Music of Sudan
The rich and varied music of Sudan has traditional, rural, northeastern African roots[1] and also shows Arabic, Western or other African influences, especially on the popular urban music from the early 20th century onwards. Since the establishment of big cities like Khartoum as melting pots for people of diverse backgrounds, their cultural heritage and tastes have shaped numerous forms of modern popular music.[2] In the globalized world of today, the creation and consumption of music through satellite TV or on the Internet is a driving force for cultural change in Sudan, popular with local audiences as well as with Sudanese living abroad.
For the music of South Sudan that was part of Sudan until 2011, see South Sudan Culture.
Even after the secession of South Sudan in 2011, the Sudan of today is very diverse, with five hundred plus ethnic groups spread across the territory of what is the third largest country in Africa. The cultures of its ethnic and social groups have been marked by a complex cultural legacy, going back to the spread of Islam, the regional history of the slave trade and by indigenous African cultural heritage. Though some of the ethnic groups still maintain their own African language, most Sudanese today use the distinct Sudanese version of Arabic.
Due to its geographic location in Africa, where African, Arabic, Christian and Islamic cultures have shaped people's identities, and on the southern belt of the Sahel region, Sudan has been a cultural crossroads between North, East and West Africa, as well as the Arabian Peninsula, for hundreds of years. Thus, it has a rich and very diverse musical culture, ranging from traditional folk music to Sudanese popular urban music of the 20th century and up to the internationally influenced African popular music of today.
Despite religious and cultural objections towards music and dance in public life, musical traditions have always enjoyed great popularity with most Sudanese. Apart from singing in Standard Arabic, the majority of Sudanese singers express their lyrics in Sudanese Arabic, thereby touching the feelings of their national audience as well as the growing number of Sudanese living abroad, notably in Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the Gulf countries. Even during times of wide-ranging restrictions of public life imposed by the government, public concerts or the celebration of weddings and other social events with music and dance have always been part of cultural life in Sudan.[3]
Brass bands and the origins of modern Sudanese music[edit]
From the early 1920s onwards, radio, records, film and later television have contributed to the development of Sudanese popular music by introducing new instruments and styles. Already during the Turkish-Egyptian rule and later during the Anglo-Egyptian condominium until independence, first Egyptian, and then British military bands left their mark, especially through the musical training of Sudanese soldiers and by introducing Western brass instruments.[25] According to social historian Ahmad Sikainga, "Sudanese members of military bands can be regarded as the first professional musicians, taking the lead in the process of modernization and indigenisation."[26][d] Today still, such marching bands represent a characteristic element in Sudan, playing the National Anthem on Independence Day and other official celebrations.