The Rachidia is an artistic and cultural association specializing in

Tunisian music Tunisia is a North African country with a predominantly Arabic-speaking population. The country is best known for malouf, a kind of music imported from Andalusia after the Spanish immigration in the 15th century. Though in its modern form, malou ...

. It was created on 3 November 1934 by the intellectual, political and artistic community led by , who was Sheikh el

Medina Medina,, ', "the radiant city"; or , ', (), "the city" officially Al Madinah Al Munawwarah (, , Turkish: Medine-i Münevvere) and also commonly simplified as Madīnah or Madinah (, ), is the second-holiest city in Islam, and the capital of the ...

Tunis ''Tounsi'' french: Tunisois , population_note = , population_urban = , population_metro = 2658816 , population_density_km2 = , timezone1 = CET , utc_offset1 ...

at that period.Lotfi Ben Khélifa, « La Rachidia. L'arène des chants éternels », ''Saisons tunisiennes'', August 30, 2008
The institute's orchestra, ran by Fethi Zghonda, is renowned in Tunisia and other parts of the

Maghreb The Maghreb (; ar, الْمَغْرِب, al-Maghrib, lit=the west), also known as the Arab Maghreb ( ar, المغرب العربي) and Northwest Africa, is the western part of North Africa and the Arab world. The region includes Algeria, ...

. The association is officially called Association of the Rachidi Institute of Tunisian Music. It is the first musical institution created in

Tunisia ) , image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa , image_map2 = , capital = Tunis , largest_city = capital , ...

and one of the oldest ones of

Arabic music Arabic music or Arab music ( ar, الموسيقى العربية, al-mūsīqā al-ʿArabīyyah) is the music of the Arab world with all its diverse music styles and genres. Arabic countries have many rich and varied styles of music and also man ...

Etymology

The Rachidia name was chosen in reference to

Muhammad I ar-Rashid Muhammad I ar-Rashid ( ar, أبو عبد الله محمد الرشيد باي; 1710 – 12 February 1759) was the third leader of the Husainid Dynasty and the ruler of Tunisia from 1756 until his death. See also *Rejeb Khaznadar Rejeb K ...

, third

ruler A ruler, sometimes called a rule, line gauge, or scale, is a device used in geometry and technical drawing, as well as the engineering and construction industries, to measure distances or draw straight lines. Variants Rulers have long ...

of the

Husainid Dynasty The Husainid dynasty or Husaynid dynasty ( ar, الحسينيون) was a ruling dynasty of the Beylik of Tunis, which was of Greek origin from the island of Crete. It came to power under al-Husayn I ibn Ali in 1705, succeeding the Muradid dynast ...

. The latter was initiated to music by his mother, an Italian aristocrat.Adel Latrech, « L'auteur de l'efflorescence de la Rachidia », ''La Presse de Tunisie'', February 1, 2008
A poet and passionate about music, he played the

oud , image=File:oud2.jpg , image_capt=Syrian oud made by Abdo Nahat in 1921 , background= , classification= * String instruments *Necked bowl lutes , hornbostel_sachs=321.321-6 , hornbostel_sachs_desc=Composite chordophone sounded with a plectrum , ...

and violin. He was also interested in music, Andalusian songs and worked towards enriching the Tunisian music through

Turkish music The music of Turkey includes mainly Turkic and Byzantine elements as well as partial influences ranging from Ottoman music, Middle Eastern music and Music of Southeastern Europe, as well as references to more modern European and American popula ...

, particularly in terms of rules and rhythms of nūbāt. This sovereign established a music school at the beylical palace of

Le Bardo Le Bardo ( ar, الباردو ' also Bārdaw, Bardaw, and Bardois) is a Tunisian city west of Tunis. As of 2004, the population is 73,953. Built by the Hafsid dynasty in the 14th century, the name Bardo comes from the Spanish word "prado" meani ...

that was maintained under the rule of his successors.

References

External links

* {{Official website, http://www.larachidia.com/ Music organisations based in Tunisia Education in Tunisia Educational organisations based in Tunisia Articles containing video clips