Shashmaqom Music

　　Proclamation: 2003

　　Member State(s): Tajikistan - Uzbekistan

　　Region: Asia-Pacific

　　Associated themes: Traditional music

　　For more than 10 centuries, the classical music tradition of Shashmaqom has evolved in the multicultural urban centers of the Central Asian region formerly known as M?war? al-nahr. This region now encompasses present-day Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. A maqom is a complex musical system most simply defined as "a set of melodies and songs created on the scale of perfect set of cords." Shashmaqom (meaning "six maqoms" in Tajik-Arabic) constitutes a unique fusion of vocal and instrumental music, melodic and rhythmic idioms, literature, and aesthetic concepts. The genre is performed solo or by a group of singers and an orchestra of string, bow, percussion and wind instruments. Performances generally open with an instrumental introduction followed by the nasr, the main vocal section consisting of two distinct sets of songs.

　　Dating back to the pre-Islamic era, Shashmaqom was continually influenced by developments in music theory, poetry, mathematics, Islamic science and Sufism. So popular was the maqom system in the 9th and 10th centuries that numerous music schools were founded in the city of Bukhara, the historical and spiritual centre of Shashmaqom. A large number of performers belonged to Bukhara's Jewish community. Shashmaqom repertoires require specially trained musicians because the standard notation system can record only the basic framework and fails to capture the full richness of this splendid art. Consequently, oral transmission from master to student remains the principal means of preserving the music and its spiritual values.