Ibrahim al-Mawsili | |
|---|---|
| Born | 742 |
| Died | 804 |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, Composer |
Abū Isḥāq Ibrāhīm al-Mawṣilī (Arabic:أبو إسحاق إبراهيم الموصلي; 742–804) was an Arab musician of Persian origin who was among the greatest composers of the early Abbasid period.[1] After Arab and Persian musical training inRay, he was called to the Abbasid capital ofBaghdad where he served under three successiveAbbasid caliphs:Al-Mahdi,Al-Hadi andHarun al-Rashid. He became particularly close with the latter and emerged as the leading musician of his time. He championed the conservative school of Arab music against progressives such asIbn Jami. His son and studentIshaq al-Mawsili would succeed him as the leader of the conservative tradition and his other pupils included the musiciansMukhariq,Zalzal andZiryab. He appears in numerous stories ofOne Thousand and One Nights.[2]
Born inKufa, in his early years his parents died and he was trained by an uncle.[2] After a year he went toRayy, where he met an ambassador of thecaliphal-Mansur, who enabled him to come toBasra and take singing lessons. Singing, not study, attracted him, and at the age of twenty-three he fled toMosul, where he joined a band of wild youths. His fame as a singer spread, and the caliphal-Mahdi brought him to the court. There he remained a favorite underal-Hadi, whileHarun al-Rashid kept him always with him until his death, when he ordered his sonal-Ma'mun to say the prayer over his corpse.[3][4][5][1]
He had many pupils, chief among them his sonIshaq al-Mawsili, the freedman slaveMukhariq, thelutenistZalzal,[2] as well as the musicianZiryab.[6]
See the Preface toAhlwardt'sAbu Nowas (Greifswald, 1861), pp. 13–18, and the many stories of his life in theKitab al-Aghani, V. 2-49.[3]
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This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Thatcher, Griffithes Wheeler (1911). "Ibrahīm Al-Mauṣilī". InChisholm, Hugh (ed.).Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 14 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 223.{{cite encyclopedia}}: CS1 maint: postscript (link){{cite encyclopedia}}: CS1 maint: postscript (link)| International | |
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