RIYADH: The first Arab Music Conference has unveiled a pan-Arab program to document the Eastern vocal maqamat modal system within two years, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Sunday.
The program aims to create a unified reference for global music institutes.
At the outset of his address during the AMC held on Saturday in Riyadh, Turki Alalshikh, chairman of the General Entertainment Authority, said the conference was conceived to meet the needs of the Arab world’s artistic and research landscapes.
The conference called for a modern digital ecosystem with open electronic libraries, interactive education platforms and mobile applications.
It also urged the creation of a pan-Arab archival repository for rare and historical recordings.
He described it as a forum to advance studies of musical forms and to document maqamat — the melodic modes of Arabic music — and rhythms.
It will also explore development pathways aligned with the Kingdom’s support for the arts.
Alalshikh said the work should expand to include Eastern maqamat in Iran to enhance inclusivity and enrich Arab and Eastern musical content.
The initiative follows eight months of committee work across Arab countries and Turkiye.
It also highlights cross-sector collaboration between the Ministry of Culture and GEA as a model for advancing cultural projects.
Key recommendations include launching a comprehensive Arab project to document maqamat, rhythms and instruments through fieldwork, notation, analysis and historical sources.
It also calls for producing high-quality audiovisual recordings to establish accredited learning models.
The scheme further proposed establishing a higher Arab academy for music sciences and arts to modernize curricula and support young researchers. The academy would align studies with contemporary methodologies while preserving authenticity.
Education-focused measures urge integrating Arab musical heritage into school and institute programs across the region.
It proposed an annual Arab prize for the best research or book, with recognition for major contributors to the field.
According to the SPA, all recommendations and notes submitted by committee heads from participating countries will be studied comprehensively to achieve common goals and support Arab efforts in musical documentation.
