Somalia: Modern and contemporary performance practice

Orwin, Martin

Abstract

Modern Somali music has its roots in the music of the mid-1940s and the development of the poetic genres belwo, heello, and qaraami. Although Abdullahi Qarshe is considered to be the person who initially developed musical accompaniment to these particular types of poems, he was quickly joined by other early figures. Following independence in 1960 of both the British Protectorate of Somaliland and the Italian United Nations Trusteeship of Somalia and the unification of those territories, the capital of Somalia became Mogadishu. In 1967, the National Theatre was built there and quickly became a center of artistic endeavor.

Citation

Orwin, M. (2019). Somalia: Modern and contemporary performance practice. In J. Sturman (Ed.), The SAGE International Encyclopedia of Music and Culture. Sage. https://doi.org/10.4135/9781483317731.n664

• Acceptance Date: Mar 22, 2025
• Publication Date: Apr 29, 2019
• Deposit Date: Nov 30, 2018
• Book Title: The SAGE International Encyclopedia of Music and Culture
• ISBN: 9781483317755
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.4135/9781483317731.n664
• Related Public URLs: https://uk.sagepub.com/en-gb/eur