Seminar, three hours. Limited to junior/senior Ethnomusicology majors. Investigation of historical and cultural backgrounds, main musical styles, relationship between theory and practice and emphasis on mode and improvisation, and 20th- and 21st-century trends in music of Arabic-speaking Near East. Concurrent participation in Near East performance ensemble (course 91N or 161N) required. Concurrently scheduled with course C240. Letter grading.