A muqam is the melody type used in Uyghur music, that is, a musical mode and set of melodic formulas used to guide improvisation and composition. A melody type is a term used by musicologists and ethnomusicologists to represent a set of melodic formulas, figures, and patterns which are used in the composition of an enormous variety of music, especially non-Western and early Western music. ... Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region is dominated by Uyghurs, a Turkic people related to others from Central Asia. ... In music, a scale is an ordered series of musical intervals, which, along with the key or tonic, define the pitches. ... Improvisation is the practice of acting and reacting, of making and creating, in the moment and in response to the stimulus of ones immediate environment. ... Musical composition is: a piece of music the structure of a musical piece the process of creating a new piece of music // A piece of music exists in the form of a written composition in musical notation or as a single acoustic event (a live performance or recorded track). ...

The muqam system developed among the Uyghur in northwest China and Central Asia over approximately the last 500 years from the Arabic maqamat modal system that has led to many musical genres among peoples of Eurasia and North Africa. Uyghurs have local muqam systems named after the oasis towns of Xinjiang (Eastern Turkestan), such as Dolan, Ili, Kumul and Turfan. The most fully developed at this point is the Western Tarim region's 12 muqams, which are now a large canon of music and songs recorded from the traditional performers Turdi Akhun and Omar Akhun among others in the 1950s and edited into a more systematic system. Although the folk performers probably improvised their songs as in Turkish taksim performances, the present institutional canon is performed as fixed compositions by ensembles. The Uyghur (also spelled Uighur; Uyghur: ئۇيغۇر; Simplified Chinese: ; Traditional Chinese: ; Pinyin: ) are a Turkic people of Central Asia. ... Map of Central Asia showing three sets of possible boundaries for the region Central Asia located as a region of the world Central Asia is a vast landlocked region of Asia. ... In music, a maqam [sic] (plural maqamat) is a technique of improvisation that defines the pitches, patterns, and development of a piece of music. ... Eurasia Eurasia African-Eurasian aspect of Earth Eurasia is an immense landmass covering about 54,000,000 km² (or about 10. ... North Africa is the Mediterranean, northernmost region of the African continent, separated by the Sahara from Sub-Saharan Africa. ... For the county in Shanxi province, see Xinjiang County. ... Flag of East Turkistan East Turkistan (Sherqiy Türkistan in Uyghur, Doğu Türkistan in Turkish) was the name of two shortlived states in Central Asia; the first one existed from 1932 to 1934, while the second one existed from 1944 to 1949. ... Dolan is a surname, and may refer to a great person Charles Dolan, founder of HBO and chairman of Cablevision Systems Corporation Daniel Dolan, Catholic bishop Daria Dolan, financial journalist and wife of Ken Dolan Ellen Dolan, American actress Geoff Dolan, New Zealand entertainer James Dolan, son of Charles Dolan... Ili or Illi can refer to: Ili River Ili Kazakh Autonomous Prefecture This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... Kumul or Hami (Uyghur: قۇمۇل/K̢umul; Chinese: 哈密; Pinyin: Hāmì) is an oasis in Xinjiang (China); it is also the name of a modern city and the sourrounding district. ... position in China Street of Turfan View of the Flaming mountains Emin minaret, Turfan Turfan (Uyghur: تۇرپان; Uyghur latin: Turpan; Modern Chinese 吐魯番, Pinyin: TÇ”lÇ”fán; ) is an oasis city in the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region of the Peoples Republic of China. ... The Tarim River (Mandarin Dayan) is the principal river of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region in the Peoples Republic of China. ... This does not cite any references or sources. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

Each of the 12 muqams (named Rak, Čäbbiyat, Segah, Čahargah, Pänjigah, Özhal, Äjäm, Uššaq, Bayat, Nava, Mušavräk, and Iraq), consists of a main section that begins with a long free rhythm introduction, followed by pieces with characteristic rhythmic patterns that gradually increase in speed. These pieces are arranged in the same sequence in each muqam, although not all muqams have the same pieces. These parts are known as täzä, nuskha, small säliqä, jula, sänäm, large säliqä, päshru, and täkit. Some have an associated instrumental piece known as a märghul ("decoration") following it. Although each named piece has its characteristic rhythmic pattern, the melodies differ, so each piece is generally known by the muqam and the piece: for example, "the Rak nuskha" or "the Segah jula".

After the main section, there are two other sections, originally associated with other musical traditions, but included in muqams by performers such as Turdi Akhun and therefore included in the present 12 muqam tradition. The Dastan[[1]] section includes songs from several of the romantic dastan narratives found widely in Central and South Asia and the Middle East. Each dastan song is followed by an instrumental märghul. The Mäshräp section consists of more lively dance songs that were originally connected with the performances of sama by dervish musicians of Turkistan. The Dastan is an ornate form of oral history present in Central Asia. ... A map showing countries commonly considered to be part of the Middle East The Middle East is a region comprising the lands around the southern and eastern parts of the Mediterranean Sea, a territory that extends from the eastern Mediterranean Sea to the Persian Gulf. ... Look up sama in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ...

See also

• Uyghur Maqam

External link

• Slippery Paths: The Performance and Canonization of Turkic Literature and Uyghur Muqam Song in Islam and Modernity by Nathan Light, PhD Dissertation, Folklore Department, Indiana University, May 1998

• Slippery Paths: Music of the Uyghur by Rachel Harris and Yasin Mukhpul.