Encyclopedia of Women & Islamic Cultures

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Arts: Composers: Afghanistan
(161 words)

Individual women composers have not been recognized or promoted in Afghan culture. Historically, musical composition has been a generally anonymous process. Musicians and singers improvised around existing material, and little emphasis seems to have been placed on individual innovation. However, from the late 1950s, the task of composing numerous short new pieces became part of music broadcasting at Radio Afghanistan, and male musicians took on this role. Female performers employed at the radio …

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Doubleday, Veronica, “Arts: Composers: Afghanistan”, in: Encyclopedia of Women & Islamic Cultures, General Editor Suad Joseph. Consulted online on 03 October 2023 <http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/1872-5309_ewic_EWICCOM_0287a>
First published online: 2009



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