''Taqsim'' ( ckb, تەقسیم, ar, تَقْسِيم / ALA-LC: ''taqsīm''; el, ταξίμι, translit=taksimi, tr, taksim) is a melodic

musical improvisation Musical improvisation (also known as musical extemporization) is the creative activity of immediate ("in the moment") musical composition, which combines performance with communication of emotions and instrumental technique as well as spontaneous ...

that usually precedes the performance of a traditional Arabic, Kurdish, Greek, Middle Eastern, Azerbaijani or Turkish

musical composition Musical composition can refer to an original piece or work of music, either vocal or instrumental, the structure of a musical piece or to the process of creating or writing a new piece of music. People who create new compositions are called ...

. ''Taqsim'' traditionally follows a certain melodic progression. Starting from the tonic of a particular Arabic maqam (or a Turkish '' makam''), the first few measures of the improvisation remain in the lower

ajnas A jins ( ar, جنس, pl. ar, أجناس, ajnās, label=none) in traditional Arabic music theory, is a set of three, four, or five stepwise pitches used to build an Arabic ''maqam'', or melodic mode. They correspond to the English terms trichord ...

of the maqam, thereby introducing the maqam to the listener. After this introduction, the performer is free to move anywhere in the maqam, and even to modulate to other maqams, as long as they return to the original one. ''Taqsim'' is either a

solo instrument In music, a solo (from the Spanish and Italian based-word: ''Solo'', meaning ''alone'' or ''by yourself'') is a piece or a section of a piece played or sung featuring a single performer, who may be performing completely alone or supported by an ...

performance, or one that is backed by a percussionist or other instrumentalist playing a

drone Drone most commonly refers to: * Drone (bee), a male bee, from an unfertilized egg * Unmanned aerial vehicle * Unmanned surface vehicle, watercraft * Unmanned underwater vehicle or underwater drone Drone, drones or The Drones may also refer to: ...

on the tonic of the ''maqam''.

References

Kurdish music Arabic music Cypriot music Greek music Middle Eastern music Turkish music Musical improvisation Forms of Turkish makam music Forms of Ottoman classical music {{Arabic-music-stub

See also

References