Making the Great Book of Songs

<p>This is the first systematic literary study of one of the masterpieces of classical Arabic literature the fourth/tenth century <em>Kitâb al-aghânî </em>(<em>The Book of Songs</em>) by Abû I-Faraj al-Isbahânî. Until now the twenty-four volume <em>Book of Songs</em> 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.</p>