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First and sole edition, an attractive presentation copy, inscribed on the verso of the frontispiece: "To Michael Parker, With best wishes", additionally signed by the author on the title page. This generously illustrated and authoritative work, personally approved by Sultan Qaboos, presents a brief history of Oman and its traditional music before giving details of newly established military and civilian musical organisations. It is decidedly uncommon, with only seven locations traced institutionally. Wing Commander Ian Kendrick served in the Parachute Regiment and the RAF, joining RAF Oman in 1986 and retiring in 2004. Starting with 50 Omani teenagers with no knowledge of music he developed a band of 200 including a concert band, corps of drums, fanfare team, two bagpipe bands, traditional Omani music and dance groups, and an Arabic pop group. He oversaw the transcription, adaptation, and arrangement of several Omani songs. Kendrick worked closely with Sultan Qaboos and credits him with bringing about a renaissance in Omani culture: "In 1970 the musical cultural life of Oman was very simple and very traditional. It had changed little for several centuries and the main features were the singing of traditional songs, frequently with dancing, to mark social events such as eids, marriages and harvests. Sultan Sa'id bin Tamour did not want Omani music to change as a result of foreign influence and made it illegal to listen to or import music, including from neighbouring Arab countries. When Sultan Qaboos assumed power and started organising the transformation of Oman, the cultural heritage and its future new development was not forgotten. In the first five years of what became known as the Renaissance, a professional group of folklore dancers and singers and a military band were formed for the Royal Palace, with another military band for the Royal Oman Police. After years of Oman's international isolation, the new ruler wanted VIP visitors to be impressed by being welcomed to the Sultanate." (Kendrick writing in the Anglo-Omani Society Review 2020: 92-93). Provenance: the recipient is almost certainly Sir Michael Parker (1941-2022), army officer and events organiser. After a little over a decade in the Army, serving with The Queen's Own Hussars, Parker forged a remarkably successful career as an events organiser: he was producer of the Royal Tournament for 26 years (1974-1999) and organised similar events around Europe. "In Saudi Arabia, he organised the world's largest-ever Exhibition of the Horse and the celebrations for the centenary of King Abdul Aziz Al-Saud. In Jordan for the thirty-fifth anniversary of the coronation of King Hussein, he laid on an outdoor 'Royal Tournament' in the desert, and the celebrations for the weddings of Prince Faisal and Prince Abdullah, for which he was appointed an Officer of the Order of Al Istiqlal (Independence)" (Queen's Own Hussars website). Institutional copies: BL, University of Oxford, Sultan Qaboos University Library, Sultan Qaboos Cultural Center, Rolvaag Memorial Library, Anglo-Omani Society, two copies. Small folio. Frontispiece of Sultan Qaboos, colour illustrations in the text. Original red cloth, front cover lettered in gilt, endpapers with illustrations of instruments. With dust jacket. Some marks to covers; nicks and creasing to extremities, rubbed, flaps without price as issued: a very good copy in very good jacket. Seller Inventory # 164036
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