Instrument Index

The Electric Guitar was first used in Arabic music in the late 1960s in Egypt, and its pioneer was Omar Khorshid. Some Arabic electric guitars were fitted with extra frets (in the manner of the Buzuq) in order to play some of the Arabic Maqam scales with quartertones. But mostly the electric guitar was used without any alteration or effects, and acquired its Arabness from its ornamentation style. The electric guitar was used to play a combination of melodic lines and simple chords (e.g. major and minor).

Explore other Arabized instruments:

• The Arabic Accordion
• The Arabic Org
• The Oriental Keyboard
• The Arabic Piano
• The Saxophone
• The Trumpet