Smells and Bells

Although they are fascinating, the details in Rassman's book that most interest me are not the descriptions of the recitations and their musical components. I am a visual/tactile learner with no rhythm, so while I can enjoy  music, I can't really wrap my head around it.  What does interest me, however, are her descriptions of how many of the conventions that govern the recitations are imported from the rest of the Muslim world, especially Egypt. This natural spread of culture among Muslim nations is fascinating and mirrors the dissemination of American culture around the world. In this globalized economy, the culture of most of the world's nations can be accessed from any other nation. This is how I can (and totally would) read Korean or Japanese comics (manhwa and manga, respectively), watch a Spanish movie (like Pan's Labyrinth), listening to British music (like the Who or the Beatles), and eating Mexican food all in the same day. However, whereas America has it...