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Heritage
On The Methodology of the Investigation:
Author:
City
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Baku
Country :
Azerbaijan
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Conclusion
The treatises on music of past ages are very important written sources on the recreation of the history of the music of the Middle East. The investigation of these works is a very responsible task. It demands from the researcher special professional knowledge and a complex methodological approach to the studied theme.
The basic methodological principles for the investigation of the influence of Urmavis works on the authors of the following centuries should, I suggest, be the following:
1. Investigation of the original works of Urmavi;
2. Investigation of the originals of the treatises written after Urmavi;
3. The comparative study of the later manuscripts on the basis either of some existing copies or the same type of manuscripts in terms of their contents;
4. Preparation of the critical text of the manuscript;
5. The comparative analysis of the old and new musical theories and their connection with traditional music;
6. The study of historical aspect. The description of the historical features of the studied period;
7. Definition of philosophical basis and theoretical trends of the treatises studied;
8. Definition of type of influence/adoption: direct, indirect, partial and etc.
During the investigation of the influence of S.Urmavis theory on the works of authors of the following centuries, it is very important to use original texts of manuscripts, instead of those copied during the later period. It is known that even the most scrupulous copier makes certain changes to the text. The different variants of the “Commentary to Kitabul-Advar” (“Sharhul-Advar”) also can not replace the original books of Safiuddin.
For example, the work of an outstanding commentator on Urmavis book – Djordjani (14th century) (DErlanger v.3) is often used instead of the original “Kitabul-Advar”. In that case, the conclusions - made on the basis of this text - will not reflect reality, because the contents of the books of Urmavi and Djordjani are not similar to each other. Being an author of the 14th century Djordjani also gave information about musical works, which were not provided in the book of Urmavi (13th century), such as Ezra, Hoshsera, Hezan, Gamzede, Mehregan and others.
The same can be said about the manuscript “Kitabul-Advar” by Isfahani which is also sometimes mistakenly shown as an original text of Urmavi. In his work Isfahani added the information about musical forms of 15 century to his translation of Safiuddins work. In particular he refers to Abdulqadir Maraghi and retells the part from his treatise which is devoted to describing 24 shube and musical pieces such as pishrou (peshrev), sout, naqsh, kull an-nagam, nouba and others. (Isfahani, Fasl der zekr-e aqsam-i alhan: 46-47).
That is why not all the work of Isfahani can not be presented as the source on music of the 13th century.
The mention of the name of S.Urmavi in the treatises of post-classical, cosmological trend does not necessarily indicate his influence on their theory. Furthermore, in the majority of cases the name of Safiuddin is used only as a symbol and sometimes has no connection with his theory at all. On the other hand, the absence of the clear theoretical influence of Urmavi in some of post-classical and modern theories does not mean its absence in the performance art of traditional music. The theory of music of Urmavi and other great musicians of past ages was the product of their study of practical music and was the reflection of sounding, performing music. The quotations from their own works prove this.
It should be noted that for investigation of treatises on music it is not enough just to know eastern languages. The important and indispensable factor is knowledge of musical terms used in that period. Many words that are also used in our days have changed their meanings. Much confusion is related to the translation of the term “nagme”. At the present time this word means “melody”, “song”. But in the treatises of Safiuddin Urmavi, Abdulqadir Maraghi and other medieval scholars it meant “a tone” or “a sound”. However, sometimes in modern researches we read “the scale of Urmavi consists of 17 songs (!)”.
The significant aspect of the study of the written sources is also a detailed knowledge of old languages and the method of writing and reading the letters in the manuscripts. Some of the words are written in the same way at different times in history but must have been read differently because they have completely difference meanings. Some simple examples of this are the word “chang” – a stringed musical instrument like “harp”, and “djang” – “a battle” or “fight”. In the manuscripts they are sometimes written in the same way: with a single dot under “dj” and with one line in “k”. The Turkic word “dürlü”, which is often met in “Advar”s, had two meanings – “beautiful” and “various”; the word “tar” meant “a string” and in that time it was not the name of a musical instrument, etc.
In this paper some of the problems related to Urmavis influence upon later authors were discussed. I tried to highlight the importance of the correct methodological approach to the study the treatises on music of past ages and the necessity for a complex elucidation of the studied topic.
In the research into the of musical cultures of the people of the Middle East, as well as in the other branches of science, art and in life as a whole, the main methodological aspects of study are a professional approach, honesty and love for the chosen theme of the investigation.
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