Andalusī nūbah (نوبة أندلسيّة), also transliterated nūba, nūbā, or nouba (pl. nūbāt), or in its classical Arabic form, nawba, nawbah, or nōbah, is a

music genre A music genre is a conventional category that identifies some pieces of music as belonging to a shared tradition or set of conventions. Genre is to be distinguished from musical form and musical style, although in practice these terms are sometim ...

found in the North African

Maghrib Maghrib () is one of the five mandatory salah (Islamic prayers), and contains three cycles (''rak'a''). If counted from midnight, it is the fourth one. According to Shia and Sunni Muslims, the period for Maghrib prayer starts just after suns ...

states of

Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...

Algeria Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...

Tunisia Tunisia, officially the Republic of Tunisia, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered by Algeria to the west and southwest, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Tunisia also shares m ...

, and

Libya Libya, officially the State of Libya, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya border, the east, Sudan to Libya–Sudan border, the southeast, Chad to Chad–L ...

but, as the name indicates, it has its origins in Andalusi music. The name replaced the older use of '' sawt'' and originated from the musician waiting behind a curtain to be told it was his turn or ''nawbah'' by the ''sattar'' or curtain man. The North African cities have inherited a particularly Andalusian musical style of Granada. The term ''gharnati'' (

Granada Granada ( ; ) is the capital city of the province of Granada, in the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Granada is located at the foot of the Sierra Nevada (Spain), Sierra Nevada mountains, at the confluence ...

n) in

designates a distinct musical style from "Tarab Al Ala" originating in

Córdoba Córdoba most commonly refers to: * Córdoba, Spain, a major city in southern Spain and formerly the imperial capital of Islamic Spain * Córdoba, Argentina, the second largest city in Argentina and the capital of Córdoba Province Córdoba or Cord ...

and

Valencia Valencia ( , ), formally València (), is the capital of the Province of Valencia, province and Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, the same name in Spain. It is located on the banks of the Turia (r ...

, according to the authors Rachid Aous and Mohammed Habib Samrakandi in the latter's book ''Musiques d'Algérie''.

Form, texts, and performance

According to tradition, there were initially 24 nubat, one for each hour of the day. Each nuba must have a duration of 1 hour. Lyrics are sung by a soloist or in unison by a chorus, and are chosen from the ''

muwashshah ''Muwashshah'' ( ' ' girdled'; plural '; also ' 'girdling,' pl. ') is a strophic poetic form that developed in al-Andalus in the late 10th and early 11th centuries. The ', embodying the Iberian rhyme revolution, was the major Andalusi inno ...

'' or ''

zajal ''Zajal'' () is a traditional form of oral Strophic form, strophic poetry declaimed in a colloquial dialect. The earliest recorded zajal poet was Ibn Quzman of al-Andalus who lived from 1078 to 1160. Most scholars see the Andalusi Arabic ''zajal' ...

'' poetic forms, which are in classical and colloquial Arabic, respectively. An ''andalusi nubah'' uses one '' tab''' (similar to a

maqam Maqam, makam, maqaam or maqām (plural maqāmāt) may refer to: Musical structures * Arabic maqam, melodic modes in traditional Arabic music ** Iraqi maqam, a genre of Arabic maqam music found in Iraq * Persian maqam, a notion in Persian clas ...

, or mode) per performance, and includes several instrumental pieces as well as predominantly vocal pieces accompanied by instrumentation. These differ as to ''mizan'' (pl. ''mawazin'') or rhythmic pattern (''

wazn WAZN (1470 AM) is an ethnic radio station in the Greater Boston market, licensed to Watertown. It is owned by Multicultural Broadcasting, and broadcasts Spanish Christian language radio format programming, simulcast from M.R.B.I.'s New York ...

'', pl. ''awzan''). Formally the

tempo In musical terminology, tempo (Italian for 'time'; plural 'tempos', or from the Italian plural), measured in beats per minute, is the speed or pace of a given musical composition, composition, and is often also an indication of the composition ...

increases while the ''awzan'' simply within each of five sections, called ''mawazin''. The sections are introduced by short instrumental pieces and vary according to region, the name of a section indicating the ''wazn'' used: *in Algeria (12 nubah and 4 incomplete): *in Tunisia (13 nubah): *in Morocco (11 nubah): The instrumental ensemble used includes the '' ud'', rabab,

Maghreb rebab The Maghreb rebab or Maghrebi rebab is a bowed lute now played mainly in Northern Africa. It fits within the wider rebab traditions of the Arab world, but also branched into European musical tradition in Spain, Sicily, and the Holy Roman Empire. I ...

rebec The rebec (sometimes rebecha, rebeckha, and other spellings, pronounced or ) is a bowed stringed instrument of the Medieval era and the early Renaissance. In its most common form, it has a narrow boat-shaped body and one to five strings. Origins ...

, '' nay'', qanun,

tambourine The tambourine is a musical instrument in the percussion family consisting of a frame, often of wood or plastic, with pairs of small metal jingles, called "zills". Classically the term tambourine denotes an instrument with a drumhead, thoug ...

, and a

goblet drum The goblet drum (also chalice drum, tarabuka, tarabaki, darbuka, darabuka, derbake, debuka, doumbek, dumbec, dumbeg, dumbelek, toumperleki, tumbak, or zerbaghali; / Romanized: ) is a single-head membranophone with a goblet-shaped body. It is ...

called ''darbuka''. The instrumentalists also serve as

chorus Chorus may refer to: Music * Chorus (song), the part of a song that is repeated several times, usually after each verse * Chorus effect, the perception of similar sounds from multiple sources as a single, richer sound * Chorus form, song in whic ...

Scales

Tunisia

In Tunisia, the 13 nubat are traditionally said to have been classified and organized by the 18th-century aristocrat

Muhammad I ar-Rashid Muhammad I ar-Rashid (; 1710 – 12 February 1759) was the third leader of the Husainid Dynasty and the ruler of Tunisia from 1756 until his death. His son was Mahmud ibn Muhammad. See also * Rejeb Khaznadar {{DEFAULTSORT:Muhammad 1 ...

. He is also credited with the composition or commissioning of the 27 instrumental pieces (, etc.) that introduce and separate the main vocal pieces in the nuba cycle. In this system, the 13 nubat are treated as a single overarching cycle, given a sequence in which, ideally, they should be performed.

Morocco

The nubat of Morocco were collected and classified toward the end of the 18th century by the musician Al Haïk from Tetuan. Unlike the nubat from Algeria or Tunisia, Moroccan nubat are long, so it is rare for a Moroccan nuba to be played in its entirety.

Discography

*''Anthologie Al-âla: musique andaluci-marocaine''. 12 vols. **Vol. 1: ''Nûbâ gharîbat al-husayn, version intégrale''. Orchestre al-Brihi de Fès; Haj Abdelkrim al-Raïs, dir. 6-CD set. Auvidis W 260010.

abat Abat is a community in the former Shalë municipality, Shkodër County, northern Albania. At the 2015 local government reform it became part of the municipality Shkodër Shkodër ( , ; sq-definite, Shkodra; historically known as Scodra or Scu ...

Wizarat al-Thaqafah al-Maghribiyah = Royaume du Maroc Ministère de la Culture; Paris: Maison du cultures du monde / INEDIT, 1989. **Vol. 2: ''Nûbâ al-'ushshâq, version intégrale''. Orchestre Moulay Ahmed Loukili de Rabat; Haj Mohammed Toud, dir. 6-CD set. Auvidis W 260014.

Wizarat al-Thaqafah al-Maghribiyah = Royaume du Maroc Ministère de la Culture; Paris: Maison du cultures du monde / INEDIT, 1990. **Vol. 3: ''Nûbâ al-isbihân, version intégrale''. Orchestre du Conservatoire se Tétouan; Mohammed Larbi Temsamani, dir. 6-CD set. Auvidis W 260024.

Wizarat al-Thaqafah al-Maghribiyah = Royaume du Maroc Ministère de la Culture; Paris: Maison du cultures du monde / INEDIT, 1993. **Vol. 4: ''Nûbâ al-rasd, version intégrale''. Orchestre de Tangier; Ahmed Zaytouni Sahraoui, dir. 6-CD set. Auvidis W 260027.

Wizarat al-Thaqafah al-Maghribiyah = Royaume du Maroc Ministère de la Culture; Paris: Maison du cultures du monde / INEDIT, 1995. **Vol. 5: ''Nûbâ al-îstihlâl, version intégrale / durée 7 h 40''. Orchestre al-Brihi de Fès; Haj Abdelkrim al-Raïs, dir. 7-CD set. Auvidis W 260028.

Wizarat al-Thaqafah al-Maghribiyah = Royaume du Maroc Ministère de la Culture; Paris: Maison du cultures du monde / INEDIT, 1994. **Vol. 6: ''Nûbâ rasd al-dhil, version intégrale / durée 6 h 10''. Orchestre Moulay Ahmed Loukili de Rabat; Haj Mohammed Toud, dir. 6-CD set. Auvidis W 260029.

Wizarat al-Thaqafah al-Maghribiyah = Royaume du Maroc Ministère de la Culture; Paris: Maison du cultures du monde / INEDIT, 1996. **Vol. 7: ''Nûbâ 'irâq al-'ajam, version intégrale''. Orchestre de Tanger; Ahmed Zaytouni Sahraoui, dir. 7-CD set. Auvidis W 260030.

Wizarat al-Thaqafah al-Maghribiyah = Royaume du Maroc Ministère de la Culture; Paris: Maison du cultures du monde / INEDIT, 1996. **Vol. 8: ''Nûbâ al-hijâz al-kebîr, version intégrale / durée 7 h 30''. Orchestre al-Brihi de Fès; Haj Abdelkrim al-Raïs, dir. 7-CD set. Auvidis W 260031.

Wizarat al-Thaqafah al-Maghribiyah = Royaume du Maroc Ministère de la Culture; Paris: Maison du cultures du monde / INEDIT, 1997. **Vol. 9: ''Nûbâ ramal al-mâya, version intégrale''. Orchestre du Conservatoire de Tétouan; Mohammed Larbi Temsamani, dir. 8-CD set. Auvidis W 260032.

Wizarat al-Thaqafah al-Maghribiyah = Royaume du Maroc Ministère de la Culture; Paris: Maison du cultures du monde / INEDIT, 1997. **Vol. 10: ''Nûbâ al-hijâz al-msharqî, version intégrale''. Orchestre al-Brihi de Fès; Haj Abdelkrim al-Raïs, dir. 7-CD set. Auvidis W 260033.

Wizarat al-Thaqafah al-Maghribiyah = Royaume du Maroc Ministère de la Culture; Paris: Maison du cultures du monde / INEDIT, 1998. **Vol. 11: ''Nûbâ al-mâya, version intégrale''. Orchestre de Tanger; Ahmed Zaytouni Sahraoui, dir. 7-CD set. Auvidis W 260034.

Wizarat al-Thaqafah al-Maghribiyah = Royaume du Maroc Ministère de la Culture; Paris: Maison du cultures du monde / INEDIT, 1998. **Vol. 12: ''Les deux dernièrs quddâm''. Ensemble Al-Âla; Mohammed Briouel, dir. 2-CD set. Auvidis W 260035.

Wizarat al-Thaqafah al-Maghribiyah = Royaume du Maroc Ministère de la Culture; Paris: Maison du cultures du monde / INEDIT, 1999. *''Maroc: Musique classique Andalou-Maghrébine''. ''Nûba al-Hijâz al-Kabîr''; ''Nûba al-'istihlâl''. Orchestre de Fez; Haj Abdelkrim al-Raïs, dir. Collection dirigée par Pierre Toureille. Recorded 29 March 1984 at Studio 105, Radio France, Paris. 1-CD. Ocora C559016. Paris: Radio France; Harmonia Mundi, 1987. *''Música Andalusi'', Escuela de Rabat, Orquesta de la Radio Televisión de Marruecos, Mûlây Ahmed Lúkílí, Msháliyya l-Kbíra, recorded in 1962, Btáyhi r-Rásd, recorded in 1958. Madrid: Pneuma, 1998. *''Música Andalusi'', Escuela de Tetuán-Tánger, Orquesta del Conservatorio de Tetúan, Mohammed Ben Arbi Temsamani, Qá'im Wa Nisf Al Istihlál, recorded in 1960. Madrid: Pneuma, 1999. *''Música Andalusi'', Escuela de Fez, Orquesta Brihi, Haj Abdelkrim al-Raïs, Qyddám Al-Máya, Cantor Muhammed Jsásí. Madrid: Pneuma, 2000. *''Musique arabo-andalouse classique''. ''Nouba Hijaz M'Charqi''; ''Nouba Raml al Mâya''. Mahammed Al Moussadir (melismatic chant); Ahmed Chikhi (voice and oud); Mustapha Amri (oud and alto kamanja); Mohammed Diouri (swissèn); Hadj Mohammed Lahlou (tar); Hadj Ustad Mohammed Masano Tazzi (rebab), dir. Recorded June 1987 at Hay al Amal, Fez, Marocco. 1-CD. Le Chant du Monde CMT 274 1007.

aris Aris or ARIS may refer to: People * Aris (surname) Given name * Aris Alexandrou, Greek writer * Aris Brimanis, ice hockey player * Aris Christofellis, Greek male soprano * Aris Gavelas, Greek sprinter * Aris Konstantinidis, Greek architect * ...

Le Cant du Monde, 1995. *''Nawba hijaz la-msharqi''. Françoise Atlan (soprano), Abdelfettah Bennis (tenor), Noureddine Tahri (tenor); Abdelkrim Raïs Andalusian Orchestra of Fès; Mohammed Briouel, dir. Recorded 18 October 1998, in the Mnehbi Palace, in the Medina at Fès, Morocco. 1-CD. Erato 3984-25499-2.Paris: Erato Disques, S. A., 1999.

References

Sources * * Davis, Ruth (2004) ''Ma'lūf: Reflections on the Arab-Andalusian Music of Tunisia''. Scarecrow. * * * *

External links

Andaloussia band
{{Authority control 18th-century music genres Music of Algeria Moroccan styles of music Music of Tunisia Arabic music Classical and art music traditions Maqam-based music tradition