Turkish music: a cultural cartographical survey

What is today called Turkish music seems to be largely coming from Anatolia, but it also comes from the western side of the Bosporus. All this variety of music is in fact part of a widespread culture belonging to the larger area the Ottoman empire once ruled, formerly politically and culturally connecting three continents: Asia, Africa and Europe. With shifting political borders, names may change and indeed have changed, but not people, nor cultures, not as fast as contemporary nomenclatures suggest. Of all artists, musicians have always been the most travelled people, as their art existed only where they personally were, and they were practically everywhere. Today these connections can still be heard throughout a vast geographical area, and with modern technology the speed of interconnecting has increased a thousandfold, no longer depending on the physical traveling of people.

This page contains a carefully selected collection of Turkish music of different genres and styles. I here want to express my thanks to Orkun Ağir, who helped me a great deal in compiling all the following, briefly categorized and annotated, examples on this page, which in its former form dates back to before the overhaul of this website.

By and large, Turkish music can be seen in the following categories:

1. Turkish music (in general)¹
2. Turkish folk music²
3. Ottoman classical music³
4. Turkish religious music⁴

To understand today’s wealth of Turkish music, one first has to understand some cartography. First we look at the two interpretations of what the Balkans are:

1. a narrow interpretation, including only countries around the Balkan mountains, south of the Danube;
2. a broader interpretation which includes areas north of the Danube and part or whole of the Anatolian peninsula as well⁵.

The latter of these two interpretations is illustrated with a map.

In the following map of the Balkans the many close relationships between the people living on both peninsulas, strongly connected both musically and historically, are represented far more honestly by this blue area, which bridges the Bosporus.

The map above is showing part of the geographical area of the former Ottoman Empire, which to its largest extent comprised the areas shown in the following map, basically around the Mediterranean and Black seas.

A millennium ago, the Turkish peoples were situated still more to the east, in a time when borders shifted quickly (as you can see by the years on the maps), but basically around the Black and Caspian seas.

Still longer ago, and we can still find the strong linguistic similarities today, the ancestors of the Turkish people came from central Asia. A global map showing the vast area involved is finally given here, situated in the 4th century BCE⁶.

When speaking of Turkish music therefore, one has to take into account these historical and cultural connections, originating from Asia, but connecting and spreading to Europe and Africa as well.

Oscar van Dillen

Closely connected topics

The currently here published separate pages which deal with closely connected topics are:

• Balkan music
• Bosnian Sevdah
• Greek Rembetika

Music examples

Folk music

Kocaoğlan Zeybeği

Kocaoğlan Zeybeği
Scale: Major
Time signature: 9/2
Style: Ağır Zeybek
Region: Muğla
Source: Ramazan Güngör
Collector: Erol Parlak

Instrumental Zeybek piece played by Erol Parlak

Benim sadık yârim kara topraktır

Benim sadık yârim kara topraktır
“My (only) faithfull friend is the black earth”
Style: Aşık (Troubadour Song)
Region: Sivas
Source: Aşık Veysel Şatıroğlu

Troubadour song by Aşık Veysel Şatıroğlu

Halay (Folk Dance) played on Mey by Binali Selman

Halay (Folk Dance) played on mey by Binali Selman
Style: Halay (Folk Dance)
Region: East of Turkey
Source: Binali Selman

Halay (dance) played on mey by Binali Selman

Classical music

Nikrîz Peşrev

Nikrîz Peşrev
Composition form: Peşrev (Prelude)
Makam: Nikrîz
Usûl: Düyek (8/4)
Composer: Ali Ufkî (Wojciech Bobowski) (1610–1675)
Score: (pdf)

Instrumental classical composition in the Nikrîz Makam

Kürdî’li Hicazkâr Saz Semâîsi

Kürdî’li Hicazkâr Saz Semâîsi
Composition form: Saz Semâî
Makam: Kürdî’li Hicazkâr
Usûl: Aksak Semâî (10/8) and Semâî (3/4)
Composer: Mehmet Reşat Aysu (1910-1999)
Score: (page 1) (page 2)

Instrumental classical composition in the Kürdî’li Hicazkâr Makam conducted by Kutlu Payaslı

Hicâz Peşrev

Hicâz Peşrev
Composition form: Peşrev (Prelude)
Makam: Hicâz
Usûl: Hafîf (32/4)
Composer: Refik Fersan (1893-1965)
Score: (pdf)

Instrumental classical composition in the Hicâz Makam

Ferahnâk Yürük Semâî

Ferahnâk Yürük Semâî (Bir dilbere dil düştü ki mahbûb-u dilimdir)
“My heart fell in love with a beautiful woman”
Composition form: Yürük Semâî
Makam: Ferahnâk
Usûl: Yürük Semâî (6/4)
Composer: Şâkir Ağa (1779-1840)
Score: (pdf)

Classical composition in the Ferahnâk Makam conducted by Emrah Hatipoğlu

Ferahnâk Hafîf Beste

Ferahnâk Hafîf Beste (Söyletme beni canım efendim)
“Don’t let me speak my beloved mister, i’m full of sorrow”
Composition form: Beste
Makam: Ferahnâk
Usûl: Hafîf (32/4)
Composer: Zekâî Dede (1825-1897)
Score: (pdf)

Classical composition in the Ferahnâk Makam conducted by Emrah Hatipoğlu

Kaçsam Bırakıp Senden Uzak Yollara Gitsem

Kaçsam Bırakıp Senden Uzak Yollara Gitsem
“If I just could let you behind, and go far away”
Composition form: Şarkı (Song)
Makam: Nihâvend (nearly similar to minor)
Usûl: Semâî (3/4)
Composer: Mehveş Hanım (19th-20th century)
Score: (pdf)

Classical composition in the Nihâvend Makam

Bu İmtidad-ı Cevre Kim Bahtın Şitabı Var

Bu İmtidad-ı Cevre Kim Bahtın Şitabı Var
Composition form: Şarkı (Song)
Makam: Uşşâk
Usûl: Düyek (8/8)
Composer: Lem’i Atlı (1869-1945)
Score: (page 1)

Classical Composition in the Uşşâk Makam sung by Dilek Türkan

Halâ Yaşıyor Kalbimin En Gizli Yerinde

Halâ Yaşıyor Kalbimin En Gizli Yerinde
Composition Form: Şarkı (Song)
Makam: Nihâvend
Usûl: Türk Aksağı (5/8)
Composer: Selâhattin Pınar (1902-1960)
Score: (pdf)

Classical composition in the Nihâvend Makam sung by Safiye Ayla

Gel Gitme Kadın

Gel Gitme Kadın
“Oh woman, don’t leave me“
Composition Form: Şarkı (Song)
Makam: Kürdî’li Hicâzkâr
Usûl: Curcuna (10/8)
Composer: Selâhattin Pınar (1902-1960)
Score: (pdf)

Classical composition in the Kürdî’li Hicâzkâr Makam sung by Zeki Müren

Sazlar Çalınır Çamlıca’nın Bahçelerinde and Gazel

Sazlar Çalınır Çamlıca’nın Bahçelerinde and Gazel (vocal improvisation)
“The instruments are being played in the gardens of Çamlıca”
Composition Form: Şarkı (Song)Makam: Hicâz
Usûl: Aksak (9/8)
Composer: Yesari Asım Arsoy (1900-1992)
Score: (pdf)

Classical composition and Gazel in the Hicâz Makam sung by Kâni Karaca

Religious music

Şem’i Ruhuna Cismimi Pervane Düşürdüm

Şem’i Ruhuna Cismimi Pervane Düşürdüm
“I addicted myself to the enlightenment of your spirit”
Composition form: Hymn
Makam: Segâh (or Segâh Mâye)
Usûl: Devr-i Revan (14/8) and Yürük Semâî (6/8)
Composer: Unknown
Score: (pdf)

İlahi in the Segâh Makam

Contemporary Anatolian music

İki Keklik Bir Derede (Elazığ)
performed by Erkan Oğur

Makam and Taksim lectures

Makam & Taksim (Lecture) – Cinuçen Tanrıkorur’s Lecture-Demonstration on “TAKSIM (Improvisation) in Turkish Music” at The New England Conservatory, Boston, Mass. USA in 1994.

Footnotes