Arabic Song ‘Lamma Bada Yatathana’ in the Context of the Development of the Muwashshah Genre

Abstract

The purpose of the article is to conduct a musicological analysis of the song ‘Lamma bada yatathana’ in the context of the development of the genre of Arabic classical vocal music muwashshah. The research methodology is based on an interdisciplinary approach that combines the principles of historical and cultural, art historical and musicological analysis. The methods of structural and analytical consideration of the musical text, genre typology, elements of comparative analysis and interpretation of poetic sources are used. The scientific novelty lies in the fact that for the first time in Ukrainian musicology, a holistic understanding of the Arabic song ‘Lamma bada yatathanna’ in the context of the muwashshah genre has been conducted, taking into account its historical development, cultural context and musical features. Of particular value is the detailed structural analysis of the work, which covers its harmonic organisation, metrical rhythm and musical form. Conclusions. On the basis of the study of genre formation processes, the cultural and historical prerequisites for the emergence of the muwashshah genre in Arabic vocal music, which are associated with Andalusian artistic traditions, have been identified. The literary and poetic roots, as well as the semantic, linguistic, structural, and metrical features of the genre have been revealed. Based on the identification of the characteristics of the muwashshah genre, a musicological analysis of the song ‘Lamma bada yatathanna’ was conducted. Within the framework of this, its form, harmonic plan, rhythmic organisation, monophonic texture typical for the Arab tradition with variable elements of ornamentation and improvisation were characterised, as well as the traditional composition of performers and features of modern interpretations that testify to the dynamics of the development of this musical form were considered.