The Quran in the Al-Bazzi and Qunbul ‘an Ibn Kathir riwaya

Al-Bazzi and Qunbul ‘an Ibn Kathir refers to recitations that combine the two transmissions of the reading of Ibn Kathir, the leading reader of Mecca: that of al-Bazzi (786–864; 170–250 AH) and that of Qunbul (810–904; 195–291 AH). The reciter follows Ibn Kathir's reading and, wherever the two transmitters differ, gives the variant of each.

‘Abd Allah ibn Kathir (665–738; 45–120 AH), a Successor who met Anas ibn Malik and ‘Abd Allah ibn al-Zubayr, read with the Companion ‘Abd Allah ibn al-Sa’ib and with Mujahid, a student of Ibn ‘Abbas, so that his reading goes back to Ubayy ibn Ka‘b. He remained the undisputed master of recitation in Mecca until his death, and al-Shafi‘i said he had found the people of Mecca following his reading. Al-Bazzi, muezzin of the Sacred Mosque, and Qunbul, the leading teacher of the Hijaz, received it through intermediaries among his disciples, never having met him.

Their common ground: the plural mim extended with a "u" (‘alayhimū), the pronoun hi extended after a silent consonant (fīhī hudan, 2:2), a short separated madd and al-qurān without a hamza. Their differences are few: al-Bazzi doubles the initial t of certain verbs in 31 places (wa-lā ttafarraqū, 3:103), while Qunbul pronounces as-sirāṭ with a plain s and treats two hamzas meeting across words differently.

Reciters who have recorded it include Mishary Rashid Alafasy, Muhammad Jibreel, Mohamed Abdel Hakim Saad Al Abdullah and Yousef Bin Noah Ahmad.