Category Archives: Instruments

by rilm | October 15, 2026 · 6:00 am

Two fiddles and one concern: The Karakalpak ķobyz and the Albanian lahutë–UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding

This post is the third in a series featuring annotated bibliographies on performing arts inscribed on UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. To promote open knowledge and preserve these traditions through scholarly writings, Bibliolore offers monthly posts over the course of one year. This post is published in conjunction with the International Day of Intangible Cultural Heritage, observed globally every 17 October.

In 2025, UNESCO inscribed two fiddles on its List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding: the Karakalpak ķobyz and the Albanian lahutë. Though separated by mountains and seas, these bowed string instruments have both transmitted epics across centuries, while today the musical practices associated with them share the risk of neglect and disappearance.

The ķobyz is a two-stringed bowed instrument carved from wood, with a partially open soundbox, a fretless neck, and a pegbox. An ancient instrument of the Turkic peoples, it is an essential part of musical traditions of Central Asia, including Karakalpakstan, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan. In Karakalpakstan, an autonomous republic of Uzbekistan, it is used to accompany the žyrau tradition of singing and storytelling, the raspy vocal timbres of which resemble the tones of the ķobyz. In neighboring Kazakhstan, the ķobyz was traditionally employed by performers known as baqsy during shamanistic rituals. Its sounds imitated the cries of animals and other sounds of the natural world, serving as a vessel for communication and a means of passage into a metaphysical realm.

The Soviet era brought repression of Indigenous cultures, alongside the swift transformations of modern life and increased urbanization. Shamanic practices were suppressed, the repertoire handed down grew thinner, and today few ķobyz performers remain. The chain of oral transmission is broken, scattered by a world that moves ever faster.

Mylnyq-Zarlyqm, performed by Saian Aqmolda. An epic kui, an instrumental piece that is meant to express states. The original subject of this piece has been, however, forgotten.

The lahutë is a single-stringed wooden fiddle, with a wooden body and a soundboard fashioned from stretched animal skin, and it is native to the regions across northern and northwestern Albania. Its repertoire includes epic songs and verses performed by epic singers known as rapsods, a term from which the songs themselves take the name rapsodi. The repertoire has also widened in recent decades to embrace more personalized lyrics, giving voice to practitioners’ experiences and the shifting social and political landscapes they inhabit. The lahutë also belongs to the same family of instruments found across neighboring countries—Serbia, Croatia, Macedonia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina—where it is known as the gusle. In essence, the status of the instrument in Albania and other Balkan countries as a national symbol has grown, appearing in visual depictions and national programs; nonetheless, its everyday use, particularly from the second half of the 20th century onward, has declined.

Today, lahutë playing, the recitation of epic songs, and the making of the instrument all stand at risk. These traditions are confined to certain regions and families of limited means, and the Communist period’s censorship of religious celebrations and a scarcity of resources have further weakened them. Today, transmission rests on shifting forms and contexts, with social media increasingly shaping how recordings and videos of the practice reach new audiences.

A short documentary on the art of playing and making the lahuta. Produced by Barraka Productions in 2024.

The state and status of these two instruments mirror the rapidly shifting attitudes toward rural and nomadic life in an increasingly urbanized world. Their shift from practical tools in community celebrations and healing ceremonies to symbols laden with nationalist ideology marks a profound transformation: They no longer belong to the natural world that first gave them voice. Today, community members, educators, and policymakers in their respective countries strive to help these instruments not merely survive but thrive by implementing community-based documentation initiatives, dedicating income to musicians, creating opportunities and awareness campaigns, and developing safeguarding plans. In this endeavor, researchers and writers also have a role—not only as observers, but as custodians of memory and advocates for living heritage.

RILM Abstracts includes dozens of references to scholarship on the two instruments, in different languages. The writings cover the instruments’ history, social and ritual uses, and techniques for making and playing them.

Annotated bibliography

The ķobyz

Gábry, György. “Egy hangszertípus útja Ázsiától Európáig. I” [The journey of a type of instrument from Asia to Europe. I], Magyar zene: Zenetudományi folyóirat 20:4 (December 1979) 350–373. [RILM Abstracts of Music Literature RILM 1979-6652].

Explores the genesis and development of the archetype of the violin called the ķobyz and its role in Hungarian music history. According to László Lajtha, the instrument existed in both bowed and plucked forms and may have been brought from the early homeland. Werner Bachmann proposed that the oldest string instruments correspond in form, structure, and tuning to the early medieval plucked instruments of Central Asia. Central Asian sources mention the qobuz or kobuz as early as the beginning of the 10th century; some references suggest it was plucked, while others hint at the use of a bow.

Gábry, György. “Egy hangszertípus útja Ázsiától Európáig. II” [The journey of a type of instrument from Asia to Europe. II], Magyar zene: Zenetudományi folyóirat 21:3 (September 1980) 223–248. [RILM Abstracts of Music Literature RILM 1980-6748].

Discusses what the archetype of the ķobyz, a Central Asian string instrument, may have looked like around the millennium. The Hungarians maintained both the name ķobyz and the instrument itself. In the 14th century, the ķobyz is mentioned among the professions, and the term hegedűs is also traceable (initially fiellator in Latin). Regarding the proliferation of the archetype in Eurasia, one must distinguish at least two types: Eastern and Western, respectively; thus we see influences first from East to West, then from West to East. The basic type of the ķobyz survived in its rounded variant as a bowed instrument. This type might have been identical with the instrument called the hagadő. The origins of the word hegedű are discussed.

Junussova, Balzhan, Dinara Bulatova, and Saule Utegalieva. “Kazakh prima-kobyz and Kyrgyz prima-kyyak: The experience of the comparative study”, Musicologist: International journal of music studies8:2 (December 2024) 210–232. [RILM Abstracts of Music LiteratureRILM 2024-21387].

Considers the improved (or prima) models of the Central Asian bowed chordophones ķobyz (the Kazakh version) and ķyyak (Kyrgyz). The primaķobyz and primakyyak were invented in the 1930s and have not yet been widely studied. Similar instruments became widespread in many Turkic republics of Central Asia as part of the creation of folk orchestras. Later, musicians used them actively in ensemble and solo practice. Their popularity and available repertoire make it possible to study them more closely.

Khodzhaniiazov, Ihor. “Cobuz cumanicus: Reconstructing the instrument”, in Rabab, Rubeba, Rubāb: Fellbespannte Streichinstrumente im historischen und kulturellen Kontext [Rabāb, rubeba, rubāb: Skin-covered bowed string instruments in historical and cultural context], ed. by Thilo Hirsch, Marina Haiduk, and Thomas Gartmann. Ergon Verlag (Baden-Baden: 2025) 319–328.

The Cumans, also known as Kipchaks and Polovtsians, were a nomadic Turkic people who lived in the western Eurasian steppes from the 11th to the 14th centuries. Written sources, rare images, and archaeological artifacts document their main musical instrument, the ķobyz. Its traces appear in several folk traditions of the region, and related instruments include the South Asian sārindā and the Tibetan kokpo, among others. Researchers excavated two Cuman ķobyzes (dating from the 13th to 14th centuries) from archaeological sites in modern-day Ukraine and Russia and reconstructed them, though a lack of detail makes the results ambiguous. The ķobyz remains relatively unknown among other researchers and the public. New, detailed reconstructions of the ķobyz are proposed based on comparisons with a wide range of instruments. In addition, drawings of two reconstructed instruments are presented to better convey their structure. Another aim is to contextualize the ķobyz within similar traditions. This can help bolster our ideas about the instrument’s reconstruction and offer clues for reconstructing its repertoire.

Sajžan, Almat K̦arasaju̇ly. “Kazahskoe kobyzovoe ispolnitel’stvo: Problemy terminologii i applikaturnyh pozicij” [Kozakh ķobyz performance: The problems of terminology and fingering positions], Saryn art and science journal1:34 (March 2022) 15–22. [RILM Abstracts of Music Literature RILM 2022-18453].

The ķobyz is one of the oldest Kazakh instruments and one of the world’s earliest bowed chordophones. The traditional ķobyz is unique in that, unlike other Kazakh (wider Turkic) instruments, it has not evolved to the present day. To this day, it remains relevant in all spheres of Kazakh music. Moreover, this instrument is widely used both in solo and ensemble practice. The teaching methods of the Kazakh ķobyz school and techniques for playing traditional and modern works are examined, along with topical issues in ķobyz performance and ways to address them. A new approach to pedagogy and the development of performance techniques in general is proposed. Consideration of this technique will significantly facilitate mastering both the instrument itself and the performance of modern works, large forms, and parts in orchestras and ensembles. The traditional and modern ķobyz terminology is addressed. The ķobyz hand positions and fingering principles are seen from a new perspective. A comparative analysis of the teaching aids for playing string-bowed instruments is included. Its results were adapted and introduced into ķobyz performance practice.

Šaripbaeva, Aknar Tattibaevna. “Nositel’ tradicij muzykal’no-ispolnitel’skogo iskusstva v sociume: Na primere kazahskih kobyzistov i ukrainskih kobzarej” [The bearer of the music performance traditions in society: Example of Kazakh ķobyz players and Ukrainian kobza players], Opera musicologica: Naučnyj žurnal Sankt-Peterburgskoj konservatorii12/4:46 (2020) 92–112. [RILM Abstracts of Music Literature RILM 2020-14115].

Explores the functions of kobzars and ķobyz players in traditional society. The historical characteristics of the kobzar tradition, its genres, and its practices are described, with reference to the prominent ethnographers Filaret Kolessa and Taras Ševčenko. The Ukrainian kobza and the Kazakh ķobyz, it is argued, share a common Turkic origin. The activities of ķobyz players are characterized with reference to the work of the prominent ethnographers Alʹkej Xakanovič Margulan and Aleksandr Fëdorovič Ejxgorn. Examples of blind ķobyz players in Kazakh history, including Nyšan and Šože, are discussed, along with a lineage of ķobyz performers beginning with Yxlas Dukenov. Commonalities and differences in the historical development of folk performance traditions associated with the kobza and kobyz are explored, while the possibilities for supporting and reviving these traditional performance styles in modern society are considered.

The lahutë

Ahmedaja, Ardian. “The lahutë between everyday practice and symbolism”, Music in art: International journal for music iconography38/1-2 (2013) 144–160. [RILM Abstracts of Music Literature RILM 2013-8655].

The lahutë is a single-string fiddle used by Albanian lahutarë to accompany epic songs (kângë, kangë, and këngë). Its different images are influenced essentially by the connection with ideas of cultural heritage and national culture, particularly since the independence of the country in 1912. The instrument is made from a single piece of wood with a skin soundboard. The scroll on the neck of the lahutë can be shaped as a heart, a leaf, or a goat head with antlers, symbolizing the helmet of the Albanian national hero Gjergj Kastrioti, known as Skanderbeg (Skënderbeu; 1405–68). The gusle, the same instrument used by the Albanians’ Slavic neighbors in Serbia, Macedonia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina, which during the second half of the 20th century was decorated with likenesses of politicians and nationalistic symbolism, political figures or singers have rarely been portrayed on the lahutë neck. The lahutë’s bow is frequently made in the form of a serpent, possibly symbolizing the snake as a protector of the house. In the first half of the 20th century, the lahutë and the këngët e Mujit e Halilit (songs of Muji and Halili) accompanied by it became Albanian national symbols in public discussions, publications, and works of art. An example is the poem Lahuta e malcís (The highland lute, 1937) by the Roman Catholic priest Gjergj Fishta (1871–1940), where the instrument’s name represents the art of telling and the paean is based on songs accompanied by the lahutë, which the poet had learned from the highlanders living in northern Albania. The lahutë has no place, however, in Lyra shqiptare (1940) by Pjetër Dungu, the first Albanian melody collection, which contains music from the Albanian urban areas. Therefore, it is surprising to find with the melody no. 20 a drawing of a lahutar. Here, the instrument relates to traditional national culture broadly rather than illustrating a particular song or its origin. Understanding the lahutë as part of local musical practice gradually gained importance in the second half of the 20th century, although its everyday use decreased. The lahutë is also disappearing from television and radio programs and commercial recordings, despite its continued presence on the Internet, at folklore festivals, and at public gatherings of lahutarë, where only short song fragments are now played.

Ahmedaja, Ardian. “Songs with lahutë and their music”, in Balkan epic: Song, history, modernity, ed. by Philip V. Bohlman and Nada Petković. Scarecrow Press (Lanham: 2012) 101–132. [RILM Abstracts of Music Literature RILM 2012-911].

The songs with lahutë, also known as rapsodi because epic singers called rapsods sing them, are notable not only for their local presence in the Albanian-language repertories of the Balkans, but also for the multiple levels at which they represent local ritual and tradition. Performed by professionals at family and social gatherings, the songs with lahutë honor guests and invest ritual with celebratory functions. Rather than as single epic songs, the songs draw upon many different subgenres and subrepertories, most of which contain narratives about individual heroes and events in Albanian history. The rapsods often distinguish among different historical moments, for example, the earliest struggles over agricultural land, followed centuries later by conflicts between Christian and Muslim forces as the Ottoman Empire stretched across Albania. Musically, too, the Albanian epic songs show more local ballad traits than the Slavic repertories (e.g., verse structures), while also relying on more extensive, elaborate improvisation. Each rapsod employs his own melodic formulas and modal-harmonic structures, delaying the feeling of arriving at the tonic until strategic points at the beginning and end. So concentrated are the local and personal elements in the songs with lahutë that they have come to map very specific areas of historical and cultural exchange in northern Albania, as well as the areas of Albanian settlement in Kosovo and Montenegro, while distinguishing the ritual and history of those areas from the other regions of Albania, which have their own, albeit distinctive, repertories of traditional song.

Cestino, Giovanni. “Beyond the words: Framing non-verbal aspects in the performance of songs with lahuta”, Etnografie sonore/Sound ethnographies 5:1 (2022) 35–54. [RILM Abstracts of Music Literature RILM 2022-19116].

Scholars in epic studies have long recognized the relevance of various elements in epic singing that go beyond the verbal poem. Yet even though the field has already shifted from text to voice and from voice to singing, a voice-centered approach persists. Switching the perspective from (sung) voice to non-verbal aspects such as timbre, instrumental technique, and gesturality highlights how they relate to the voice and to one another. A Balkan repertoire of songs with lahutë and gusle is examined along with the impact of classical studies on new fieldwork data. The specific case of Kosovar singer Isa Elezi-Lekëgjekaj is discussed in detail and used as a model for mapping the non-verbal aspects of epic singing.

Čolović, Ivan, Dušan Mihailović,and Sanimir Resic. “Who owns the gusle? A contribution to research on the political history of a Balkan instrument”, in The Balkans in focus: Cultural boundaries of Europe, ed. by Sanimir Resic and Barbara Törnquist-Plewa. Nordic Academic Press (Lund: 2003) 59–81. [RILM Abstracts of Music Literature RILM 2003-42738].

Examines the Balkan folk musical instrument, the gusle, from a standpoint of political anthropology, with emphasis on political symbols, myths, rituals, and other forms of expression emerging from an imaginary political corpus.

Dietrich, Wolf. “The singing of Albanian heroic poetry”, in The oral epic: Performance and music, ed. by Karl Reichl. VWB: Verlag für Wissenschaft und Bildung (Berlin: 2000) 83–94. [RILM Abstracts of Music Literature RILM 2000-38436].

Examines not epic singing itself, but rather the music of the Roma groups in the country, using recordings made with a family in the village of Balldre, north of Lezhë. The epic tradition, the lahutë, the myths themselves, and musical performances are discussed.

Croatian guslar legend Mile Krajina performs with a gusle ornamented with a falcon head and a coat of arms, two Croatian national symbols.

Pettan, Svanibor. “Singing epic songs with bowed lute: A vignette from Croatia”, in Balkan epic: Song, history, modernity, ed. by Philip V. Bohlman and Nada Petković. Scarecrow Press (Lahman: 2012) 262–276. [RILM Abstracts of Music Literature RILM 2012-916].

Why do Roma, despite their central role in so many Balkan musical repertories, rarely sing epic songs accompanied by bowed lute in many parts of the region? Other minorities, as well as women, similarly perform within many Balkan traditions but far less frequently in epic traditions. These questions require considering how tradition does not simply exist but is created and maintained to meet different requisites of ownership. With epics, those requisites extend further still—to the ways in which ownership seemingly generates power, and power, in the post-Yugoslav arena, eventually leads to the nation and the state. The case study of Mile Krajina, a Croatian epic singer who moves between tradition and state politics, illustrates this process. As exceptional as that journey may appear, it is not unique, and the discussion concludes with a challenge to recognize the remixing of modern narratives in epics to include minorities and majorities, the powerless and the powerful.

A global instrument, a German tradition: Organ craftsmanship–A UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity

The hydraulis of Dion (above), dating to the 1^st century B.C.E., is the world’s oldest surviving archaeological example of a pipe organ. Photo taken by RILM Executive Director Tina Frühauf while in Greece for the International Association of Music Libraries Congress (IAML) in June/July 2026. The hydraulis of Dion has been extensively discussed in the scholarly literature. For further reading, see *RILM Abstracts*.

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This post is the second in a series that features annotated bibliographies on performing arts inscribed in UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. To promote open knowledge and preserve these traditions through scholarly writings, a monthly post is curated for Bibliolore over the course of the year.

The organ is a truly global instrument. Over the centuries, it has crossed seas and lands, finding a place in ceremonial contexts, in churches and synagogues, and later on in concert halls and movie theaters. Its earliest known ancestor, the hydraulis, was developed in Alexandria during the Hellenistic period. From there, the organ and the knowledge of organ building spread across the Mediterranean and beyond, as communities found new uses for the instrument, adapted its design, experimented with its possibilities, and responded to its distinct sound. By the eighth and ninth centuries, the organ reached Western Europe, where it was sometimes given as a gift to dignitaries, a gesture to establish or mend diplomatic ties among nations. In the medieval Islamic world, too, organs were known and used in centers such as Baghdad, Cairo, and Córdoba.

By the Middle Ages, the organ had become increasingly important in the Catholic churches of Europe. Its incorporation into liturgical practice developed over several centuries, with important early evidence emanating from Anglo-Saxon England as well as on the European continent. In the German-speaking lands, monasteries became important sites for the construction and development of organs. By the 15th and 16th centuries, numerous cities had emerged as centers of organ building and innovation. In the centuries that followed, German organ builders and craftsmen continued to make significant contributions to the instrument’s development, establishing a living tradition of craftsmanship. Even as this tradition remains deeply rooted in the region’s heritage, German organ builders transmitted their knowledge across borders, sharing their mechanical precision and musical artistry with the world.

RILM Abstracts includes tens of thousands of references to scholarship on the instrument’s music and construction in 51 languages, reflecting how this truly global instrument was adopted and adapted across geographies throughout the centuries. The database also includes rare sources featuring 80 references to the hydraulis organ, 313 to the theater organ, 40 to portative organs, and lesser-known references in Chinese, Japanese, and Afrikaans.

This annotated bibliography celebrates UNESCO’s inclusion of organ craftsmanship and music on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2012 by presenting selected writings on German organ building from the 442 entries on the topic found in RILM Abstracts.

Check out a map of pipe organs in Germany and elsewhere. (https://pipeorganmap.com/map)

Annotated bibliography

Fidom, Hans. “Nederlandse orgelbouw in de vroege 20ste eeuw: Duite achtergrondeng” [Dutch organ building in the early 20th century: German backgrounds], Het orgel: Uitgave van de Koninklijke Nederlandse Organistenvereniging 97:5 (2001) 27–40. [RILM Abstracts of Music Literature RILM 2001-23570].

Dutch organ building traditionally followed developments in Germany and France. At the end of the 19th century, the German moderne orgel was particularly influential. Consequently, understanding Dutch organ building in this period requires examining developments in Germany. The roots of the German moderne orgel can be traced to the early 19th century, when organ building became rationalized. Georg Joseph (Abbé) Vogler presented his system of simplification, and Johann Gottlob Töpfer published his Lehrbuch der Orgelbaukunst. Organ builders such as Walcker followed Vogler, while others, including Ladegast, followed Töpfer. At the end of the 19th century, the modern organ appeared to be an instrument with one basic pitch (represented by the 8’ stops) and one basic tone color (which could be varied endlessly). Electro-pneumatic action and stop channel chests made this organ type possible. After 1900, the modern organ was modified by Oscar Walcker according to the ideas of Emil Rupp and Albert Schweitzer (Rupp named this the Alsacian Organ Reform), resulting in giant organs with relatively more pipes and mixtures and larger swell boxes than the modern organ. Following World War I, the Orgelbewegung, oriented toward Baroque organ culture, became important: Its leader, Christhard Mahrenholz, hoped to develop a contemporary organ type based on historical principles. In the Netherlands, however, the Alsacian Reform was not very influential. After the 1930s, the organ builder Flentrop seemed to make a strong Orgelbewegung-related statement with his new organs with slider chests, tracker action, and Baroque-like dispositions, but in the 1950s the Danish firm Marcussen received the important Dutch projects. After 1970, the “Scandinavian episode” made way for the historicism of many Dutch organ builders. Meanwhile, a contemporary organ style was developed abroad, based on the Alsacian Reform interpretation of the modern organ and some of the principles of the Orgelbewegung. Because these builders depend on research, they are related to historicizing organ builders: Both are rationalists.

Fischer, Hermann, and Theodor Wohnhaas. Georg Friedrich Steinmeyer (1819–1901) und sein Werk: Ein Beitrag zur Geschichte des bayerischen Orgelbaues im 19. Jahrhundert [Georg Friedrich Steinmeyer (1819–1901) and his work: A contribution to the history of Bavarian organ building in the 19th century], Das Musikinstrument (Frankfurt am Main: 1978). [RILM Abstracts of Music Literature RILM 1978-5827].

Georg Friedrich Steinmeyer, a pupil of Eberhard Friedrich Walcker in Ludwigsburg, founded his own organ workshop in Oettingen in 1847. Steinmeyer’s biography, the development of his workshop into a factory, the constructional features of his organs, their specifications, and the Steinmeyer facades are discussed. His co-workers, surveyors, and architects are also named. Steinmeyer’s oeuvre up to 1899 included 676 organs; they are arranged alphabetically and described briefly. Tables, sketches, and drawings of the facades are included. Special attention is given to Steinmeyer’s position in Bavarian organ building and to the history of 19th-century organ facades. A list of Bavarian builders is included. (abstract by Hermann Fischer)

Biographical organs in Germany: https://www.organ-biography.info/organs.php?id=vSPB

Frühauf, Tina. The organ and its music in German-Jewish culture (New York: Oxford University Press, 2009). [RILM Abstracts of Music Literature RILM 2009-235].

Examines the presence of the organ in synagogue music and the musical life of German-speaking Jewish communities, chronicling the history of the organ in Jewish culture from the earliest references in the Talmud through the 19th century, when it had established a firm and lasting presence in Jewish sacred and secular spaces in central Europe. The introduction of the organ into German synagogues was part of the significant changes which took place in Judaism after the Enlightenment. Indeed, the organ became a symbol of the division of the Jewish community into Orthodox and Reform congregations. Newly composed organ music for Jewish liturgy, after this division, became part of a cross-cultural music tradition in the 19th- and 20th-century Germany, when a specific style of organ music developed, which combined elements of Western and Jewish cultures. Concluding with a discussion of the organ in Jewish communities in Israel and the U.S., the book presents in-depth case studies (analyses of selected organ works by Deutsch, Lewandowski, Samuel, and Würzburger), which illustrate how the organ has been utilized in the musical life of specific Jewish communities in the 20th century. The original German edition, Orgel und Orgelmusik in deutsch-jüdischer Kultur (Hildesheim: Georg Olms, 2005), is indexed in RILM Abstracts as well.

Hofner, Hans. “Der ostfränkische Orgelbau. Geschichte und Ausstrahlungen auf andere Orgellandschaften” [Organ building in East Franconia. Its history and effects upon other organ districts], Archiv für Geschichte von Oberfranken 52 (1972) 7–116. [RILM Abstracts of Music Literature RILM 1976-1476].

Traces the history of organ building in the former margravate of Bayreuth and illustrates how this style spread to Saxony, Thuringia, Coburg, Lower Franconia, and Württemberg. The biographies of the following organ builders are provided: Matthias Tretzscher of Kulmbach (1626–86), Tobias Dressel of Falkenstein/Buchholz (1635–1717), Johann and Adam Heinrich Gruber of Hof/Adorf (1690–1725), Daniel Felix Streit of Kulmbach (1619–1730), the Puruckers of Marktleuthen im Sechsämterland (1670–1730), the Leubes and Hollbeck of Hof/Zwickau (1650–1700), Graichen and Ritter of Hof/Erlangen (1739–65), Gottlob Hubert of Bayreuth/Ansbach (1714–93), and the Heidenreichs of Hof/Bayreuth (1741–1860). Thirty photographs of organ facades, documents, and seals, as well as 120 descriptions of dispositions, are included.

Kaliberda, Sergej. “Органы немецких колоний Причерноморья, или еще одна органная ‘Атлантида’” [The organs of the German colonies at the Black Sea, or, another organ Atlantis], Organ: Žurnal ob organnoj kul’ture 3-4:19:20 (2013) 21–27. [RILM Abstracts of Music Literature RILM 2013-17438].

Discusses the history of organs in the German colonies located between the Pìvdennyj Bug and Dnìpro rivers, which appeared after the Russo-Turkish War (1768–74) with permission from Empress Ekaterina II, Emperor Pavel I, and Emperor Aleksandr I. The history and disposition of the late–19th- and early–20th-century organs of the German firms Walcker and Steinmeyer in the Mykolaiv and Odesa areas, and in Ekaterinoslav are examined. Facsimile documents of the organ-building firms are included.

Kocourek, Jiří. “Orgelland Böhmen” [Organ country Bohemia], Ars organi: Internationale Zeitschrift für das Orgelwesen 57:1 (March 2009) 5–18. [RILM Abstracts of Music Literature RILM 2009-1111].

Traces the history of organ building in Bohemia from the 13th to the 20th century. The exchange between Czech and German organ building is considered, and the names of towns in the border region are given in both Czech and German. Characteristics of Bohemian organs are described, and an overview of known organ builders is provided.

Ladegast, Walter. Friedrich Ladegast: Der Orgelbauer von Weißenfels [Friedrich Ladegast: The organ builder from Weissenfels], Weidling (Stockach-Wahlwies: 1988). [RILM Abstracts of Music Literature RILM 1998-17613].

Friedrich Ladegast was one of the preeminent 19th-century organ builders. After a difficult start, he established himself in Weißenfels, where he built organs that still testify to his exceptional sense of sound and craft. Famous Ladegast organs are still to be heard in Merseburg, Köthen, Ronneburg, Wernigerode, Schwerin, Biederitz, Parum, Hermsdorf, Leipzig, Weißenfels, and Wittenberg, to name just the most important surviving instruments. All current information about Ladegast is presented in this first monograph on the subject. The many illustrations of his organs also reveal the visual variety of the instrument. In addition, a survey of Ladegast organs built before 1888, a map of locations, and a glossary of organ registers are included.

Lampl, Sixtus. “Orgeldenkmalpflege in Bayern” [Preservation of organs in Bavaria], Jahrbuch der bayerischen Denkmalpflege 38 (1990) 161–179. [RILM Abstracts of Music Literature RILM 1990-2058].

A survey of the development of organ building in southern Germany from the 17th to the 20th centuries, the builders and their workshops or factories, and the various mechanical systems and problems of their conservation and restoration. This is an enlarged version of a report given on the occasion of the inauguration of the St. George organ in Munich (Obermenzing) in July 1985.

Main organ of the St. Lorenz Church (Lorenzkirche), Nuremberg. With over 12,000 pipes and 165 registers, the organ stands as one of the largest organs in the world

Prost, Dietrich. “Der norddeutsche Orgelbau des 17. und 18. Jahrhunderts auf dem Gebiet der DDR: Bestandsaufnahme, charakteristische Merkmale, Probleme der Werterhaltung” [North German organ building of the 17th and 18th centuries in East Germany: Inventory, characteristic features, and problems of conservation], Bericht über das 5. Symposium zu Fragen des Orgelbaus im 17.-18. Jahrhundert [Report on the 5th symposium on questions of organ building in the 17th and 18th centuries], ed. by Eitelfriedrich Thom. Kultur- und Forschungsstätte Michaelstein (Blankenburg: 1985) 19–123. [RILM Abstracts of Music Literature RILM 1985-5172].

Provides examples of instruments from the three periods of North German organ building during the 17th and 18th centuries. The 17th century was characterized by construction corresponding to antiphonal musical practice, while the following century was characterized by the concertato style, and the third by the Empfindsamer Stil.

Vlagsma, Auke H. “Andreas en Marten de Mare: Orgelmakers van de Renaissance. I: Inleiding en werken van Andreas de Mare” [Andreas and Marten de Mare: Organ builders of the Renaissance. I: Introduction and the works of Andreas de Mare], Het orgel: Tijdschrift van de Nederlandse Vereniging van Organisten en Kerkmusici 109:6 (2013) 36–41. [RILM Abstracts of Music Literature RILM 2013-12076].

After the Reformation in the 16th century, many organ builders left the Netherlands to seek work in Germany. One of these was Andreas de Mare from Gent, who had previously had enough work in the northern Netherlands because the Spanish troops, who hindered the Reformation, stayed in control there much longer—in Groningen, even until 1594. Andreas worked both in the city of Groningen and in the province. His work is known in the city (1558, the Der Aa-Kerk), in Midwolda between 1564 and 1566, and in 1578 in Zuidbroek. From 1566 to 1567, he expanded his work area to include the Lutheran region of Ostfriesland, where he built his first organ at St. Ludgeri in Norden. In 1577 to 78, he rebuilt the organ in the Grote Kerk of Emden with his son Marten. Later, they worked together in Verden, Bremen, and then in Hannover, Stadthagen, and Loccum. Andreas died in 1599. Marten became a citizen of Bremen in 1595. When the opportunities for work in Ostfriesland also diminished, the De Mares moved to Hannover. A list of Andreas de Mare’s works is provided.

Vogt, Franz-Josef, and Gabriel Isenberg. “Der Kölner Orgelbauer Ernst Seifert und sein Werkverzeichnis” [The Cologne organ builder Ernst Seifert and his catalog of works], Acta organologica 38 (2024) 179–366. [RILM Abstracts of Music Literature RILM 2024-27413].

Ernst Hubert Seifert was born on 9 May 1855 in Sülzdorf in the Thuringian district of Hildburghausen. After completing his training as an organ builder, he served as foreman for Franz Wilhelm Sonreck in Cologne and for Clemens Schneider in Mudersbach. It was during this period that Seifert developed his first purely pneumatic wind chest system (“communication chest”), which was later patented. At the beginning of 1885, Seifert established his own organ building company in Cologne-Mannsfeld. While the sound quality of his instruments undoubtedly adhered to the spirit of the times at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries, it is remarkable how certain Ernst Seifert must have been of the function of his pneumatic system, which he used exclusively from the start. One of the most important instruments from Seifert’s workshop is the large, recently restored organ in the Marienbasilika in Kevelaer. Built in 1907, this instrument remains one of the most important examples of late–Romantic-period organ building in Germany and was the basis for the opening of a Seifert’s branch in Kevelaer. Only a small number of the instruments from the company founder’s time have survived. It is therefore critical to care for the few remaining Seifert organs from this era that have been preserved unchanged, including the small organ (restored in 2022) located in Seifert’s birthplace of Sülzdorf. The handwritten catalog of works compiled by Ernst Seifert lists a total of 209 instruments that were built between 1885 and 1914. The information in the catalog is transcribed and commented on in detail. Important findings on the prehistory of Seifert organs have also been added, and details on the instruments’ subsequent development have been compiled. Such detailed information provides insights into the construction and disposition of Seifert’s instruments. The fifth generation of the Romanus Seifert family branch of the company still operates in Kevelaer today.

Voigt, Markus. “Orgelbouw en “Orgelbewegung” in de DDR” [Organ building and the Orgelbewegung in the German Democratic Republic], Het orgel: Tijdschrift van de Nederlandse Vereniging van Organisten en Kerkmusici105:5 (2009) 26–43. [RILM Abstracts of Music Literature RILM 2009-19576].

The organ culture of the German Democratic Republic (DDR) can only be understood against the background of economic, political, and ideological circumstances. Organ-building firms (including four state firms and 17 private firms), employing 250 people, were organized into the Artikelgruppe Orgelbau in 1981. The firms were strongly dependent on each other, and there was no competition: The only relevant factors were the shared need to acquire materials and to get along collectively with the socialist government. To judge the style of life and standard of living in East Germany, it is essential to consider the subtle influence that the government, particularly the Ministry for State Security (Ministerium für Staatssicherheit, Stasi), exerted on citizens. The true tragedy lies in the ongoing struggle between intellectuals and the highest levels of government. Many highly placed employees of organ-building firms were involved in this struggle. The churches, as main clients of the organ-building firms, played an important role at the end of the DDR as key supporters of the opposition, in which employees from the organ-building branch participated. Organ-building firms functioned as a reservoir of people working and living creatively who–without theological or (church-)musical diplomas–attempted to escape the narrow limits of socialist life. The marked rise in interest among citizens (especially the younger generation) in organs and organ concerts at the beginning of the 1970s was closely related to the advanced process of secularization imposed by the state. At the same time, the intellectual Marxist dogmas were apparently unable to satisfy people’s emotional and religious needs, and organ concerts filled the gap. Great interest among members of the Sozialistische Einheitspartei Deutschlands (SED, Socialist Unity Party) led the government to build concert halls with new organs. This solved the dilemma faced by SED members, who had to visit church buildings to hear an organ concert. By placing organs not in churches but in concert halls, a statement was also made that the instrument, despite its association with religion, could still find a place in socialist art.

Windelen, Magnus, and Markus Zimmermann. “Wie geht es weiter?: Firmenübernahmen im Orgelbau—Risiken und Nebenwirkungen” [What happens next? Company takeovers in organ building—Risks and side effects], Organ: Journal für die Orgel 26:4 (2023) 10–13. [RILM Abstracts of Music Literature RILM 2023-17480].

In the next ten years, of the 300 or so workshops in Germany currently involved in organ building, around half are expected to see changes in management or ownership structures. These mostly small or micro-enterprises have often been family-run for generations and have accumulated enormous specialist knowledge. Risks and potential advantages of the different possibilities—takeover from within the family, takeover from outside, takeover through a distribution of shareholdings—are considered.

Wohnhaas, Theodor, and Hermann Fischer. “Sieben Jahrhunderte Nürnberger Orgelbau” [Seven centuries of Nuremberg organ building],Der “schöne” Klang: Studien zum historischen Musikinstrumentenbau in Deutschland und Japan unter besonderer Berücksichtigung des alten Nürnberg [The “beautiful” sound: Studies in the history of music instrument building in Germany and Japan, with special consideration of old Nuremberg], eds. by G. Ulrich Grossmann and Dieter Krickeberg. Germanisches Nationalmuseum (Nürnberg: 1996) 158–170. [RILM Abstracts of Music Literature RILM 1996-5376].

Offers a history of organ building in Nuremberg. First, it introduces the builders themselves, from the late Middle Ages to the present, both citizens of the imperial city and residents, with particular attention to the office of municipal organ builder. Second, it takes up the history of the organs in the various churches of Nuremberg within the historical boundaries of the imperial city. An extensive bibliography is appended.

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Filed under Europe, Instruments

Tagged as church organ, Germany, intangible cultural heritage, Organ, Organ builders, RILM annotated bibliographies, UNESCO

by rilm | May 14, 2026 · 6:00 am

The Iraqi maqām: An Intangible Cultural Heritage at risk

The instrumental ensemble of the Iraqi Maqam, *al-chālghī*, as depicted on a 2002 national stamp.

This post inaugurates a series that will feature annotated bibliographies on performing arts inscribed in UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. To promote open knowledge and preserve these traditions through scholarly writings, a monthly post will be curated for Bibliolore over the course of the year.

The Iraqi maqām (المقام العراقي) is the art music of Iraq, historically performed in the country’s urban centers, namely Baghdad, Kirkuk, and Mosul. For centuries, it has been transmitted orally from master musicians to apprentices. The core of the genre is a vocal performance in which a singer delivers classical or colloquial poetry, accompanied by a small ensemble known as the chālġī. This ensemble typically consists of the sanṭūr (a hammered dulcimer), the ǧūzaẗ (a spiked fiddle), and the ṭablaẗ (a goblet drum). In a masterful display of improvisation, the instrumentalists engage in call and response with the singer, supporting the embellished melodic mode and poetry. The canonical repertoire comprises approximately 54 modes, each with a distinct emotional and melodic character. It is said that mastering the entire system requires a lifetime of study, and today, only a few living masters have the entire repertoire memorized.

In 2008, UNESCO recognized the Iraqi maqām by inscribing it on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. With documented history stretching back centuries to the Abbasid era in Baghdad, the genre stands today at a critical crossroads, challenged by shrinking performance spaces and a declining number of master practitioners. Despite this vulnerable status, musicians and scholars are actively engaged in preserving the Iraqi maqām’s legacy through dedicated research and documentation. Their writings aim to preserve the genre’s status in collective memory. A selection of key scholarly contributions to this effort is presented below.

Listen to Iraqi Maqâm: Baghdad tradition–A tribute to Yusuf Omar (Inedit: Maison des Cultures du Monde) https://open.spotify.com/album/1ZQTW88EhMv9CgbFkMjrtD

The Iraqi musician Hamid al-Saadi performs with Safaafir in 2023. Photo courtesy of the Bloomington Early Music Festival

Annotated bibliography

al-Aʿẓamī, Ḥusayn Ismāʿīl. المقام العراقي بين طريقتين: دراسة موسيقية لفترة الصراع خلال القرن العشرين [The two styles of the Iraqi maqām in the 20th century: An analytical study] (Bayrūt: al-Mu’assasaẗ al-ʿArabiyyaẗ li-l-Dirāsāt wa-al-Našr, 2011). [RILM Abstracts of Music Literature RILM 2011-51858]

Presents a comparative analysis of the two main styles of the Iraqi maqām: the traditional performance style named after the reciter (qāri’) Rašīd al-Qundarchī (1886–1945), and the modernized style named after the reciter Muḥammad al-Qubbanchī (1904–89). Aesthetic principles and recitation style characterize each school. A comparison of various reciters’ styles highlighted these differences, and anecdotes about the reception and appreciation of the musical tradition by amateurs and the broader public attest to its popularity in the 20th century.

al-ʿĀmirī, Ṯāmir ʿAbd al-Ḥasan. محمد القبانجي: مطرب العراق الأول [Muḥammad al-Qubbanchī: Iraq’s master singer] (Baġdād: Dār al-Šu’ūn al-Ṯaqāfiiyyaẗ al-ʿĀmmaẗ Āfāq ʿArabiyyaẗ, 1987). [RILM Abstracts of Music Literature RILM 1987-32379-32379]

The life of Iraqi maqām master singer Muḥammad al-Qubbanchī (1904–89) testifies to his immense contribution to the musical genre and to the country’s musical life in the 20th century. Analysis of key recordings illustrates his many innovations to the Iraqi maqām.

The Iraqi singer Farida Mohammad Ali performs in the Netherlands in 2017. Photo courtesy of Le Guess Who? Festival.

al-Bayātī, Muwaffaq. القطع والأصال في المقام العراقي: دراسة تحليلية [Melodic pieces and melodic connectors used in the Iraqi maqām: An analytical study] (Baġdād: Matbaʿat Bāsim, 2009). [RILM Abstracts of Music Literature RILM 2009-55313]

The performance of the Iraqi maqām relies on singers’ knowledge and mastery of classical and colloquial poetry, as well as the order of the melodies that constitute the repertoire. Modally, each Iraqi maqām is composed of a series of interconnected melodic pieces, known as quṭaʿ, and melodic connectors, known as awṣāl. Thirty-seven of these melodies are analyzed.

al-Ḥanafī, Ğalāl. المغنون البغداديون والمقام العراقي [Baghdadi singers and the Iraqi maqām] (Baġdād: Wizāraẗ al-Iršād al-ʿIrāqiyyaẗ, 1964). [RILM Abstracts of Music Literature RILM 1964-10286]

The melodies of the Iraqi maqām permeate every aspect of life in Baghdad. Such melodies are regularly recited in the mawlid ceremonies (celebrations of the Prophet Muḥammad’s birthday), ḏikr circles (God’s remembrance), and tamǧīd (religious praise). They are also performed in secular cycles accompanied by the chālġī ensemble. Names and biographies of Iraqi maqām reciters and musicians are included.

Hassan, Scheherazade Qasim. “Le maqām irakien: Structures et réalisations” [The Iraqi maqām: Structures and realizations], L’improvisation dans les musiques de tradition orale, ed.by Bernard Lortat-Jacob. Ethnomusicologie (Paris: Société d’Études Linguistiques et Anthropologiques de France (SELAF); 1989) 143–149. [RILM Abstracts of Music Literature RILM 1989-1012].

Analyses of the Iraqi maqām reveal a melodic conception unique to Iraqi vocal art music. A maqām is identified by fixed elements and the obligatory placement of certain parts within their respective time frames. Three musical elements, taḥrīr (vocal introduction), quṭaʿ (melodic pieces), and taslīm (final vocal cadence), are indispensable in establishing the identity of an individual maqām.

Hassan, Scheherazade Qasim. “A space of inclusiveness: The case of the art music of Iraq”, International journal of contemporary Iraqi studies 2:1 (2008) 115–128. [RILM Abstracts of Music Literature RILM 2008-53697].

The traditional art music of Iraq, the Iraqi maqām, which is part of other core Islamic maqām traditions, has historically been designed to fulfill two purposes: a supranational frame and a diversity of local content. Both of these underscore the idea of bringing together multi-ethnic and multi-social differences, articulating them on a common ground of musical content, social contexts, and performers. By bringing together the study of the social and the musical, the issue of Iraqi identity as expressed in this musical tradition is addressed. The Iraqi maqām is a strong cultural marker, as it represents the forms of relations between ethnic and social groups in the country. The interaction appears in sacred and religious ceremonies, secular meetings, and all social gatherings, as well as in transmitted moral and aesthetic values. (abstract by the author)

Hassan, Scheherazade Qasim. “Between formal structure and performance practice: On the Baghdadi secular cycles”, Theory and practice in the music of the Islamic world: Essays in honour of Owen Wright, ed.by Rachel A. Harris and Martin Stokes. SOAS musicology (Aldershot: Ashgate; 2017) 273–292. [RILM Abstracts of Music Literature RILM 2017-48378].

The comparative study of the suite forms of the Islamic Middle East reveals entanglements, connections, common features, and interactions that cut across borders. Those of present-day Iraq, and particularly the Iraqi maqām, deserve special attention, not only as the distant ancestors of those developed in the Baghdad caliphate, but also because they have taken shape in a border zone where the Arab, Persian, and Turkish musical worlds overlap. The ordering of maqām within the cycles—significantly different from the Turkish fasıl and the Arabic waṣlaẗ—constitutes a significant puzzle, even more so since later 20th-century performers started to assert their prerogative to pick and choose. Yet the underlying principle, one of singing improvised music, moving from mode to mode, and incorporating composed items along the way, has been remarkably resilient. (abstract by Martin Stokes)

al-Saʿdī, Ḥāmid. المقام وبحور الأنغام: دراسة تحليلية لغناء المقامات العراقية مع نصوصها الشعرية [The maqām and the oceans of melodies: An analytical study of the singing of the Iraqi maqām and its poetry] (Baġdād: author, 2006). [RILM Abstracts of Music Literature RILM 2006-55181]

The Iraqi maqām is the traditional genre performed in Iraq’s urban centers. An analysis of the structure, performance style, and poetic content of each individual maqām shows the melodic complexity and poetic richness of the musical genre. Anecdotes about master musicians and from the author’s life attest to the vibrant musical life of the Iraqi maqām in Baghdad in the 20th century.

Maqam ensemble at Alwiyah Club in Baghdad in 2010. Photo courtesy of the Iraqi maqam blog.

Simms, Rob. The repertoire of Iraqi maqam (Lanham: Scarecrow Press, 2004). [RILM Abstracts of Music Literature RILM 2004-4076]

The art music of Iraq, known as Iraqi maqām, features poetry in classical Arabic and in the vernacular Iraqi dialect, sung by a virtuoso soloist and accompanied by a small instrumental ensemble. It is a remarkably cosmopolitan art, sharing many features with neighboring art music traditions, particularly with Iranian music. Its repertoire consists of orally transmitted, multi-sectioned compositions, performed with some flexibility regarding ornamentation, arrangement, and development. Focusing on the period between 1930 and 1980, this reference offers a comprehensive overview of the repertoire’s musical content through tables and musical transcriptions of scalar structures, melodies, and overall forms. Information from prominent Iraqi sources is consolidated, and a selection of recordings by master musicians, including Rašīd al-Qundarchī and Yūsuf ʿUmar, is presented. An introductory section provides a brief overview of pan-Middle Eastern modal theory along with an outline of the terminology, theory, and practices specific to the Iraqi maqām. The main section of the work is a catalog of 40 maqāms that constitute the central core of the contemporary repertoire.

al-Mašhadānī, ʿAbd Allāh Ibrāhīm. موسوعة المقام العراقي [The encyclopedia of the Iraqi maqām] (Baġdād: Matbaʿat Bāsim, 2009). [RILM Abstracts of Music Literature RILM 2012-52890]

Although the Iraqi maqām represents a continuation of performance traditions originating in Abbasid Baghdad, the 20th century was the period in which the genre evolved into the form recognized today. Traditional venues like cafés and domestic spaces gave way to new listening experiences facilitated by audio technology such as radio and commercial recordings. Simultaneously, new educational institutions, often supported by the government, began to formalize its instruction in the 1960s. Today, the standard Iraqi maqām repertoire comprises approximately 54 distinct pieces, each analyzed and categorized by its unique melodic and rhythmic structures.

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Filed under Asia, Instruments, Performers, Resources, World music

Tagged as Abbasid Caliphate, Arab world, Instruments, Iraq, Iraqi maqām, Maqām, oral traditions, RILM annotated bibliographies

by Michael Lupo | April 2, 2026 · 6:00 am

Covering the cultural heritage of Finland in RILM

International Peace Gardens in Jordan Park, Salt Lake City, Utah

Situated about three miles away from the Hilton Salt Lake City Center, site of the 2026 annual meeting of the Music Library Association attended by RILM staff, Jordan Park contains a heritage setting that is uniquely global in character: the International Peace Gardens. The grounds feature 26 country-themed sections, each reflecting a nation’s culture and landscape, that are designed to foster peace and friendship.

The locale’s spirit of international cooperation recalls the global initiatives of UNESCO that inspired the organizational structure of RILM 60 years ago. It is rooted in the conviction that authoritative and incisive knowledge on human creativity can only be attained collectively, by embracing a multitude of perspectives. Today, as RILM continues to collect and amplify every voice in music research as a UNESCO-accredited NGO, the Peace Gardens remind us of the importance of embracing a global sensibility towards interdisciplinary research.

With the approach of Voicing Innocence (7-8 April 2026)—a conference that accompanies the performance of Kaija Saariaho’s opera Innocence at the Metropolitan Opera in New York from several different fields of inquiry—the picturesque area of the park designated to represent Finland (Saariaho’s homeland and that of many of the speakers and illustrious guests) seems particularly prescient and appropriate. It immediately calls to mind the surfeit of writings on Finland’s lands, history, music and instruments, musicians and artists, and so much more that RILM has documented across all of its resources over the last six decades.

Below is a sample of this collecting effort of just some of the holdings dedicated to, and to some extent produced by, Finland. We hope that it serves as an entry point into research on the country’s artistic production and appreciation for its incredibly rich cultural heritage.

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Those interested in research surrounding Finland will encounter a plethora of writings in RILM Abstracts of Music Literature. The country itself is indexed in 8126 records (1493 available in full text). Over 2200 of these writings are in the Finnish language, and writings on Finland exist in 47 languages, attesting to the global musicological interest in the country. These publications reveal a broad and well-developed field that spans historical research, contemporary analysis, and documentation of musical life. Much of the focus lies in music history and musical life, alongside strong contributions from musicology and ethnomusicology, reflecting an interest in both institutional and lived musical practices. Scholarship covers a wide range of genres, including traditional music, popular music, jazz, and religious music, while also addressing pedagogy, performance practice, and musical instruments. These studies are often supported by extensive documentation such as discographies, catalogues, and bibliographies, underscoring a commitment not only to analysis but also to preservation and reference. Geographically and culturally, the material highlights both regional diversity and cultural specificity within Finland. Major urban centers such as Helsinki, Turku, and Tampere emerge as key hubs of musical activity and scholarship, while smaller localities like Kaustinen are especially prominent in the context of folk traditions and festivals. At the same time, research engages with Finland’s multilingual and multicultural fabric, particularly Finnish-Swedish, Sámi, and other minority communities, as well as immigrant groups. Overall, writings on music in Finland situate musical practices within broader cultural, social, and political frameworks, reflecting how music intersects with identity, regional heritage, and cultural policy.

Additional writings are concerned with “Finnish music outside Finland”, highlighting a diaspora-oriented perspective, where references are relatively sparse and spread across a small number of countries. Mentions appear in contexts such as Canada, Estonia, France, Norway, Russia, Sweden, and the U.S., along with broader regional references such as North America. Finnish music outside its country of origin is studied primarily in terms of diaspora presence and reception rather than in large volume, with modest attention distributed across neighboring Nordic and Baltic countries as well as select global contexts.

Content related to Finland in the RILM Index to Scores and Collected Editions reflects the country’s outsized contributions to the production and development of Western art music. Finland appears in 203 indexed records, encompassing detailed bibliographic information for 94 full scores, 58 parts, and 27 works for solo instrument or voice, alongside 45 records in Finnish and 20 associated with the historic Finnish publisher Fazer. The scope of available material is further demonstrated by major editorial projects such as Documenta musicae Fennicae, a 20-volume series presenting works by Finnish composers from the 18th and 19th centuries, and the 27-volume edition of Jean Sibelius’s complete works, underscoring both the depth of archival resources and the international significance of Finnish musical output.

Oxford anthology of Western music. III, ed. Robert Rau Holzer and David J. Rothenberg (New York: Oxford University Press) 591–597 [RILM Index to Scores and Collected Editions, 2013-44897]

The RILM Archive of Popular Music Magazines mentions Finland 383 times across 18 different zines, attesting to international interest. Discourse on Finnish pop often centers on heavy metal and its stylistic offshoots. Finnish groups like Amorphis (blending death metal with local folk influences), Sentenced, and Stratovarius established a style characterized by melodic, atmospheric, and sometimes melancholic metal. By the 1990s, Finland’s reputation as an incubator for metal became solidified with the global success of groups like Nightwish, Children of Bodom, HIM, and Apocalyptica, partially defining subgenres like symphonic metal and melodic death metal.

“Finnish Line: Pagan Prog Rockers AMORPHIS defy death” by Michael Moynihan in Seconds no. 29, 1994

Finland has also produced a rich punk scene documented by several non-Finnish zines. Embracing the subversive potential of the music (and the zines themselves), writings from the 1980s sometimes situated music criticism and review within the context of the Soviet presence. Given its geographic proximity, history of conflict (e.g., the Winter and Continuation wars), perceived enforced capitulations surrounding so-called Finlandization policies, and Cold War threats, the Soviet Union as a reference point is rather unsurprising. Articles in zines offer a unique window into the agency and activities of subcultures eager to deploy text, image, and music, some as a response to perceived misunderstandings from outsiders about the Finnish situation, particularly in the country’s major cities.

Content related to Finland in the RILM Music Encyclopedias underscores the country’s rich and multifaceted musical heritage as represented across a wide range of reference works. The collection includes information on 464 Finnish musicians, 74 Finland-related topics, and 21 instruments associated with the country, alongside full encyclopedia entries dedicated to Finland in several major sources. Notable among these are Timo Leisiö’s entry in The concise Garland encyclopedia of world music, which situates Finnish music within its geopolitical, linguistic, and cultural contexts while also addressing traditional music, instruments, and developments such as jazz, and the collaborative article by Liv Greni, Miep Zijlstra, Dilkka Kolehmainen, and Rina Barbier in the Algemene muziek encyclopedie, which traces Finland’s musical history from liturgical and secular traditions through to postwar developments, including education, ballet, and key genres.

Earlier and complementary perspectives are provided by the Finland entry in Hugo Riemann’s Musik-Lexikon, which documents sacred, secular, and traditional music in a historical framework from the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Together, these sources are further enriched by specialized scholarship such as The historical dictionary of the music and musicians of Finland by Ruth-Esther Hillilä and Barbara Blanchard Hong, the only comprehensive English-language reference devoted entirely to Finnish music and culture. Spanning a broad historical range from antiquity to the late 20th century, these encyclopedic resources collectively highlight the depth of Finnish musical life, its historiography, and its continued relevance within both national and international contexts.

Kalevala-style song (soloist and choir): Timo Leisiö, Kalevalaisen kansanlaulun ulottuvuuksia, 1976. Liv Greni, Miep Zijlstra, Dilkka Kolehmainen, and Rina Barbier, “Finland”, Vocale muziek, Algemene muziek encyclopedie, eds. Jozef Robijns and Miep Zijlstra (Haarlem: De Haan/Unieboek, 1979–84). Article published 1980.

Finally, the articles dedicated to Finland in the standalone encyclopedias—DEUMM Online and MGG Online—provide a thorough inspection of the county’s vocal and instrumental traditional musics, art music from the Middle Ages to the contemporary era, and modern musical life, including the music industry, concerts, opera, and festivals. Valuable bibliographies accompany both as well.

Beyond this, both resources contain many entries that center on Finnish musicians across several genres. In MGG Online, the researcher will encounter 62 Finnish composers, 14 conductors, and eight pianists, for example. Additionally, both encyclopedias cover not only the nation’s artistic production, but its scholarly output as well, with entries on prominent Finnish musicologists and music critics.

The jouhikko player Juho Vaittinen (d.1916) from East Karelia, in playing position. Ilkaa Oramo, “Finnland”, Volksmusik, Die Instrumente und die Instrumentalmusik, MGG Online, ed. Laurenz Lütteken. (New York: RILM; Kassel: Bärenreiter; Stuttgart: Metzler, 2016–) Article published November 2016.

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Filed under 20th- and 21st-century music, Baroque era, Classic era, Dance, Dramatic arts, Ethnomusicology, Europe, Film music, Geography, Iconography, Instruments, Jazz and blues, Language, Literature, Mass media, Middle Ages, Music education, Music industry, Musicologists, Musicology, Nature, Opera, Opera, Pedagogy, Performance practice, Performers, Popular music, Reception, Religious music, Renaissance, Romantic era, Sound, Theory, Therapy, Visual art, Voice, World music

Tagged as cultural heritage, Ethnomusicology, Europe, Finland, International Council for Traditional Music, Musicology, Opera, Popular music, Research, RILM, RILM Resources, Voicing Innocence

by rilm | October 11, 2025 · 6:00 am

Functions of the kidiu in East Malaysia

The kidiu (pictured above) is a unique aerophone in Malaysian folk music, specifically a bullroarer, which is a type of free aerophone that lacks an air column or closed air reservoir. Used by the Kenyah-Badang ethnic group in the Upper Rejang River region of Sarawak, the kidiu is typically played in small ensembles of two or three bullroarers to create melodies. The kidiu consists of a flat, oval disc made from wood or bamboo, with precise dimensions–at least ten centimeters in length, about eight to ten centimeters in width, and two to three centimeters in thickness. The disc is attached to a string, which is connected to a bamboo pole with a handle, with both the string and bamboo pole being approximately the same length.

The player holds the bamboo pole by its handle and swings the kidiu disc quickly through the air, generating swirling air currents that produce distinct short notes. These notes vary based on the size of the disc and the speed at which it is swung. Typically, two or more players use differently sized kidiu discs, swinging them at specific intervals to create a range of notes, depending on the strength and direction of their swings–either forward, backward, or in a circular motion. Played in an interlocking pattern, the two or three kidiu discs produce repeating short melodic phrases as long as the players continue swinging them.

Kenyah kidiu. Image courtesy of the British Museum.

Initially, the kidiu was used in rice paddies to scare away pests like birds, mice, and insects that threatened the rice crops. Over time, however, it evolved into a musical instrument used for entertainment among the residents of the longhouse.

This according to the featured article on the music of Malaysia by Patricia Matusky in MGG Online.

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Filed under Asia, Instruments, Nature, Uncategorized, World music

Tagged as aerophone, bamboo, instrument, kidiu, Malaysia, Sarawak, Southeast Asia

by rilm | August 16, 2025 · 6:00 am

The Hindustani bīṇ

The term “vīṇā” has appeared in various Vedic texts dating back to the early first millennium B.C.E. Originally a generic designation for stringed instruments, the term has been used in diverse ways across India and throughout parts of Southeast Asia. Evolving directly from earlier medieval stick zithers, the Hindustani bīṇ (the word for vīṇā or rudra veena in North India) came to be regarded as one of the most esteemed instruments in the Hindustani musical tradition. Alongside the rabāb, the bīṇ held a central place in court and classical music traditions. Its significance was underscored by the honorary title mahatī vīṇā (the great vīṇā). The art of playing the bīṇ was transmitted through hereditary family traditions, or gharānās, some of which trace their lineage back to the legendary court musician Tānsen, who served under the Mughal Emperor Akbar. Musical knowledge was closely guarded within these lineages, and professional performance of the bīṇ was typically restricted to male members of the family.

A portrait of the Hindustani classical musician, Mian Tansen.

The modern form of the bīṇ likely emerged during the 19th century. Earlier versions featured a string holder made of bamboo with wooden end pieces inserted; later designs replaced this with a fully wooden tube, constructed by joining two hollowed-out halves. At the lower end sits a high, often hollow bridge supported by a wide, arched piece of bone. The instrument now has 24 tall wooden frets with metal inlays along the playing edges, laced on in a movable fashion. Seven large tuning pegs are inserted through the string holder from both the right and left sides. Four main playing strings run across the frets, accompanied by three additional strings—used for drone and rhythmic punctuation—two positioned on the left side of the tube (closest to the player) and one on the right. These auxiliary strings each rest on separate, broad bone bridges at the lower end of the instrument. Two large resonators, made from bottle gourds fitted with wooden components, are attached to the back of the string carrier using hollow threaded fittings. Each resonator has a hand-sized round opening at the rear, contributing to the bīṇ’s distinctive tonal resonance.

This according to a recently published entry on the vina by Pia Srinivasan Buonomo in MGG Online.

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Filed under Asia, Instruments, World music

Tagged as bīṇ, Hindustani music, instrument, North India, Tansen

by rilm | July 7, 2025 · 6:00 am

Pre-Columbian musical elements in the Veracruz region

The Veracruz region forms part of Mesoamerica—a broad geocultural area in Central America where diverse cultural traits developed and spread beginning around 1500 B.C.E., culminating in the Spanish conquest of the Aztecs in 1521. Many of these cultural characteristics remain evident in the region to this day. Mesoamerica encompasses much of present-day Mexico, along with significant portions of Central America. Over a span of 3,000 years, numerous cultures emerged, flourished, and subsequently declined within this area, exhibiting both distinct differences and a shared set of features now identified as Mesoamerican. Due to this cultural continuity, it is important–especially in the study of specific regions like Veracruz and the Gulf Coast–to differentiate between local traditions and elements common across Mesoamerica. This distinction is particularly relevant when examining musical instruments, as only a limited number of sound-producing objects appear to be unique to specific regions.

No known music from the Veracruz or Gulf Coast region has survived from pre-Columbian times. While the region’s folkloric genres likely retain elements from earlier periods, it is challenging to distinguish these features from those shaped by later cultural influences. Although this is a common feature across Mesoamerica, there are notable exceptions. In Guatemala, for instance, certain bailes (dance performances), such as the Rab’inal Achí and the baile de las canastas, have been shown to preserve rhythmic systems, instrumental roles, intervallic structures, and song forms that are almost certainly of pre-Columbian origin. Such bailes–which may contain traces of ancient musical systems–are not confined to Guatemala but continue to be performed across various regions of Latin America.

A festival featuring Rab’inal Achí in Guatemala.

Ethnomusicological studies to identify surviving pre-Columbian musical elements in the contemporary traditions of the northern Gulf Coast have largely been inconclusive. The only potentially significant example is the ritual dance bisom tiu (the hawk or eagle dance), which continues to be performed at the ancient Huastec site of Tamtoc. However, the accompanying music lacks the non-Western features found in Guatemalan bailes and does not exhibit any unique characteristics that have yet to be documented elsewhere. Nonetheless, certain rhythmic elements appear to retain connections to the pre-Hispanic soundscape of the Veracruz/Gulf Coast region. Excavations in the area have uncovered hundreds, if not thousands, of musical instruments or fragments, many of which were clearly crafted to produce a wide range of timbral variations. The absence of standardized tuning among these instruments suggests that timbre may have been prioritized over pitch, intervals, or melodic structure in the region’s musical practices.

This according to this month’s featured article by Mark Howell on Pre-Columbian music of Veracruz. Find it in DEUMM Online.

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Filed under Central America, Dance, Dramatic arts, Geography, Instruments, World music

Tagged as bailes, Central America, Dance, Gulf Coast, Indigenous Americans, Instruments, Mesoamerica, Mexico, Veracruz

by rilm | July 2, 2025 · 6:00 am

Improvisation schemas and the Turkmen dutar

The Turkmen dutar is a long-necked, two-stringed lute distinguished by its pear-shaped resonating body and thin wooden soundboard. Both the body and soundboard are carved from mulberry wood, while the neck is crafted from the dried trunk of an apricot tree. To construct the instrument, the mulberry wood is carefully rounded, hollowed out, and polished to shape the body. The soundboard wood undergoes a drying process—baked for up to 24 hours to eliminate moisture—before being affixed over the hollowed chamber using traditional bone glue. Traditionally tuned a fourth apart, its two strings serve distinct musical functions: the higher-pitched string carries the primary melody, while the lower-pitched string is often muted by the thumb of the playing hand to produce a shifting parallel melody. Alternatively, the lower string may ring open to function as a drone in certain pieces or passages. Believed to descend from ancient Babylonian and Egyptian lutes, the dutar today is primarily used to accompany Turkmen bards known as bagşy (or bakshy). In the south central Ahal region of Turkmenistan, however, dutar players have cultivated a solo instrumental repertoire. Historically passed down orally, this body of music has, in recent decades, seen partial transcription into a modified form of Western notation for pedagogical purposes. Formally sophisticated and largely through-composed, the repertoire still allows space for variation and interpretive flexibility.

Oghlan Bakhshi (middle), a virtuoso Turkmen dutar player, performs with his group.

In Turkmen music, the term hasap, which literally means account or reckoning, carries a range of other nuanced meanings. In everyday use, one might request a hasap when settling a bill at a restaurant or inquiring about the score of a game. Within musical contexts, hasap denotes various interpretive and structural concepts. Musicians may refer to a particular master’s hasap for a given piece, or more generally to the shared hasap of a composition. Along with related terms such as nusga, forma, and skema, hasap can indicate a skeletal melodic framework that individual performers elaborate through ornamentation and stylistic variation. Comparative transcriptions of extended passages–whether interpreted by multiple dutar players or revisited by the same performer–often reveal consistency in underlying structure, with variation appearing primarily in melodic embellishment, rhythmic phrasing, and the treatment of the lower string.

Excerpt from the song *Balsaýat*, transcribed by Ýazmyrat Rejepow.

Turkmen dutar players navigate the dual imperative to both preserve and creatively reinterpret traditional repertoire. To do so, they draw on a repertoire of internalized formulas, compositional schemas, and aesthetic principles to generate new musical material–whether in improvisation or composition. These strategies parallel those found in other music traditions, such as Hindustani music, Persian classical music, and jazz, where deep immersion in a musical system enables spontaneous creativity within established boundaries. Like Persian musicians who internalize the radif through prolonged apprenticeship, Turkmen performers absorb such frameworks, often without formal codification. Turkmen dutar players, however, tend to reapply these principles not just in improvisatory spaces, but within the reinterpretation of the inherited compositions themselves.

This according to “Principles of transmission and collective composition in Turkmen dutar performance” by David Fossum (Analytical approaches to world musics 5/2 [2017] 37 p.; RILM Abstracts with Full Text, 2017-43691) and the entry on the dutar in Musical instruments: A comprehensive dictionary (1964); find it in RILM Music Encyclopedias.

The Turkmen dutar is on UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

Below, Oghlan Bakhshi performs the traditional Turkmen song Boy bibi. The video after it, created by UNESCO, is on dutar making and performance.

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Filed under Asia, Ethnomusicology, Instruments, Nature, World music

Tagged as Central Asia, dutar, hasap, Improvisation, Instruments, Lute, repertoire, transmission, Turkmenistan, UNESCO

by rilm | June 9, 2025 · 6:00 am

The Chilean guitarrón

The guitarrón, an instrument of central Chile, is known as one of the most complex stringed instruments in the Americas due to its unique string arrangement and quantity. Shaped like a guitar, the guitarrón features a total of 25 strings–21 arranged in five courses, with an additional four strings positioned along the sides. The guitarrón is customarily used to accompany sung poetry in décimas, a Spanish stanza form consisting of ten lines.

The cover of Hugo Arévalo’s album *El guitarrón y el canto a lo pueta* (1970).

In performance, the guitarrón is held similarly to a guitar, with the left hand muting the strings along the neck and the right hand plucking them over the body. The instrument’s position can vary from horizontal to vertical, depending on the musician’s preference and their proximity to other performers. Guitarrón players, known as guitarroneros, are often also proficient guitarists, capable of executing a wide range of strumming techniques–though these are never applied to the guitarrón. Instead, the instrument is played exclusively with plucking techniques. Occasionally, one or two notes are struck rapidly with the index finger as an ornamental flourish, but traditional guitar strumming is avoided. When guitarrón repertoire is performed on guitar, musicians typically imitate the plucked pizzicato style.

The history of the Chilean guitarrón remains largely unclear. Its origins can be traced back to the Spanish guitar, rather than the more refined vihuela favored by the urban elite. The guitarrón shares the general body shape and structural features of the guitar, though with certain variations. Its development mirrors the evolution of the Spanish guitar introduced to the Americas from the 16th century onward. Early guitars of that period typically had four strings, arranged in single or double courses. By the late 16th century, the five-course guitar emerged and remained prevalent in rural regions, even after the seven-course guitar gained popularity in urban centers toward the end of the 18th century. Interestingly, the modern six-string guitar is sometimes still used as a five-course instrument, either by loosening the sixth string or tuning it in unison with the fifth.

This according to DEUMM Online’s featured article of the month by José Pérez de Arce, entitled Chilean guitarrón.

Hugo Arévalo performs on the guitarrón below. The video after it, featuring Santos Rubio on guitarrón, was made by Daniel Sheehy, the ethnomusicologist and future director and curator of Smithsonian Folkways Recordings, in 1973 during his fieldwork in Chile.

Acholitronix: Fusing electronic and traditional music in Uganda

In contemporary Africa, new electronic music can generally be classified into two distinct categories. The first involves artists who adapt mainstream genres like house, techno, or electronica, giving them a local twist. These artists incorporate samples of traditional music into the structural framework of these genres, creating a fusion that resonates with specific social groups and aids in creating cultural identity. This approach often includes elements such as traditional or Afrofuturist stage costumes, further reinforcing the connection to local heritage. The second category stems from technical limitations. These artists, often working without access to live musicians, turn to digital tools to create traditional-sounding music that aligns with the structures of electronic genres. Their goal is not to target global club scenes, but rather to address the need for musical accompaniment in traditional performances. Many of these genres emerged at weddings, where they blended respect for cultural traditions with a desire for innovation, reflecting the celebration of the couple, their families, and the community.

In northern Uganda, the fusion of Acholi music with electronic elements has led to the emergence of a new genre called Acholitronix. The term is a blend of “Acholi” and “electronic,” and it has gained significant traction in global alternative electronic music circles, largely due to two influential albums released by the Kampala-based Nyege Nyege Tapes label: Otim Alpha’s Gulu city anthems (2017) and the compilation album Electro Acholi’s kaboom (2019). Another key figure in the Acholitronix movement is Akena P’Layeng Okella, better known as Leo Palayeng (pictured above). Palayeng began playing the inanga harp at the age of six, shortly after his father was killed during the war between the Ugandan government and various armed factions in northern Uganda. His early experiences as a musician shed light on how musical traditions transform in societies affected by trauma and sociopolitical upheavals, both during the colonial era and more recently through the civil war.

As an Acholi musician, Palayeng’s life has mirrored the changing dynamics of his community, as he has been an active participant in its cultural evolution. In the late 1990s, Palayeng joined a theater group where he performed dance routines set to rumba and rap music. During this time, he began recording his first rap songs and became a radio announcer. He also explored music production using early sound software like Fruity Loops 3.45, eventually producing his first Acholi electronic tracks.

Palayeng performs Acholitronix in Mexico in 2019.

Since beginning his career as a producer in the early 2000s, Palayeng has embraced a musician-researcher approach to his work. He actively records and archives the musical traditions of various Acholi instruments, often incorporating them into his own compositions. To document and preserve Acholi musical heritage, Palayeng travels to the outskirts of Ugandan cities to capture the sounds of traditional music and instruments. This archival effort holds deep significance for Palayeng–not only does it instill a sense of pride in his own Luo cultural heritage, but it also serves as a wellspring of inspiration for his future work. His creative process typically begins with acoustic samples, which he then layers with an electronic aesthetic. This aesthetic is defined by the integration of MIDI instruments and additional samples alongside the traditional recordings. One of the defining features of Acholitronix is the use of call-and-response, a central element of Acholi music. Another notable aspect of this genre is the shift in tempo—where traditional rhythms are often sped up, with tracks rarely dipping below 160 beats per minute, marking the transition from acoustic to electronic with a noticeable acceleration.

Cover art for an album by Emiliano Motta and Leo Palayeng.

Reflecting on this creative adaptation, Palayeng explains, “I decided to blend traditional Acholi rhythms with electronic patterns. The process of creating the first larakaraka loops wasn’t easy—it took a lot of time. I started by recording traditional drums and calabash sounds to create samples for Fruity Loops add-ons, which I then installed onto my computer. I was able to capture the true essence of Acholi sounds with a focus on quality. One night, after a long session in the disco hall, the club closed, and I found myself deep in thought. I decided to create a simple project using a Fruity Loops sequence. I cranked the BPM up to 158, then dropped the calabash samples into the MIDI sequence, making them feel like they were being played live on stage. Boom! That was it. The loops for wedding celebrations and other electronic Acholi tribal patterns I used to play on the inanga came rushing back to me.”

This according to “Leo Palayeng: Bridging the gap from traditional to electronic Acholi music” by Rémy Jadinon (African music: Journal of the International Library of African Music 11/4 [2022] 90–106; RILM Abstracts with Full Text, 2022-22008).

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Filed under Africa, Instruments, Mass media, Performers, Popular music, World music

Tagged as Acholitronix, Afrofuturism, Electronic, Globalization, Leo Palayeng, syncretism, Uganda

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Covering the cultural heritage of Finland in RILM

Functions of the kidiu in East Malaysia

The Hindustani bīṇ

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Improvisation schemas and the Turkmen dutar

The Chilean guitarrón

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