Aleppo's Tarab: Qudud, Muwashshahat and Sabah Fakhri

In Aleppo, music is more than entertainment. Aleppan audiences are famous as *sammi'a* — true listeners: they know the maqams, can tell a great singer from a good one, and only applaud when it is earned. Hence the city's title: the capital of tarab.

What is tarab?

Tarab is the ecstasy that takes hold of a listener when a beautiful voice meets the right words and melody. A great singer improvises, stretches a note and repeats a phrase when the audience calls "again!", so that one song can last an hour.

The qudud of Aleppo

Qudud are songs set to a known melody — folk or religious — with new words, or the other way round: made "to the measure" of a familiar tune. Among the best known are "Ya mal al-Sham" and "Qaddouk al-mayyas". In 2021 the qudud halabiya were inscribed on UNESCO's list of Intangible Cultural Heritage.

Muwashshahat

The muwashshah is a poetic and musical form born in al-Andalus that reached Aleppo and Damascus and was preserved and developed there for centuries. Its rhythms are complex and it is usually sung by a full ensemble. Aleppo is said to have kept muwashshahat that were lost elsewhere.

Sabah Fakhri

The most famous voice of twentieth-century Aleppo was Sabah Fakhri (1933–2021), who carried the qudud and muwashshahat across the Arab world. He was known for extremely long concerts; one, in Venezuela, is said to have lasted ten hours without a break.

The instruments

• Oud: the king of Arabic instruments.
• Qanun: a zither played across the knees.
• Ney: the reed flute whose sound is close to the human voice.
• Riq and darbuka for rhythm.

Where to hear tarab

In Aleppo and Damascus, restaurants and cafés host live tarab evenings, especially at weekends. Ask your hotel or the restaurant about upcoming nights and reserve a table — the good ones fill up. And read about Aleppo's kitchen to finish the night the Aleppan way.