Islam, Muslims, and music

(source :http://en.harakah.net.my/)

By Yusuf al-Khabbaz

Muslims will often begin inquiries into the art of sound in the world of Islam by asking whether listening to music is haram. The term haram has a legal sense and a cultural sense. The cultural sense of the word, the way it is used casually, is closer to the meaning of "shameful". In the legal sense, to be haram requires that something is explicitly forbidden in Qur’an and Hadith, with punishments laid down in the shari’ah for infraction. This does not apply to music.