What are the rules to compose arab/india/chinese music?

[Sam_Zen]

Youtube is a nice tip.
China :
Vangelis - the Dragon
http://nl.youtube.com/watch?v=tIR9dVx8uGE
Traditional Chinese Music
http://nl.youtube.com/watch?v=7okLGfDULmI
Arab :
Omm Kalthoum-Inta Omri
http://nl.youtube.com/watch?v=vjfH8a8wDOU
Cheb Khaled - Wahran Wahran (Live)
http://nl.youtube.com/watch?v=xCh9R3gk3yY
Indian
Ravi Shankar, Alla Rakha - Rag Charukeshi
http://nl.youtube.com/watch?v=JctKjVHmo2g
Anoushka Shankar-Naked
http://nl.youtube.com/watch?v=Ge8zyUDrA6Y

[Saga Musix]

Also a nice example for arab music:
The intro from "Prince of Persia 2"

[psishock]

Some nice choices Sam, i loved those calming and meditative Indian sounds, also i'm a fan of the most non traditional Japanese music, but the old ones also had their own charm 4 sure.

[Sam_Zen]

Japanese, like Tomita ? Or even more contemporary ?

[psishock]

Yes Tomika is great, but he is more likely a "special" category to me, just like Vangelis example, not exactly Japanese type of music.
I've had Yoko Kanno in mind, she is a perfect example to it.

Yoko Kanno - Kiseki no umi (beautiful piece, and great transitions)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N_a30xaK1Rs

Yoko Kanno - Sora (short but impressive)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wAgoRWzXbdQ&fmt=18

Yoko Kanno - Replica (some great combination of different styles)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iz4tdfqEsBM

Yoko Kanno - I can't be cool (there is a nice charm in this song)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2TkvgbveuSs&fmt=18

[Sam_Zen]

You're right about Tomita, japanese, but not specifically making japanese music.
Nice, I questioned, in the hope that you would come up with some examples.
Replica is definetely my fav. Nice production too.

Found some recent chinese band Mirotic at tudou.com (western influences) :
http://www.tudou.com/programs/view/GmC1H7yhmS8/

Lotsa Arab music can be found at : http://www.6arab.com/
(most files in the dreadful Real format)
http://songs.6arab.com/a7lam..a7tagik-ana.rm
Of course the same navigation problems as with tudou, but with hovering the mouse over a link,
and checking the browserbar left bottom, it can be done.

[psishock]

Sam
I have nothing against a good Asian pop music, but Mirotic has 2 much hip-hop influence imo, and i don't really consider hip-hop as a real music genre. It is very much focused on the lyrics and very little on the actual sounds.

I can recommend Nami Tamaki example as a good jpop music artist, i like her style very much:

Tamaki Nami - Believe
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ExRRaxZAxnE

Nami Tamaki - Reason
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aD-1ndkRQOo

Nami Tamaki - Realize
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pzK-wN7zk-4


A good jpop music (for me) is always a mixed genre of electronic (strong like rave or techno), metal guitars, and pop singing.

[Sam_Zen]

i don't really consider hip-hop as a real music genre. It is very much focused on the lyrics and very little on the actual sounds.

I consider hip-hop as a musical genre which is very much focused on the lyrics and very little on the actual sounds.
Although in 60/70 it would have been more an artform than music, called "jazz and poetry".

You're right about Mirotic. It was more that I was looking for chinese artists in stead of japanese.
About Tamaki : Too poppy to my taste although some nice electronics. Maybe a genre should be added : amusement.

Some things found in my archive :
Modern South Korea :
http://www.louigiverona.com/webarchive/samzen/download/media/Ruby.rm

Modern North Africa :
http://www.louigiverona.com/webarchive/samzen/download/media/mdj_arabic.ra

If one needs a self-contained Real-file player, find it here

[psishock]

About Tamaki: well, its japanese pop (jpop) so it's meant to be poppy , and i'm finding it really amusing, but you already know that i'm listening to a big wide scale of musics genres.

Nice to hear something from Korea and North Africa 2.

For every media type, i'm using Media Player Classic (real media is not an exception), i can only recommend that great and compact free software (only 1 executable, every setting is saved in 1 .ini file, no install)

[jikoo]

I found an interesting webpage about that. :wink:
See end of this webpage : http://umlautllama.com/Audio/theory/theory.html

[Sam_Zen]

thanks jikoo, a very nice document indeed.

[uncloned]

the big secret (that is no secret at all) is, that there are still rules, even if you deny that, psishock. you're working with western note material, you're following the rules of trance, etc. It all fits into our western scales and all that. There were some crazy guys in the beginning of the 20th century who wanted to do the contrary, music without rules, but even they failed in doing so. c'mon, you have 12 different keys, there's always some rules!

Atonal music definitely has rules. And in fact random music has rules. The only music that has no rules is music you do not control in any way shape form or fashion.

By the very act of controlling sound, however you do it, you impose your will and therefore some rules.

[uncloned]

Every kind of music has rules or features.
I heard that chinese music is pentaphonic, but I do have any idea of what it means.

pentatonic is a 5 note scale of which there are several

the most easily understood pentatonic scale is using only the black keys on a keyboard

g flat, a flat, b flat, d flat, and e flat.

I do not know any of the composition rules though.

Indian music has so many rules that performers take a life time to understand the codified rules of improvisation.

I have no knowledge of arabic music.