Benefitting country(ies): Yemen

Overview:

The Song of Sana’a is a group of songs accompanied by the fine sound of the Yemeni lute and a lightly struck copper tray. The poetic repertory, written in both Yemeni dialects and classical Arabic, abounds in wordplay and is renowned for its emotional content.

The project was designed to:

• promote knowledge about the Song of Sana’a;
• raise awareness about its functions and its importance for society; and
• ensure its safeguarding through teaching, research and inventory making activities.

The project activities encompass the following:

• preparation and development of an inventory of the Song of Sana’a;
• establishment of archives within the institutional infrastructure of the Yemeni Centre for Musical Heritage and the training of researchers in field survey and inventorying;
• encouragement of Transmission of the Song of Sana’a, especially the old masters’ skills to younger generations, through the opening of master classes and scholarships for students;
• preservation of the musical instruments through lute-making workshop with scholarships for students;
• awareness raising campaign and the dissemination of recordings, with the production of promotional documentation such as CDs, DVDs and books.

01/04/2008 - 01/03/2009 – Safeguarding traditional Somali performing arts01/01/2005 - 01/01/2009 – Safeguarding of traditional music in Ethiopia