Sijniyya: New Prison Songs in Sednaya

Abstract

The research Sijniyya: New Prison Songs in Sednaya seeks to study and analyze musical practices from the perspective of personal expression, rather than through the lens of authority and control, contrasting with studies that primarily focus on Syrian prisons. This approach is based on the belief that focusing on personal practices will indirectly reveal the power dynamics within Syrian prisons, especially in Sednaya. Unexpectedly, and by chance, a conversation with a friend suggested that even Syrian torture facilities may hold traces of musical practices. To explore this, the research examines political prisoners affiliated with the Syrian Communist Party, who were politically active in the late 1970s and early 1980s before their imprisonment from 1987 to 1996, and who now live in European exile. Is there a Syrian prison song from Sednaya? Can it be termed ‹Sijniyya'? How can resistance be expressed as a musical or artistic ritual or performance in Sednaya? How might the smaller prison impact the larger prison, shaping the Syrian prison cultural field? This research aims to answer these questions and to shed light on how the system of domination within Syrian prisons reflects Syria itself as a prison, particularly given the scarcity of documentation on prison cultural practices.