
Music from the past: unique patterns of Maqom
It emerged in the Middle Ages and is considered the pinnacle of eastern professional music of oral tradition. And your impressions of the trip to Uzbekistan, of meeting with its inhabitants will be incomplete, if you do not listen to Uzbek artists - performers of the singing genre. It will help you understand the "soul" of the Uzbek people, because this music has absorbed the rich sound palette and the whole philosophy of the East.
Not every person can sing maqom - for that we need a strong vocal inherent nature and the constant work on oneself. Therefore, to this day, the old tunes of "maqom", filled with special meaning, are carefully preserved and passed down from generation to generation - from talented "masters" - an "apprentice." Therefore, this vocal genre is treated very carefully in Uzbekistan. Maqoms accompany man in all of the key events of his life: holidays, weddings and other ceremonial events.
"Maqom" is a series of vocal and instrumental pieces in all its diversity. In Arabic, "maqom" means "location". According to some researchers, this music was born from the ancient tradition of canonized chants. At certain times of the day during the changing of the city guards the execution of special ritual music was ordered over the fortress and the city gates. It subsequently became known as "maqom". Each maqom is a kind of suite of 20-45 instrumental and vocal parts, which not only has a modal, but also the intonational, rhythmic and emotional feature. One can listen to maqom forever, because every overflow is unique, it is fascinating and soothing.