When you want to talk of classical Arabic music, you can hardly mention any that doesn’t feature the Qanun. It’s all thanks to this instrument that Arab music can be so thrilling, even when you don’t understand the language. Sleek and simple, yet it’s one of the most beautiful instruments in Arabia, Turkey, Egypt, and other parts of the world. The Qanun is as beautiful in sound as it is in appearance. Some have even argued that its melody beats that of the piano or any other stringed instrument.
Qanuns can produce soft, sweet music, and in the hands of an expert, they’re a real enchantment. This instrument is dear to the hearts of the Arabs, but as it turns out, they weren’t the first to fall in love with its sound.
How Did The Qanun Come about, and Why Does It Sound So Good?
Historians have revealed that qanun-like instruments were used by the ancient Assyrians, Egyptians, Babylonians, and Greeks. However, the actual invention of this instrument is attributed to Al-Farabi. It is believed that this man invented the instrument in the 10th century, during the Abbasid era. During this time, the word “Qanun” was given to an instrument similar to the qanuns of today.
The Qanun’s inventor, Al-Farabi, was a philosopher, physicist, mathematician, and musician. He wrote up to 130 books, one of which is regarded as the greatest book of music in Arab literature. So if you’re wondering why the Qanun sounds so wonderful, there goes your first answer: it was the brainchild of a music genius. Another reason for the unique sound of this instrument is its design and make up.
The Qanun’s Design
The Qanun is a flat, trapezoidal-shaped instrument. It mostly measures about 100cm long, 60cm wide, and a few centimeters in height (4 – 8cm). Qanuns are made with wood, and they have a soundboard that is partly wood and partly animal or fish skin. Depending on the variant of Qanun, it may have 64 to 82 strings, made from nylon, gut, or metal.
How To Play A Qanun
Qanuns are mostly played on the lap while sitting or on trestle support, though you can equally squat and play if you’d be comfortable enough. To play, you simply pluck the strings with picks (preferably tortoise-shell picks) or with your fingernails. Qanuns aren’t electrical instruments, so you don’t need any cables or speakers. Besides, such things would only ruin the beautiful melody of the instrument.
The Qanun has a special feature that allows players to further manipulate its sound by changing the pitch of a particular course of strings. This feature is made possible by the small metallic levers under each course of strings, known as ‘mandals’. While playing, you can quickly lower or raise these levers to create an effect.
How Difficult Is It To Play The Qanun?
Qanun players are elite musicians, highly esteemed, and always in demand. With that in mind, it’s pretty obvious that learning this instrument isn’t as easy as learning a guitar or a piano. In fact, folks say that it’ll cost you half of your lifetime to learn the Qanun, and the other half to tune it. Of course, this is just an exaggeration, but it doesn’t change the fact that learning this instrument requires patience, dedication, and a whole lot of work
The Qanun’s Unique Tone
Another thing that makes the qanun hook its listeners, is its unique tone. Qanuns can produce very original sounds and notes, and their tuning system can be modified extensively. You can produce flat tones, quarter tones, half tones, and whole tones. Also, the pitch manipulation (via the levers) on qanuns are something you don’t easily find in most instruments.
The tuning of a Qanun can greatly affect its sound. Perfectly-tuned Qanuns (mostly those tuned to quarter-tones) are the most alluring.
There are two types of the Qanun: The Arabic Qanun and The Turkish Qanun.
The Arabic Qanun
The Arabic Qanun is regarded as the original variant of the Qanun. It is constructed with five skin insets which support a bridge resting on five arching pillars. The single bridge setup of the Arabic Qanun makes it very roomy for the installation of any extra treble and bass strings that the player may need.
The Turkish Qanun
The Turkish Qanun (spelled ‘Kanun’) has 26 courses of strings, with about 3 strings per course. This gives a total of 78 strings (though it can be more). Turkish Qanuns are considerably smaller than Arabic Qanuns. However, what the Turkish Qanun loses in size, it makes up for in style and sound: they are more finely crafted, have more chords, and produce better sounds.
| Turkish Qanun | Arabic Qanun |
| Turkish Qanun is spelled as Kanun | Spelled as Qanun |
| Has 72 tones | Has 24 tones |
| Typically small compared to the Arabic variant | Always bigger in dimensions compared to the Turkish variant |
| Use nylon strings | Use nylon or PVF strings |
| Employs ⅛ tones | Employs only qurter tones |
| Has more levers (up to 215) | Fewer levers (about 105) |
What Kind Of Music Can I Play On The Qanun?
As earlier stated, the Qanun is great with Arab classical music. However, it’s not limited to Arab music alone. The Qanun can work perfectly with folk music and hip-hop music. A good example of music that really features the qanun, is “Sufi Dialogue” by Soliman Gamil, and “Bikare” by the Taskim trio. You can also check out the qanun cover of the soundtrack to the popular movie “game of thrones,” by Ahmet Baran.
However, if you do want to experience Qanun music at its best, you should listen to a live Arab Orchestra. This setup mainly consists of the violin, the flute, and the Qanun as the leading instrument. In that atmosphere, you’ll wish you knew how to play, and who knows, you may just fall in love with Arab music.
