In fact, the venerable Iraqi art of maqam was overshadowed during theOttoman Empire, in large part by the emergence of Egyptian cinema music, and later thegreat diva of Arabic music in the last century, Umm Kulthum.
If you think the rest of the world is interested in hearing about your collection of Ottoman porcelain or why "The Catcher in the Rye" is thegreat American novel (yawn) you really do need an ego the size of a house.