Le statut socio-économique de la pratique musicale aux Émirats arabes unis.

Leiwah is an Afro-Arabic musical tradition wide spread in the Persian Golf which came into this region from East Africa by way of Omani merchants. In Dubai, leiwah is performed principally at marriages within the different communities of the city (Bedouins, Balouches, ‘ajam), as well as at anniversaries, National Day celebrations and commercial festivals. It is practiced by amateurs among the members of these communities, especially by some of the « Balouchis » within such associations as the Associations of Popular Arts. Though this kind of activity was not remunerated in the past, it is presently at the center of a high economic competition between various music bands and the associations which harbor them. This recent phenomenon in Dubai’s urban, cultural and social life clearly shows that the status of the musicians in the society and economy of the Emirates is in a process of transformation as compared to the traditional model which was common some forty years ago