Ziryab

Abu l-Hasan 'Ali Ibn Nafi', better known as Ziryab, Zeryab, or Zaryab (c. 789–c. 857)

His nickname "Ziryab", comes from the

Ziryab was a gifted pupil of Ibrahim al-Mawsili in Baghdad, where Ziryab got his beginner lessons. However, he left Baghdad during the reign of the Abbasid caliph al-Ma'mun and moved to Córdoba, where he was accepted as a court musician in the court of Abd ar-Rahman II of the Umayyad Dynasty.

Historical context/early life

Ziryab's career flourished in

Ziryab was most likely born in Baghdad^[1] and was trained in the art of music from a young age. During that time, Baghdad was an important center of music in the Muslim world.^{[citation needed]} The sources all agree that the accomplished and talented musician Ibrahim al-Mawsili was Ziryab's teacher.^[14] There is some debate about how he arrived in al-Andalus, but he may have offended his patron or some powerful figure with his musical talent.^[15]

One account recorded by

Al-Maqqari states in his Nafh al-Tib^[18] (Fragrant Breeze): "There never was, either before or after him (Ziryab), a man of his profession who was more generally beloved and admired".

Descendants

According to the main source, Ibn Hayyan, Ziryab had eight sons and two daughters. Five of the sons and both daughters became musicians of some prominence.^[13] These children kept their father's music school alive, but the female slave singers he trained also were regarded as reliable sources for his repertoire in the following generation.^[16]

Contributions

Music

Ziryab is said to have improved the

Ziryab's Baghdadi musical style became very popular in the court of Abd al-Rahman II.^[15] Ziryab also became the example of how a courtier, a person who attended aristocratic courts, should act. According to Ibn Hayyan, in common with erudite men of his time he was well versed in many areas of classical study such as astronomy, history, and geography.

According to al-Tifashi, Ziryab appears to have popularized an early song-sequence, which may have been a precursor to the nawba (originally simply a performer's "turn" to perform for the prince), or Nuba, which is known today as the classical Arabic music of North Africa, though the connections are tenuous at best.

Abd al-Rahman II was a great patron of the arts and Ziryab was given a great deal of freedom. He established one of the first schools of music in Córdoba. This school incorporated both male and female students, who were very popular amongst the aristocracy of the time.^[16] According to Ibn Hayyan, Ziryab developed various tests for them. If a student didn't have a large vocal capacity, for instance, he would put pieces of wood in their jaw to force them to hold their mouth open. Or he would tie a sash tightly around the waist to make them breathe in a particular way, and he would test incoming students by having them sing as loudly and as long a note as they possibly could to see whether they had lung capacity.

Fashion and hygiene

Ziryab started a vogue by changing clothes according to the weather and season.^[13] He suggested different clothing for mornings, afternoons and evenings. Henri Terrasse, a French historian of North Africa, commented that legend attributes winter and summer clothing styles and "the luxurious dress of the Orient" found in Morocco today to Ziryab, but argues that "Without a doubt, a lone man could not achieve this transformation. It is rather a development which shook the Muslim world in general ..."^[19]

He created a new type of deodorant to get rid of bad odors^[13] and also promoted morning and evening baths and emphasized the maintenance of personal hygiene. Ziryab is thought to have invented an early toothpaste, which he popularized throughout Islamic Iberia. The exact ingredients of this toothpaste are not currently known, but it was reported to have been both "functional and pleasant to taste".^[20]

According to Al-Maqqari before the arrival of Ziryab, all the people of

Ziryab was a "major trendsetter of his time" creating trends in fashion, hairstyles, and hygiene. His students took these trends with them throughout Europe and North Africa.^[22]

Cuisine

He was an arbiter of culinary fashion and taste, who also "revolutionized the local cuisine" by introducing new fruit and vegetables such as

This section contains wording that Iberia.[25] Ziryab's students took the trends and inventions he started to North Africa and Europe.[22] Notes ^ a b c Robert W. Lebling Jr (July–August 2003). "Flight of the Blackbird" (PDF). Saudi Aramco World. 54 (4). Illustrated by Norman MacDonald: 24–33. ^ ISBN 978-0-19-537610-4 . ^ definition of زرياب. almaany.com doi:10.1163/1573-3912_islam_sim_8172 . ISBN 9780801468711 . The most influential courtier was the musician Ziryab, a Persian, who had held high position in the court at Baghdad ^ Monroe, James T. (30 January 2004). Hispano-Arabic poetry: a student anthology. Gorgias Press LLC. Modernism had been brought from the court of Harun ar-Rashid by Ziryab, the Persian singer who became an arbiter ... ISBN 9780691154916 . (...) in the career of Abū al-Ḥassan ʿAlī ibn Nafayni (known as Ziryāb), a 9th-c. ce Iranian polymath who, arriving in Córdoba, used the prestige of his origins to set the court fashions in poetry, music, and manners in accordance with those of Baghdad. ISBN 9781849043830 . ^ ISBN 978-0-19-935757-4 . ISBN 978-977-424-607-4 . ^ Yusuf, Zohra (1988). Rhythms of the Lower Indus: Perspectives on the Music of Sindh. Department of Culture and Tourism, Government of Sindh. pp. 31–32 – via University of Michigan. ^ ISBN 90-04-09599-3 ^ a b c d e f Menocal, María Rosa; Raymond P. Scheindlin; Michael Anthony Sells, eds. (2000), The Literature of Al-Andalus, Cambridge University Press ISBN 978-1-56159-263-0. (subscription or UK public library membership required) ^ a b Constable, Olivia Remie, ed. (1997), Medieval Iberia, Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press ^ a b c d Davila, Carl (2009), Fixing a Misbegotten Biography: Ziryab in the Mediterranean World, vol. 21, Al-Masaq: Islam in the Medieval Mediterranean ISBN 978-1070100906 . ^ texte, Ahmad ibn Mohammad al-Makkari al-Maliki al-Maghribi al-Ashʿari Auteur du (1765–1766). Kitab nafh al-tib min ghousn al-Andalous al-ratib wa dzikr waziriha Lisan al-Din ibn al-Khatib, histoire politique et littéraire de l'Espagne, par Ahmad ibn Mohammad al-Makkari al-Maliki al-Maghribi al-Ashʿari, dont la première partie traite de la géographie et de l'histoire de l'Espagne, et la seconde, de la biographie du vizir Lisan al-Din ibn al-Khatib. ^ Terrasse, H. (1958) 'Islam d'Espagne' une rencontre de l'Orient et de l'Occident", Librairie Plon, Paris, pp. 52–53. ^ Robert W., Lebling Jr. "Flight of the Blackbird". Saudi Aramco World. ^ Saudi Aramco World : 24–33, retrieved 28 January 2008 ^ ISBN 978-1-4263-1258-8 . ^ Susanne Utzt, Sahar Eslah, Martin Carazo Mendez, Christian Twente (30 October 2016). Große Völker 2: Die Araber [Great peoples 2: The Arabs] (Video documentary) (in German). Germany: Terra X via ZDF. Event occurs at 24:05 min. Retrieved 13 January 2017. ^ Gerli, Michael (2003). Medieval Iberia: an encyclopedia. Routledge. p. 850. ^ Fletcher,Moorish Spain 1992, pp. 43-45. References Titus Burckhardt, "Die Maurische Kultur in Spanien. Flight of the Blackbird Robert W. Lebling Jr., Saudi Aramco World July/August 2003. Epstein, Joel (2019). The Language of the Heart. KDP. ISBN 978-1070100906 . Other sources Encyclopaedia of Islam al-Muqtabis by Ibn Hayyan The Ibn Khaldoun, Chapter V, part 31, "The craft of singing." Ta'rikh fath al-Andalus by Ibn al-Qutiyya al-'Iqd al-farid by Ibn 'Abd Rabbih Ta'rikh Baghdad by Ibn Tayfur Kitab al-Aghani by Abu l-Faraj al-Isfahani Tawq al-hamama by Ibn Hazm Jawdhat al-Muqtabis by Al-Humaydī Mughrib fi hula l-Maghrib by Ibn Sa'id Further reading Zaryâb Article at Fravahr.org Titus Burckhardt, "Die Maurische Kultur in Spanien. Newroz films article MuslimHeritage.com article. African music pieces, by Elijah Wald Flight of the Blackbird, Saudi Aramco World The Cultural Icon of al-Andalus at Lost Islamic History Epstein, Joel (2019). The Language of the Heart. KDP. ISBN 978-1070100906 . Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ziryab&oldid=1220483923"