était attachée et sur son rôle. Le professeur Shiloah est un des pionniers en terme d’exploration de ces sources et le présent volume rassemble un certain nombre des résultats de ses recherches. Les premières études, accompagnées de traductions annotées, font l’examen de plusieurs travaux importants, exposant la signification de la musique et sa puissance de par ses effets et ses propriétés morales et thérapeutiques. Les articles suivants se concentrent sur les écrits scientifiques au sujet de la musique et sur la propagation de la connaissance musicale. La dernière section aborde le sujet à partir de l’aspect de la religion, soulignant combien le pouvoir attribué à la musique entraînait une certaine méfiance de la part d’un certain nombre de religieux, qui craignaient son aptitude à avilir et dépraver ceux qui l’ecoutaient.

A fascinating aspect of the study of music in medieval Islamic and Judaic writings is the broad and interdisciplinary nature of the works and treatises in which it is covered. In addition, such works verbalize an art that was transmitted orally and took shape spontaneously, typically with improvisation during performance. As a result of this outlook the musical concept (or science) is often intertwined with practice (or history). This second collection by Amnon Shiloah brings together twenty-two studies exemplifying such multi-faceted viewpoints on the world of sounds and its virtue. The first studies concern the origin and originators of music and to how its essential constituents came into being; included here is the art of dance along with the controversial attitudes towards it. Next comes the symbolic, philosophical and metaphorical interpretation of music; one of the major ideas epitomizing this approach claimed that the pursuit of knowledge is the path to human perfection and happiness. There follow studies on the transmission of knowledge, along with some annotated key works dealing with therapeutic effects. The last articles focus on cultural traditions elaborated on European soil developing a particular style and musical practice, centred on the Iberian Peninsula, which was the scene of one of the most fascinating examples of cultural interchange.

Israel, with its highly heterogeneous immigrant society, offers to the observer a fascinating instance of multifaceted performance practice. Within a relatively limited area, there are numerous musical traditions and styles which encompass sacred and secular, old and new, folk and sophisticated forms. The ten contributions included in these issues of Musical Performance represent a discussion of the most significant traditions that were established during the period before 1948: the search for the establishment of a new and typically Israeli art and folk music; the attitude of the protagonists of this tendency toward the old exiled traditional heritage of the Jewish people, and the struggle of the immigrants after the creation of the State of Israel to ensure the survival of their musical tradtions as well as to cope with the new physical and cultural environment. Altogether the general scope of these contributions correspond to a large extent to major events which marked the m