Nagham (Melody)

Nagham (Melody) — connector documentation

• MCP endpoint: https://nagham.connectorbay.com/mcp
• REST API: POST https://nagham.connectorbay.com/v1/tools/{tool_name}, described by the OpenAPI 3.1 spec at https://nagham.connectorbay.com/openapi.json
• Transport: Streamable HTTP, stateless, MCP specification 2025-06-18 or later
• Authentication: none required. An optional Authorization: Bearer <key> raises rate limits.
• Health: https://nagham.connectorbay.com/health · Tool schemas: https://nagham.connectorbay.com/tools.json
• Publisher: Unify Dynamics LLC · connectorbay.com/nagham · agent@connectorbay.com

Nagham (Melody)

What Nagham is for

The question that comes up whenever Arabic music comes up in conversation — what is maqam Hijaz, why does that scale sound so distinctive, how is an oud actually played, what's the difference between Khaleeji and Tarab, who was Umm Kulthum, what does taqsim mean — answered from one hand-curated theoretical, cultural and historical reference, not a lyrics database or streaming catalogue.

What it does

A maqam's tonal character, mood/association and related maqamat, across 18+ maqamat spanning the Rast, Bayati, Hijaz, Kurd, Nahawand, Ajam, Sikah and Saba families (maqam_info, maqam_search); a traditional instrument's construction, playing technique and role in the ensemble, for eight instruments — oud, qanun, nay, darbuka, riq, mizmar, buzuq and rababa (instrument_info); the history and characteristics of five major regional styles — Khaleeji, Tarab/Egyptian classical, Andalusian/Maghrebi, Levantine, and Iraqi maqam (music_style_info); strictly biographical/encyclopedic facts — years active, genre, significance — for historically significant Arab musicians and composers, from the 9th-century Andalusian pioneer Ziryab through 20th-century greats like Umm Kulthum, Farid al-Atrash and Fairuz (historical_figure_info); the makeup of the traditional takht chamber ensemble and how its instruments combine (ensemble_guide); a common Arabic rhythmic pattern's (iqa') beat structure in words and counts, such as Maqsum, Baladi or Malfuf (rhythm_pattern_info); a glossary of around fifteen core terms — maqam, taqsim, mawwal, quarter tone, takht, tarab and more (music_glossary); and which music styles and instruments are most associated with a given region — the Gulf, Egypt, the Levant, the Maghreb, or Iraq (region_music_map).

What it is not

Not a lyrics database, catalogue of recordings, or streaming service — Nagham is a theoretical, cultural and historical reference about the maqam system, instruments, styles and history themselves. It never quotes song lyrics anywhere in its data, from any artist, living or historical, and covers historical figures strictly as biographical facts (birth/death years, genre, significance) — never their creative work's actual text. For tracks, albums, artist profiles or a live discography, use a music catalogue connector instead. Fully local and keyless: nothing is fetched from any upstream source and nothing about a query is stored.

Tools

Maqamat

maqam_info — One maqam's tonal character, mood/association and related maqamat. Use for "what is maqam Hijaz", "describe maqam Saba", "what mood does Nahawand have". Args: name.

maqam_search — Search maqamat by a free-text query. Use for "which maqamat sound sad", "what maqamat use quarter tones", "maqamat related to Nahawand". Args: query.

Instruments & rhythm

instrument_info — A traditional instrument's family, construction, playing technique and role in the ensemble. Use for "how is an oud played", "what is a qanun", "what family is the nay in". Args: name.

rhythm_pattern_info — A common Arabic rhythmic pattern's (iqa') beat structure, described in words and counts, not audio. Use for "how does the Maqsum rhythm go", "what is the Baladi beat", "describe the Malfuf rhythm". Args: name.

Styles & history

music_style_info — One major regional Arabic music style's history and characteristics — Khaleeji, Tarab/Egyptian classical, Andalusian/Maghrebi, Levantine, or Iraqi maqam. Use for "what is Tarab", "tell me about Khaleeji music", "what's the Andalusian music tradition". Args: style.

historical_figure_info — Strictly biographical/encyclopedic facts — years active, genre, significance — for a historically significant Arab musician or composer. Never lyrics or copyrighted material. Use for "who was Umm Kulthum", "tell me about Fairuz", "when did Ziryab live". Args: name.

region_music_map — Which music styles and instruments are most associated with a given region (the Gulf, Egypt, the Levant, the Maghreb, Iraq); omit to list all regions. Use for "what music comes from the Gulf", "what styles are associated with the Levant". Args: region.

Reference

ensemble_guide — The traditional takht chamber ensemble's makeup and how its instruments combine. Use for "what instruments are in a takht", "how does a traditional Arabic ensemble work".

music_glossary — Definitions of core Arabic music terms (maqam, taqsim, mawwal, quarter tone, takht, tarab, layali, sama'i, muwashshah, and more). Use for "what does taqsim mean", "what's tarab". Args: term.

Conventions

• Read-only. Every tool reads public data or computes; nothing is written anywhere and nothing about the user is stored.
• Result envelope. ok: true with data, or ok: false with a structured error (bad_input, not_found, upstream_error). degraded lists optional sources that were unreachable.
• Rate limits. Free tier 60 tool calls/minute and 300/day per user (keyed on the user identifier supplied by the host agent, else client IP); Pro keys raise this. Over-limit calls return HTTP 429 with Retry-After. initialize and tools/list are never counted.

Support

agent@connectorbay.com · connectorbay.com/nagham/support

Nagham (Melody) — Privacy Policy

Effective 24 September 2026. Unify Dynamics LLC ("we", "us"), Menlo Park, California.

What Nagham is. Nagham (Melody) is a connector (an MCP server and REST API) that AI assistants and personal agents call on your behalf for a hand-curated, fully local Arabic music reference: the maqam melodic-mode system, traditional instruments, regional styles, the takht ensemble, rhythmic patterns, a glossary, a region map, and biographical entries for historically significant Arab musicians and composers. You interact with your assistant; the assistant sends us only the arguments needed for that one lookup.

What we receive. The arguments of each tool call — a maqam name, a search query, an instrument name, a style name, a historical figure's name, a rhythm name, or a glossary term — the technical headers needed to serve the request (an IP address or a client identifier supplied by the assistant, and a Pro API key if you have one), and standard server logs.

Everything is answered from bundled, hand-curated reference files and nothing is stored. No request is forwarded to any third party — there is no upstream call at all, live or otherwise — and no query is logged in request bodies, recorded, or used to train anything.

What we do not receive or store. We do not receive your conversation with the assistant or your name, and we do not build a profile from your queries: each request is answered independently and nothing carries over between requests. Rate-limit counters (a client identifier and timestamps) are held in memory for at most 24 hours. Hosting-provider access logs, which contain IP addresses and request paths but not request bodies, are retained for up to 30 days for security and abuse prevention.

Sub-processors. None — the entire dataset is bundled with the server and answered locally. Hosting: Vercel (United States regions).

Legal bases and your rights. Our processing is necessary to provide the service you request through your assistant. Because we store no personal data beyond short-lived logs, requests to access, correct or delete personal data are usually satisfied automatically; you can still contact agent@connectorbay.com and we will respond within 30 days. We do not sell or share personal information and do not use your data to train models.

Children. Nagham is a general-audience service operated by the adult using the assistant.

Changes. We will post changes here with a new effective date.

Nagham (Melody) — Terms of Service

Effective 24 September 2026. These terms govern use of the Nagham (Melody) connector ("the Service") operated by Unify Dynamics LLC ("we", "us").

1. The Service. Nagham (Melody) returns a hand-curated, fully local Arabic music reference — the maqam melodic-mode system, traditional instruments, regional styles, the takht ensemble, rhythmic patterns, a glossary, a region map, and biographical entries for historically significant musicians and composers. It is accessed through an AI assistant or directly over MCP or HTTP.
2. A reference, not a catalogue. Nagham is an independent theoretical, cultural and historical reference tool, not affiliated with or endorsed by any artist, estate, label or government body. It does not provide track, album or artist data, streaming links, or lyrics, and covers historical figures strictly as biographical facts (dates, genre, significance) — never their creative work's actual text. For music catalogue or streaming information, use a dedicated music connector instead.
3. A hand-curated reference. Content reflects general, widely-documented musicological, cultural and historical knowledge as curated at build time; it is not a substitute for academic or ethnomusicological research, and regional traditions vary and continue to evolve beyond what is captured here.
4. Acceptable use. Automated use within the published rate limits is welcome.
5. Availability. The Service is provided "as is" without warranty. We may change, limit or discontinue it at any time.
6. Data. Our Privacy Policy describes what we process. In short: your query is answered from bundled reference files, and nothing is stored.
7. Pro keys. Optional Pro API keys are issued at our discretion, are personal to the holder and may be revoked for abuse.
8. Liability. To the fullest extent permitted by law, Unify Dynamics LLC is not liable for any loss arising from use of or reliance on the Service. Our total liability is limited to US $100.
9. Governing law. California law; venue in San Mateo County, California.
10. Contact. Unify Dynamics LLC · agent@connectorbay.com · https://connectorbay.com/nagham

Nagham (Melody) support

Email agent@connectorbay.com. We answer within two business days.

• MCP endpoint: https://nagham.connectorbay.com/mcp
• REST API: https://nagham.connectorbay.com/openapi.json
• Live status: https://nagham.connectorbay.com/health

When you report a problem, include the question you asked your agent, roughly when, and which agent you used (for example Claude, ChatGPT or Gemini). Never send us passwords, account numbers or ID numbers. Nagham (Melody) never asks for them.