Ziad Al-Masri, known as Abu Tareq, has taken his experience beyond playing the rababa, extending it to teaching young people interested in learning this traditional art and helping them understand its fundamentals and performance techniques. He is keen to pass on his experience, believing that preserving this art requires more than keeping the instrument or playing it at special occasions. It also depends on new generations learning, practicing and continuing to share their knowledge of it.
اضافة اعلان
Abu Tareq’s passion for the rababa has also expanded to include making the instrument, writing Nabati poetry and performing the traditional Hijini art form.
His experience brings together music, poetry and craftsmanship, carrying within it the memory of place and people. Since arriving in Jordan in 2013 after leaving the Syrian city of Daraa, he has remained committed to this folk heritage, seeking to keep its sound alive through playing, making the instrument and teaching young people how to use it.
At the Zaatari camp for Syrian refugees, Abu Tareq continues to pursue his passion for the rababa, drawing on years of experience with the instrument. He sees it not merely as a musical tool, but as part of a folk heritage associated with stories, poetry and social occasions, one that remains present in Arab cultural memory, particularly in Bedouin communities.
Speaking to Al-Ghad, Abu Tareq recalled his relationship with the rababa, which, for him, goes beyond melody into a broader space where memory, poetry and identity intersect. With its distinctive tones, the rababa provides a musical setting for Nabati poetry and accompanies Hijini, a folk performance tradition associated with popular expression and people’s lives. Together, the instrument, words and voice create a complete expression of heritage passed down through generations.
Abu Tareq’s interest is not limited to playing the instrument. He also makes rababas, carefully overseeing the details of their preparation and construction to ensure they produce their distinctive sound. This craft is a fundamental part of his experience, allowing him to pass on his knowledge not only of how to use the instrument but also of how to make it. It also helps preserve a traditional skill that requires expertise and must be taught to others.
Nabati poetry and Hijini feature prominently in Abu Tareq’s experience. They are not merely words and melodies accompanying his playing, but also forms of expression that convey human experience, longing and memory. The sound of the rababa gives these poems a musical dimension that complements the nature of folk performance, while Hijini evokes a traditional singing heritage associated with Bedouin life and passed down through generations at gatherings and social occasions.
Abu Tareq’s passion has also led him to perform at numerous occasions and participate in various events, where he has presented forms of Nabati poetry and Hijini accompanied by the sounds of the rababa, an instrument closely associated with folk heritage and Bedouin memory. These appearances have given him opportunities to introduce the art to diverse audiences, highlight its artistic and cultural value, and strengthen its presence at events celebrating folk heritage.
The relationship between the rababa and poetry carries particular significance in Abu Tareq’s experience. Having left his homeland in Syria to settle in Jordan, he brought with him part of his cultural memory. Songs, poems and melodies can evoke a distant place and offer a way to express the feelings of displacement and longing, while allowing people to remain connected to the community in which they now live.
Abu Tareq also uses social media to connect with people interested in this art and exchange experiences with them, helping his work reach a wider audience of aspiring players. Through these efforts, he seeks to encourage young people to explore the rababa, understand its place in folk heritage and learn about the poetry, melodies and stories associated with it that have been passed down through generations.
Abu Tareq believes that the rababa’s survival depends on the combination of playing, craftsmanship and education, with each element helping keep the heritage alive. Making the instrument preserves the craft, playing gives it a voice and presence, and teaching young people ensures that knowledge reaches new generations. Nabati poetry and Hijini extend this experience through their folk expressions and imagery, which reflect people’s lives and memories and give the rababa a renewed space to express this legacy.
Abu Tareq’s experience stands out as an artistic journey that combines a commitment to heritage with its practice in a new environment, without severing his ties to his Syrian roots. From Daraa to Zaatari camp, he has carried his passion for the rababa, using it to express memory and longing and connect with people in Jordan who share an interest in the art. He continues to play and make the instrument, perform at occasions and participate in events, while teaching young people the fundamentals of playing it.
Abu Tareq concluded by stressing that the rababa is not merely a musical instrument, but a folk legacy carrying the memories of ancestors and stories of the places they knew. Preserving it, he said, requires teaching it to young people and encouraging them to practice it, alongside maintaining an interest in Nabati poetry and Hijini as integral parts of this heritage. The continuation of these arts depends on passing them on to future generations so that the sound of the rababa remains alive in the collective consciousness, bearing witness to a heritage that deserves to endure rather than fade away.
Source: Al-Ghad. Reporting: Ahmad Al-Shawabkeh
