In Arab countries it is used quite a large number of variety of musical instruments, each of which has its own individual characteristics and unique sound.
Despite the fact that people are increasingly signing up for courses through the guitar school website, some prefer this particular direction of music, as they consider some instruments more interesting or beautiful.
There are several basic instruments used in Arab countries:
Tabla
This drum is very similar to the Central Asian dumbek or darbuka, and is made of ceramics with various mother-of-pearl inlays or individual painting. The sizes can be very diverse, but on average the height of such instruments reaches 35 cm, while the diameter is about 25 cm. Expensive models of such drums are stretched with fish skin, while more budget models use goat skin. This instrument is one of the indispensable instruments in the process of performing belly dancing.
Sagatas
Sagat are used by belly dancers during their performances to accompany themselves. These instruments themselves are small metal plates that fit onto your fingers. They are made in the majority of cases from brass, and their size directly depends on who is performing the performance - the musician or the dancer herself.
Sistrum
Specialized percussion instrument
Which in its nature resembles castanets and is a kind of temple rattle, used back in the days Ancient Egypt. This tool is a metal plate, on the narrow part of which a handle is attached. Small metal rods were threaded through the base, bells or plates were placed on the ends of which, after which a certain melody was played.
Eve
This musical instrument is quite reminiscent of a dulcimer. Has 24 strings. The body is made of walnut. Before playing, it is laid horizontally, after which it is played by first putting specialized wooden or metal tips on the fingers - richés.
We have already talked about stringed and percussion eastern instruments and now we will focus on wind and keyboards:
ACCORDION is a reed keyboard-pneumatic musical instrument. On the right keyboard there is a full chromatic scale, and on the left there is bass or chord accompaniment.
In the 19th century, the familiar accordion joined the Arab orchestra. Of course, it had to be modified, adding the ability to perform quarter tones, familiar to Arabic music. Now an improvisational game is performed on the accordion in Taksim.
NEY is a wind instrument, which is a relative of the flute. 
It is made from reeds. There are 5 holes on the front side and one on the back, as well as a thin copper tube placed on the head of the instrument.
To play it, the copper head is clamped between the upper and lower front teeth. The air is blown using the tongue and lips, and the musician's right and left hands adjust the pitch of the sound by opening and closing the hole on the instrument
MIZMAR is an Arabic wind instrument from the zurna family. It has a double tongue and a special mouthpiece for resting your lips. They give a special character and determine a sharper sound than the oboe. There is no direct contact with the reed, so the sound of the instrument is not very flexible
K. K. Rosenshield
Creators of the Great ancient cultures– peoples of China, India, Egypt and others eastern countries- were the creators of wonderful music, colorful, original, rich, which is thousands of years older than European music.
Classical Chinese dances with instrumental accompaniment.
Many beautiful musical works was composed in ancient times by the Chinese people. IN famous book"Shijing" contains labor, everyday, ritual, and lyrical songs from the 2nd–1st millennia BC. e. folk song V ancient China was such a powerful social force that kings and emperors established special “musical chambers” to study songs: after all, from them one could guess about the mood of the people. Many songs directed against the tyranny of the rich and the oppression of officials have been banned for centuries. Song about folk hero Nie Zhen, who killed the cruel king, was so hated by the rulers of China that even an instrumental performance of her melody threatened danger for the performer. The music of Chinese songs is monophonic in nature. It is dominated by a five-step half-tone scale. But melodies of a different, more diverse and complex structure are not uncommon. Folk songs usually folded for high voices, light in sound. Their melody, clear, patterned, elegant in design, moves strictly rhythmically. The melodies of lyrical songs are especially melodic; they are full of great, restrained feeling.
The Chinese people have primacy in the creation of rhymed verse and song, in the development theoretical foundations musical art (IX–IV centuries BC).
The first musical theater in the history of mankind was born in China during the feudal era from folk dances and holiday games. Along with operas on religious themes and plots from court life, there were many that were close in spirit and music to folk art. It was not for nothing that there was a custom in old China: people innocently condemned to death sang heroic songs from their favorite folk “operas” on the way to the place of execution. 
Huqin - Chinese string bowed instrument, a type of violin.
In ours exist largest theaters Beijing, Shanghai and Shaoxing "opera". In their original productions, the most important role is played by orchestral music. It unites everything: the melodious speech of the actors, their movements and facial expressions, the grouping of characters on stage, their dances and virtuoso acrobatics. The characters pour out their feelings during the course of the plot in melodic arias. It is interesting that similar experiences, feelings, positions, characters in various plays are usually expressed as variants of the same melodies. The main instruments in the orchestra are percussion (gongs, drums, wonderful sets of bells); they give music a unique national flavor and vivid emotionality. 
Pipa is a Chinese plucked lute-type musical instrument.
Chinese musical instruments ancient and original. The four-stringed lute "pipa" was probably given its name in imitation of its quiet, easily scattered sounds.
The tabletop "qixianqin" (or "qin"), beloved by poets and philosophers, produces very gentle sounds: it usually has seven silk strings. According to legend, great philosopher Confucius (551–479 BC) played this instrument masterfully. The Chinese also have their own original folk violin- a two-stringed “huqin” (in the south of China - “erhu”), which is played not like our violinists, but by threading a hair of the bow between the strings. The Chinese people love their own wind instruments– the bamboo flute “Xiao” with six holes, the multi-barrel flute “Paixiao” and the famous “Sheng”, which has existed for thousands of years. It is a bowl-shaped instrument with seventeen tubes and bronze reeds that vibrate when air is blown into the mouthpiece. This device allows you to play polyphonic and chord-based music on the shen. Dim, delicate colors of sound Chinese instruments They expressively recreate both lyrical experiences and graceful musical landscapes. 
Qixianqin is a plucked musical instrument, a type of zither.
In the 20th century, Chinese composers Xi Xing-hai, Liu Tzu, and Nie Er became famous. "March of the Volunteers" Ne Era is today the national anthem of China.
Classical music Korea, her instrumental genres, choral and solo singing took shape in the distant past. They recited to the music and poetic works- short tercets "sizho". Songs Korean people are close to the Chinese ones in their five-step system. Their peculiar features are the abundance of guttural sounds, the trembling sound of the singers’ voices (vibrato), and the fast and smooth glides of sounds (glissando). Korean fishing songs are amazingly beautiful. In their melodies one can hear the movement and splashing of waves. Among their musical instruments, Koreans especially love the plucked string gayageum, flutes and various percussion instruments that accompany wonderful Korean dances. 
Gayageum is a Korean multi-string plucked musical instrument.
The formation of Japanese national music dates back to the 6th–7th centuries. The penetration of cult music from the mainland along with Buddhism played a major role in its formation. Since the 16th century. European music appeared in Japan, but the influence of Western art on Japanese musical life became especially strong in the second half of the 19th century. Traditional Japanese musical instruments include the shamisen and koto string instruments. When performing music on the Japanese fue flute, the holes in the instrument are closed not with the pads of the fingers, but with the phalanges. 
Japanese musical instruments: three-string plucked "sha misen" and flute.
Creator of the richest musical culture in Southeast Asia - the people of Indonesia. Indonesian is very melodic vocal music. Its richly patterned wide tunes of five- and seven-step tuning leave vivid impression. The famous folk "gamelan" orchestras consist mainly of percussion instruments: metallophones, xylophones, gongs, drums, rattles and others, which give the music a particularly colorful sound, intense emotionality, and a variety of rhythmic patterns. In views folk theater gamelans accompany solo and choral singing And mass dances which are distinguished by their extraordinary beauty.
The music of India reflects the history of the people, their way of life, character, morals, and nature. IN musical folklore songs of peasants, artisans, and fishermen are heard. The centuries-old dominance of religion influenced all aspects of Indian life and gave rise to various forms of religious music (sacred hymns, ritual songs, etc.). 
Gamelan is a traditional Indonesian orchestra and a form of instrumental music.
More than once the Indian people had to defend native land from the invasions of invaders, to fight against foreign oppression. This is how heroic songs and tales arose among different Indian peoples. Storytellers traveling throughout India sang excerpts from the legends of the Mahabharata and Ramayana.
Even in ancient times, India developed many melodies of various types - each with a certain mode, rhythm, intonation, and pattern. They are called "raga" (awakened feeling). Each raga evokes in listeners a particular mood or idea of the phenomena of the environment. Indians recognize images of birds, flowers, and stars in their sounds. The performance of raga is timed to specific seasons, days, and hours. There are ragas that are sung only during the rains, there are ragas that are sung at dawn, at noon, and in the evening.
Indian lyrical songs with their varied rhythms and luxurious melodic embellishments are captivatingly beautiful.
Music is closely related to classical dances of all local styles, where legends about heroes are embodied, their mood and feelings are revealed. The dancer interprets the melody with “speaking” movements, and the music completes the image of the dance. 
This type of raga, an Indian classical melody, is performed only at midnight. In the hands of a woman is a national stringed instrument"guilt". Two pumpkins at the ends of the body of the wine serve to enhance its sound.
India, like China, is one of the cradles of folk musical theater. Descriptions of it can be found in the epic Mahabharata. There was also an ancient mystery "jatra" with songs and the accompaniment of an instrumental ensemble, folk puppet show with musical accompaniment.
The ancient and new literature. great poet Tagore wrote musical dramas and songs. 
Mridangam is an Indian musical instrument (drum).
India created its own musical instruments. Particularly original are the spindle-shaped “mridangam” drums and the “tabla” drums, which are struck with the palms of the hands. The Indian style of playing percussion instruments is so masterfully subtle and expressive that they are often accompanied by solo singing. The bowed string “sarangi” sounds beautiful, the color of the sound reminiscent of the human voice. But the plucked seven-string “veena” with a gentle, melodious “silver” sound is especially revered in India.
With the fall of colonialism, many folk and classical songs that the Indian people had cherished for centuries came to life. It has become more diverse and richer music life country, music printing began to develop, schools of music, dance, and drama were opened. In the 20th century, composers H. Chattopadhyay, R. Shankar, S. Chowdhury became famous, creating new songs, operas, and music for films.
One of the ancient and formerly rich cultures of Asia is Persian. In the Middle Ages it reached a brilliant peak. Persian lyrical songs, decorated ornamental patterns, were famous throughout the cultural world. Persian folk singers, storytellers, virtuosos on “kamanche” and “surna” gained fame far beyond the borders of their homeland. Brilliant poets and musicians Saadi, Hafiz and others sang their poetic works, accompanying themselves on the “chang”.
There were many musicians at the Shah's court, but their lot was hard. The great poet Ferdowsi captured a truly terrible picture in the poem “Shakhname”: the king tramples to death with a camel a girl who, with gentle music, almost prevented him from hitting the game with an arrow while hunting. After Mongol invasion Persian music entered a period of centuries-long decline. 
Egyptian harp. (Image found in the tomb of Ramses IV.)
In the countries of the Arabian Peninsula and in northern Africa, before the Arab conquests, there were cultures dating back thousands of years with highly developed musical art. The oldest of all the musical monuments of humanity known to us belongs to Babylon. This is the music of a song of praise recorded in wedge-shaped signs about the appearance of man on earth.
Syria is the birthplace of inspired lyrical hymns, widely popular and ancient world. The famous poet-musician John of Damascus was from there.
Egypt was famous for agricultural and river "Nile" songs, folk performances with music in honor of the gods Osiris and Isis. Instrumental art flourished there. The Egyptian harp had an arched shape, its palm fiber strings sounded unusually tender. 
The lute is an ancient plucked string musical instrument with frets on the neck and an oval body.
Arabic music originated in the Arabian Peninsula. Bedouin nomads created songs of drivers, songs of praise and lamentation, and songs of revenge. The first famous Arab singers and virtuosos appeared in Arabia, who had no equal in playing the “lute” - a plucked instrument that later went around the entire cultural world. Poetry and music among the Arabs went hand in hand, improving each other.
In the Middle Ages, the music of the Arabs absorbed various elements of the art of the peoples they conquered, many of their tunes, modes, and genres. "Rubai", lyrical "ghazals", short "kita" of rhyming couplets, long, lush "qasidas" - all of them were set to music. The Arabic melody is based on a special, unfamiliar musical art Europe 22-step system. Its distinctive features are a flexible, changeable rhythm, the intricate figures of which are beaten out by percussion instruments, a wealth of improvisations, and the guttural speech of the singer. In combination with magnificent melodic patterns, this creates the impression of bright colors and ardor of feelings.
Subsequently, the Turkish conquest, and even later colonial oppression (French, British, etc.) doomed Arab music to half a millennium of stagnation.
In an Arab orchestra, percussion instruments are responsible for the rhythm, while the melody and additional ornamentation are left to the strings, winds and keyboards. Stringed instruments include the udd, qanun and rebab.
UDD - string plucked instrument, which is an Arabic version of the lute.
Ud. consists of three parts: a pear-shaped body, usually made of pear, walnut or sandalwood, a fretless neck and a head with pegs for tuning the strings. The string material is silk threads, lamb intestines or special nylon.
The number of strings can range from 2 to 6, but the 4-string version is considered classic. The 6th bass string on the udd was added already in the 20th century, and we owe this to the Syrian composer Farid al Atrash. The udd is also characterized by the presence of paired strings.
To play the oud, it is placed horizontally with the body on the right knee. Right hand presses the udd to his chest and plays the strings with the help of a spectrum. Left hand at this moment he holds the udd by the neck.
KANUN is a plucked string instrument, a relative of the harp. 
Kanun is a trapezoidal box on which strings are stretched. The box material is hardwood. Top part the eve is made of wood, and the rest is covered with fish skin.
The leather-covered part houses 3 resonator holes and 4 string stands. The strings are attached at one end to the holes on the body of the instrument, pass over the stands and at the other end are attached to the shelves. At the shelves, under the strings, there are “lings” (iron levers), with the help of which the pitch of the sound changes by half a tone. On the kanun there are 26 silk strings or strings made of lamb intestines.
To perform the qanun horizontally and play the strings using metal tips placed on the fingers
REBAB is an Egyptian bowed string instrument with one or two strings, and a Turkish variant with three strings. The rebab body is almost completely round and has a round resonant hole on the soundboard. There are also flat cases, heart-shaped or trapezoidal in shape. The instrument has a long round and pointed neck with 2 long transverse pegs. At the bottom of the case there is a metal leg. Horsehair was previously used as a material for strings, but later metal strings began to be used.
When played, the instrument rests on the left knee and the sound is produced with an arched bow, on which a lamb intestine is stretched, but sometimes it was also played with the help of plucks
Many may ask, why do dancers need to study musical instruments? And what kind of instruments – Arabic! In fact, there is an answer, and it is quite simple. It is unlikely that anyone will be able to dance without music, but in order to dance to music, you must be able to feel and understand it. After all, it is by feeling it, like Arabic musical instruments, that you can express all your emotions during the dance.
Eastern music is unique and truly exciting. If you have knowledge of what instruments it is produced with, you will be able to understand how you can play it in the dance process.
Types of Arabic musical instruments
In Egypt and other Eastern countries, the most common instrument is the Tabla. This is a drum that resembles a dombek in many ways.
The tabla, which is used specifically in Egypt, is often made of ceramics and covered with hand painting. As for the dimensions of the tool, they can be different. The length of the tabla can vary in size from 30 to 40 cm, and in diameter from 20 to 35 cm. Different leathers are also used, if the drum is expensive, then fish skin is used, if the drum is cheap, then goat skin is used.
It is necessary to emphasize that only natural tabla is made of ceramics. As for fakes, such as darbuka, it is often made of metal and has a plastic membrane for better sound.
The instrument is played using two types of strokes. The first blow is doom, it is the heaviest and is struck in the center of the instrument. The second blow is a tek, it is softer and is applied at the rim.
All songs in which belly dancing is performed are played using the tabla, as it has the ability to set the rhythm. It should be noted that some experienced dancers often perform a solo called “tablo-solo”, which is performed only to the drum. In addition to the fact that in this performance, Arabic musical instruments set the rhythm, they can also correctly fill the melody with accents depending on the movements of the dancer.
Frame drums, DEF and RIK, are also popular in Egypt.
- DEF is a frame drum that is used to sound bass when creating a melody.
- RIK is a small drum that is somewhat similar to a tambourine. By the way, in oriental music it is used quite often, both in classical sound and in modern styles. It is also often used as a kind of accessory for belly dancing. It is often a drum with a diameter of 17 cm and a rim depth of 5 cm. This rim contains cymbals, 5 pieces, which create an interesting additional sound. These cymbals can make the instrument quite heavy.
DOHOL is another instrument that is often used in Egypt. This is a drum, like all the predecessors described above. It is a hollow body one meter in diameter and 30 cm in height. The cylinder is covered on both sides with leather, which is stretched almost to the limit. The instrument is played in two ways. Either with your hands, or with two sticks. One of these sticks is like a cane, the other is like a rod.
SAGATES are small little plates that make sounds after being placed on the fingers. The instrument is often used when a dancer shows his solo dance and accompanies himself independently in order to surprise the audience. Only two pairs of sagata are used, which are made of brass. Put them on the middle and thumb. For dancers, sagatas have minimum size, for musicians they are made a little large.
In general, sagat is probably one of the instruments that was created quite a long time ago and has a whole history. In general, I would like to note that in almost every country there are analogues of the instrument.
But still, sagat appeared much earlier; dancers used them to accompany themselves even during the reign of the Ghawazi. Concerning modern world, then the instrument is used only in classical playbacks.
Despite the fact that a truly large number of musical instruments have already been named, the East is so diverse that it is almost impossible to mention everything. After all, besides such unusual instruments, which belong only to this part of the world, instruments that are familiar to us are often used in musical instruments:
- guitar,
- saxophone and even violin.
If we delve even more deeply into the existence and history of Arabic music, it should be noted that there is also an oriental wind instrument, but it is used quite rarely.
The TAR is a string instrument that is held in high esteem. It has 6 strings and is made of wood, and the better the wood is dried, the better the sound.
Video: tabla music