num_pages: 448
description: This is the first systematic literary study of one of the masterpieces of classical Arabic literature, the fourth/tenth century Kitab al-aghani (The Book of Songs) by Abu I-Faraj al-Isbahani. Until now the twenty-four volume Book of Songs has been regarded as a rather chaotic but priceless mine of information about classical Arabic music, literature and culture. This book approaches it as a work of literature in its own right, with its own internal logic and coherence. The study also consistently integrates the musical component into the analysis and proposes a reading of the work in which individual anecdotes and poems are related to the wider context, enhancing their meaning.
language: English
title: Making the Great Book of Songs: Compilation and the Author's Craft in Abû I-Faraj al-Isbahânî's Kitâb al-aghânî
titlecomplete: Making the Great Book of Songs: Compilation and the Author's Craft in Abû I-Faraj al-Isbahânî's Kitâb al-aghânî (Routledge Studies in Middle Eastern Literatures)
ratings_count: 2
publisher: Routledge