The Great Book of Music

1 — The Art of Melodic Accompaniment:

This art is specifically concerned with embellishing vocal melodies with notes and rhythmic markings original: "tawqi'at." of their same genre, distributed in appropriate accompaniments. Some of these are "obligations" within the melody, such as the prelude original: "al-tasdir," an introductory instrumental opening., the interpretation original: "al-tarjama," referring to an instrumental response or "echo" that follows a vocal phrase., the repetition, and the addition. Others are "arrangements," such as matching with harmonious notes from instruments in a different register original: "tabaqa," literally a layer or level of pitch. than that of the melody, substituting between voices, and connecting what has been disconnected, among other types of conventional agreements found in the beauties of melodies.

2 — The Art of Tonal Arrangement:

This includes types of tonal composition heard from instruments, which are arranged according to the nature of the musical modes musical modes: "al-maqamat," the systems of melodic organization, each with its own scale, habitual phrases, and emotional character. and the methods of rhythm original: "al-iqa'.". These are restricted—just as in human melodies—by a beautiful homogeneity between the notes. In a way, this is similar to the use of prose, rhymed prose, poetic meter, and the splitting of verses in language.

Some of these varieties serve as a method or pathway for the various types of melodic modes and the progression of their notes through the opening original: "al-madhhab," the initial melodic movement. and the resolution original: "al-taslim," the concluding phrase; see page 23.. Thus, they precede the singing to strengthen the performer's mastery over the tonal genres specific to that melody. When the distribution of vocal harmonies is perfected in appropriate places, these arrangements appear as complete melodies in their own right.

The Second Aspect: Non-Natural,

This belongs to the branches of the tonal craft and concerns the extraction of notes in complex, imaginative qualities original: "kayfiyyat takhyiliyya murakkaba.". These may not be restricted by the condition of homogeneity usually required in musical sequences and pairings, except for what occurs by chance during performance. This is because the method of composition shifts into the realm of absolute conception or "abstract imagination." to represent things from the imagination.

The most famous arts of complex tones in this aspect are of two types: