23 - Sufism and the globalization of sacred music

Summary

In the twenty-first century, Sufism and Sufi music appear to be predisposed for an accelerated and universalized globalization that includes and, indeed, privileges music as the most ubiquitous and instantly transmitted sonic medium. Approaching sacred versus world music, Philip Bohlman posits that music history in the Islamic world embodies narratives that profoundly depend on the different ontologies of music that are central to Islamic thought. Islamic musics have undergone extensive processes of globalization, and some repertories, such as the Sufi qawwali, are inseparable from world music today. Given the fact that Sufi world music is derived directly from its traditional counterpart, this chapter explores the relations between Sufi music as sacred music, on the one hand, and Sufi music as world music on the other. A historical orientation is built into Indic Sufism, for it is hierarchical and based on seniority and spiritual ancestry.