Festival Launch: Syrian Traditional Music

A talk by Professor Hassan Abbas
Part of Celebrating Syria Festival 2019

For the full festival programme, please visit celebratingsyria.org

The eastern Mediterranean region has been a fertile soil for many civilisations throughout history. Because of its unique location and resources, and the fact that it was the birthplace of all three Abrahamic religions, it nurtured an interesting mix of cultures which left an impact on different aspects of day to day life as well as art.

These cultures are still preserved till this day – or at least traces of them, despite the rapidly changing and often violent history they had to endure. These remnants form the fascinating mosaic heritage that characterises the region today. Although this glorious heritage can be witnessed in edifices, ruins and monuments, it is still heavily represented in integral aspects of peoples’ lives in narratives of tales, proverbs, poems, feasts, rituals and music.

In this talk, the researcher seeks to shed light on the abundance of the intangible cultural heritage displayed through different forms of Syrian traditional music. It elaborates the cultural influences and affiliations traced throughout Syrian history that made this art form what is known to us today.

Abbas will complement his talk with beautifully recorded samples of the various music styles which he discusses.