Click below to Watch
Taqseem on the Qanoon
By: Tawfeeq Zghenda

Click below to Watch
Taqseem on the Cello
By: Mohammad Ghaniyah

      Improvised Singing

(Taqseem Oud  )  The first of these forms is the Singing Improvisation, which is a strong suit of the Persian-Iraqi heritage, and is still prevalent in our times.  The name of this style, in that region, is called, and this is a stretch, a Maqam.  Hence, if we used this word (Maqam) in these two regions, it is not meant to describe a composition of a scale, but rather a style of improvised singing that does not follow any certain rhythm.  One famous singer of this style was the late Ahmad Zedan who passed away in 1912, and currently, Mr. Muhammad Al-Qabbanji is considered the dean of this singing style.  A book about this style of singing was written and published in 1961 by Mr. Hashim Al-Rajab.   

      This style is also prevalent in Tunisia with “Al-Uroubi”, in Syria with “Al-Qasida”, in Algeria with “Al-Istikhbar”, in Morocco with “Al-Beitan” and in Egypt with the “Mawwal and Liali”.  The form in all these regions is very much the same, and it’s the usage of the singer, of the musical scale, ascending and descending.  The Tetra chords used, however, are different depending on the musical accents prevalent in these regions.  We now listen to a form of Al-Qasida by the Syrian singer Sabah Fakhri as an illustration (Qul Lil maliha ).  The second example of improvised singing is done by the Iraqi singer, Nazim Al-Ghazali (Samra Min Qaumi Issa  ).  A third example of the Moroccan Al-Beitan is as can be heard (Song  ),  The fourth example is of the Uroubi style by the singer Raul Jurneu

(Taqseem Oud )    The improvised singing was relied upon in Stage musicals in its early years, started by the Syrian artist Abu-Khalil Al-Qabbani, followed by the Egyptian singer Salama Al- Hijazi (1917) and the Tunisian singer Muhammad Al-Aqrabi (1967).  Here is an illustration by( Salama Al-Hijazi) 

    A specialty in Egypt, the improvised singing focused on Al-Liali, which is limited to “Ya Lili, Ya Aini”, meaning “Oh my night, Oh my eyes”, because a lover closes his/her eyes at night to live a fantasy moment with the loved one.  This is followed by Al-Mawwal, which is a special form of poetry without a traditional rhythmic scale, which was devised by Al-Khalil Bin Ahmad Al-Faraheedi in the seventh century.  Here is an example of an Egyptian Mawwal by Mr. Muhammad Abdel-Wahhab ()

Musical Improvisation

      When it comes to Musical Improvisation, we find no difference between it and Singing Improvisation other than the mean of delivery, an instrument or a through.  It is a way where a musician shows his musicianship by his utilization of the different Maqamat, as well as the mastery of his instrument.  This style is known in the Middle East as “Taqseem”,  and in Morocco by “Al-Istikhbar”.  Here is a Taqseem on the Qanoon by the Moroccan Musician, Ibraheem Salih Al-Maghribi (Qanoon  ).  Another example of musical Taqseem, is this Turkish Taqseem on the Clarinet 

     In Taqseem, ending and finishing of musical lines play a basic role in showing the musician’s ability and sensitivity in music.  Here is an Egyptian example of the aforementioned, by Mr. Fahmi Aowadh’s Taqseem on the Qanoon  ().   

     The eastern form Taqseem is called “Istikhbar” in Morocco (Meaning: finding out).  It’s mainly used in short musical phrases in order to insure proper tuning of string instruments.  Here is an improvisation on the violin, as an illustration of the Moroccan Istikhbar (). The Istikhbar has evolved in Tunisia, and here is an example, an improvisation on the Tunisian Oud by Khumeis Ternaan ().

Taqseem Ajam- Qanoon
Taqseem Bayati- Qanoon
Taqseem Farah Faza- Qanoon
Taqseem Hijaz Kar- Oud
Taqseem Husseini- Ney
Taqseem Huzam- Buzuq
Taqseem Kurd- Oud
Taqseem Nahawand- Oud
Taqseem Rast- Ney
Taqseem Rast- Oud
Taqseem Saba- Violin
Taqseem Saba- Ney