The Arabic Singing Diaspora, by Brian Eno

In homage to their treasured 1931 blackboard full of Einstein equations, Oxford’s Museum of the History of Science asked scientists, artists, etc. to each fill up a blackboard with something interesting. Here’s what musician Brian Eno came up with: “This is the depiction of a theory that Arabic singing bounced around the world in several directions creating what we call popular music, and how the British Isles were central to this.” Astute geographers will notice that Asia seems to have been omitted … I’m sure there are plenty of arrows to be drawn up the Silk Road, down into India, across to the Indonesian archipelago … culture, after all, gets around “The Arabic Singing Dispora,” by Brian Eno, in the exhibit Bye bye blackboard … from Einstein and others , April–September 2005 :: via VSL Science