Ziryab the Iraqi Civilizer

"In fine arts and music too, Muslim artists influenced their European counterparts and the musicians Farabi, Ishaq Mausili, Zalzal, and Ziryab; and the painters Maani and Behzad were the greatest figures of their time in the respective spheres of their arts. Muslims had developed a distinctive style of their own in architecture and built some of the most magnificent and beautiful buildings in the world including Alhambra, the Grand Masjid of Cordova in Spain, Masjid of Ibn Tulun in Cairo, the grand Masjid of Isfahan and the Taj Mahal of Agra. These are even now recognised as the architectural wonders of the world."

"When Ziryab the musician [who revolutionized the design of the lute] came from Bagdad to Spain, the Caliph Abdur Rahman rode forth to meet him in honour."

Islamic Background of the Western Renaissance
http://alquraan.net/mus_cont/muslimc5.html













the Grand Masjid of Cordova, Spain