RE: [tuning] Arabic Maqamat

>I'm curious to know if the
>Arabic Maqamat that you listed are usually intended to be used in
>Arabic music in strict 24 TET, or is it possible that ratios are used
>(or could be used) that would be closest to the quarter tones, such
>as 11/9 or 27/22 for instance? I'm most interested in using ratios
>rather than 24 TET - just wondering how it's used in the actual music
>and theory of Arabic Music.

We had some debate about this here on the list, and there's really too much
variety between different parts of the Arabic world, and too much divergence
between theory and practice, for there to be one definitive answer to your
question. As I see it, all kinds of creative deviations from the modern
standard 24-tET can be justified on theoretical and/or cultural grounds, but
I wouldn't automatically stuff everything into the nearest just ratios
unless I were going to make a significant use of harmony (which is rare in
Arabic music). If I were, I'd make sure the ratios provided for simple
proportions in the intervals to be used as harmonies (rather than worrying
about whether they looked simple on their own), and didn't run into any
comma difficulties (such as the "wolf" fifth between 9/8 and 5/3 if I
planned to use the D-A harmony in the C major "just" scale). Otherwise, I'd
see no real reason to choose just ratios over 24-tET, though in many cases
(11/9, 3/2, etc.), it wouldn't make an audible difference.