UAE

Official Name: United Arab

Emirates
Capital: Abu Dhabi
The United Arab Emirates is an
Arabian Peninsula nation settled
mainly along the Persian
(Arabian) Gulf.
Currency: United Arab Emirates
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Khalili Arabic Music

The Khalili music uses the traditional drum – Tabl (otherwise known as a goblet drum,
chalice drum, doumbek or tarbooka). There is also the Nay a long flute type instrument and the
Rababah which resembles a violin also there is the oud. The oud is a traditional instrument from
the same musical family as the guitar and is similar to the lute. It is pear shaped and has eleven
strings and no frets. Together with the Khalili traditional music the UAE also includes the
Bedouin folk music which also uses drums and tambourines in its music. Typically the
traditional music and dance of the UAE tells a story and more than often the dances performed
by men tell the story of brave battles. Like other countries the traditional music and dance really
shines during festivals and celebrations.
The oud is one of the most popular instruments in Arabic music. Its name derives from
the Arabic for 'a thin strip of wood', and this refers to the strips of wood used to make its rounded
body.

The European violin (also called Kaman/Kamanjah in Arabic) was adopted into Arab
music during the second half of the 19th century, replacing an indigenous two-string fiddle that
was prevalent in Egypt also called kamanjah..

The form of the qanun consists of a trapezoid-shaped flat board over which 81 strings are
stretched in groups of three with 24 treble chords consisting of three chords to each note.

The nay (Farsi for 'reed') is an open-ended, obliquely end blown flute made of cane. They
nay was known in the Near East since antiquity. The nay is nine-jointed, and usually has 6 holes
in the front for the fingers to play and 1 hole underneath for the thumb. It is played with the pads
of the fingers. Nays come in different lengths, each one being tuned to a specific pitch and
named after the note produced with the 1st fingerhole open (D4 for the nây used in the
demonstration. Lowest note: C4).

The riq (sometmes called daff) is a small tambourine (approx. 8.5 inches in diameter &
2.5 inches deep) traditionally covered with a goat or fish skin head, stretched over a wooden
frame inlaid with mother of pearl. The riq has five sets of two pairs of brass cymbals (approx. 2
inches in diameter) spaced evenly around the frame, and called 'sagaat' in Arabic. The cymbals
are what produces the exciting jingle sound.

The word buzuq is Turkish and occurs in 'bashi-buzuq,' the name given to the Ottoman
troops, literally meaning 'burnt head' or 'uprooted.' In its folk form, the buzuq is a larger and
deeper-toned relative of the Turkish saz and has a body carved from a single piece of wood. In
its modern, urbanized form, the body is constructed from separate ribs and has mechanical,
rather than wooden pegs

Al ayyala combines song and dance. Symbolizing triumph after a battle, it is now
performed as an act of welcome to dignitaries visiting Abu Dhabi, and it is considered to embody
the UAE’s finest historical and cultural values. The performers’ coordinated movement and
vocal refrains are often accompanied by gunfire and brandishing of swords and daggers, in a
display that epitomizes the courage and fortitude of Bedouin living in the heart of the desert.

Al harbia is a similar dance, in which the rhythm is supplied purely by vocal chants and
the recitation of poetry.

Al maled, or al mowled, is the recitation of long poems that deals with religious themes.
A group of tambourine players or drummers provide a gentle percussion background to the
narration and a second, larger group repeats the refrains after the narrator.

Other distinctive genres are al wannah, a slow romantic song for two singers, in praise of
heroism, which has a gentle rhythm played on tambourines and it is accompanied by brass
instruments, and al sameri, an ancient form of Bedouin singing that derives from the world
samer, meaning to stay up at night: the tradition was to sing through the hours of darkness,
accompanied by the traditional Arabic stringed instrument called rababa.