Habib Hassan Touma Explained

Native Name:	حبيب حسن توما
Native Name Lang:	ar
Birth Date:	12 December 1934
Birth Place:	Nazareth
Nationality:	Palestinian
Occupation:	Composer, ethnomusicologist

Habib Hassan Touma (Arabic: حبيب حسن توما) (12 December 1934  - 10 August 1998)^[1] was a Palestinian composer and ethnomusicologist, born in Nazareth, who lived and worked for many years in Berlin, Germany. Touma authored a number of books, essays and musicological studies on Arabic; Turkish or Iranian music, among them The Music of the Arabs, first published in 1975 in German and translated into several languages.^[2]

He was also a book review editor for the ethnomusicological journal The World of Music, published by the International Institute for Traditional Music in Berlin.^[3] Among other studies based on his field work in Arabic countries, he published a description and photographs of the Work Songs of the Gulf Pearl Divers of Bahrain.^[4] Another of his studies treated the Arabic musical influence on the Iberian Peninsula during the period of Al-Andalus.^[5]

Select bibliography

• The Music of the Arabs, trans. Laurie Schwartz. Portland, Oregon: Amadeus Press. (1996).
• The Maqam Phenomenon: An Improvisational Technique in the Music of the Middle East (1971)

Compositions

• Maqam Bayati, Palestinian Music Publications.
• Rhapsodie Orientale, Palestinian Music Publications.
• Study #1 (For Flute), Palestinian Music Publications.
• Study #2 Combinations (For Flute), Palestinian Music Publications.
• Taqsim for solo piano, Palestinian Music Publications
• Suite Arabe for solo piano, Palestinian Music Publications

References

Work cited

• Book: Hemetek, Ursula . 2014 . Music and Minorities from Around the World: Research, Documentation and Interdisciplinary Study . Cambridge Scholars Publishing . 9781443870948.

Notes and References

1. Web site: Touma, Habib, 1934-1998 . Library of Congress . 11 June 2024.
2. O'Connell. John. 1990. Review of Die Musik der Araber (The Music of the Arabs). Asian Music. 22. 1. 154–156. 10.2307/834296. 834296 . 0044-9202.
3. Web site: History of the Journal the world of music (new series). 11 June 2024 . The World of Music. en-US.
4. Touma. Habib Hassan. 1977. The Fidjrí, a Major Vocal Form of the Bahrain Pearl-divers. The World of Music. 19. 3/4. 121–127. 43560495 . 0043-8774.
5. Touma. Habib Hassan. Indications of Arabian Musical Influence on the Iberian Peninsula from the 8Th to the 13Th Century . 1987. Revista de Musicología. 10. 1. 137–150. 10.2307/20795088. 20795088 . 0210-1459.