Philosophies of Music in Medieval Islam

ISBN-13: 9789004101289 / Angielski / Twarda / 1995 / 176 str.

Fadlou Shehadi

Opis

This work surveys the philosophies of music of important thinkers in Islam between the ninth and 15th centuries AD. It covers topics including: the physics and aesthetics of sound; the nature of music; its place in the total scheme of things and in human life; the relation between music, astronomy, astrology and meteorology; the relation between music and human feelings, character and behaviour; and the question of whether a good Muslim should be allowed to listen to music at all, and if so, to which sorts. The book traces the influence of Greek - in particular Pythagorean and Aristoxenian - thinking in Islam on this subject, and aims to provide a clarification of the central arguments of the Islamic writers concerned as well as a critical evaluation of their line of thought. The author introduces a wide range of material from manuscript sources.