Ottoman classical music
Encyclopedia
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
. Above all a vocal music, Ottoman music traditionally accompanies a solo singer with a small instrumental ensemble. In recent times instruments might include tanbur
Tanbur
The term tanbūr can refer to various long-necked, fretted lutes originating in the Middle East or Central Asia. According to the New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, "terminology presents a complicated situation. Nowadays the term tanbur is applied to a variety of distinct and related...
lute, ney
Ney
The ney is an end-blown flute that figures prominently in Middle Eastern music. In some of these musical traditions, it is the only wind instrument used. It is a very ancient instrument, with depictions of ney players appearing in wall paintings in the Egyptian pyramids and actual neys being found...
flute, kemençe
Kemence
Kemence is a village in Pest county, Hungary....
fiddle, keman Western violin, kanun zither, or other instruments. Sometimes described as monophonic
Monophony
In music, monophony is the simplest of textures, consisting of melody without accompanying harmony. This may be realized as just one note at a time, or with the same note duplicated at the octave . If the entire melody is sung by two voices or a choir with an interval between the notes or in...
music, the variety of ornamentation and variation in the ensemble requires the more accurate term heterophonic.
Overview
Ottoman music has a large and varied system of modes or scales known as makamMakam
Makam In Turkish classical music, a system of melody types called makam provides a complex set of rules for composing and performance...
s, and other rules of composition. There are more than 600 makams that have been used so far. Out of these, at least 119 makams are formally defined, but today only around 20 makams are widely used. In the sufi teaching, each makam represents and conveys a particular psychological and spiritual state. Sometimes, in certain makams, Ottomans would use different instrumental and vocal musical pieces in order to cure certain medical and psychological conditions.
A number of notation systems were used for transcribing classical music, the most dominant being the Hamparsum
Hamparsum Limonciyan
Hampartsoum Limondjian was an Ottoman Armenian composer of Armenian church music and Turkish classical music and musical theorist who developed the Hampartsoum notation system...
notation in use until the gradual introduction of western notation. Turkish classical music is taught in conservatories and social clubs, the most respected of which is Istanbul's Üsküdar Musiki Cemiyeti.
A specific sequence of classical Turkish musical forms become a fasıl, a suite an instrumental prelude (peşrev), an instrumental postlude (saz semaisi), and in between, the main section of vocal compositions which begins with and is punctuated by instrumental improvisations taksim
Taksim
Taksim was the objective of Turkish Cypriots who supported a partition of the island of Cyprus into Turkish and Greek portions, a concept declared as early as 1957 by Dr. Fazil Küçük...
. A full fasıl concert would include four different instrumental forms and three vocal forms, including a light classical song, şarkı. A strictly classical fasıl remains in the same makam
Makam
Makam In Turkish classical music, a system of melody types called makam provides a complex set of rules for composing and performance...
throughout, from the introductory taksim to the end, which is usually a dance tune or oyun havası. However shorter şarkı compositions, precursors to modern day songs, are a part of this tradition, many of them extremely old, dating back to the 14th century; many are newer, with late 19th century songwriter Haci Arif Bey
Haci Arif Bey
Haci Arif Bey was a Turkish composer from Istanbul, most known for his compositions in the şarkı form, the most common secular form in Turkish classical music. He was a very prolific composer, who on some days, composedmore than 6-7 songs....
being especially popular.
Musical instruments
Traditional instruments in Ottoman classical music today include tanburTanbur
The term tanbūr can refer to various long-necked, fretted lutes originating in the Middle East or Central Asia. According to the New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, "terminology presents a complicated situation. Nowadays the term tanbur is applied to a variety of distinct and related...
long-necked plucked lute, ney
Ney
The ney is an end-blown flute that figures prominently in Middle Eastern music. In some of these musical traditions, it is the only wind instrument used. It is a very ancient instrument, with depictions of ney players appearing in wall paintings in the Egyptian pyramids and actual neys being found...
end-blown flute, kemençe bowed fiddle, oud
Oud
The oud is a pear-shaped stringed instrument commonly used in North African and Middle Eastern music. The modern oud and the European lute both descend from a common ancestor via diverging paths...
plucked short-necked unfretted lute, kanun plucked zither, violin, and in Mevlevi music, kudüm
Kudüm
Kudüm is one of the most fundamental rhythm instruments in classical Turkish music. The personplaying it is called kudümzen. It is among ney, rebap, and halile as one of thefour main instruments in Mevlevi music....
drum. Older instruments still in use include lavta
Lavta
The lavta is a plucked string instrument from Istanbul. It has a small body made of many ribs using carvel bending technique, looking like a small ud, gut strings like an ud but only 7 strings in 4 courses and tunable: A dd gg c'c' , or sometimes A dd aa d'd'...
.
Forms
Ottoman classical music comprises many vocal and instrumental forms, among which are the suites called fasılFasil
The fasıl is a suite in Ottoman classical music. It is similar to the Arabic nawba and waslah.A classical fasıl generally includes movements such as taksim, peşrev, kâr, beste, ağır semâ'î, yürük semâ'î, gazel, şarkı and saz semâ'î, played continuously without interludes and interconnected through...
. A fasıl typically includes many instrumental and/or vocal movements, including taksim
Taksim
Taksim was the objective of Turkish Cypriots who supported a partition of the island of Cyprus into Turkish and Greek portions, a concept declared as early as 1957 by Dr. Fazil Küçük...
, peşrev
Pesrev
Peşrev , Pişrev , peshrev, or pishrev; called bashraf بشرف in Arabic; is an instrumental form in Turkish classical music. It is the name of the first piece of music played during a group performance called a fasıl...
, şarkı
Sarki
Sarki may refer to*Sarki, a well-dwelling snake slain by the mythological prince Bayajidda*Şarkı, a vocal genre in Ottoman classical music*Sarki, a Newcastle rock band made up of members; Shane Kurnia on guitar, Scott Allen on drums, Dom Willson on bass and Matty Munro of vocals*Sirki, a Sindhi...
, beste
Beste (Turkish music)
The beste is a vocal genre in Ottoman classical music. It was a movement of the fasıl, or suite.Beste was one of the main forms of fasil , and its lyrics came from the Ottoman Turkish language poetry forms gazel and murabba....
, and kar
Kar (Turkish music)
The kar is a vocal genre in Ottoman classical music. It was a movement of the fasıl, or suite.-External links:**...
, among others.
Genres
Ottoman music has various genres including the spiritual, improvised ("gazel", "kaside", "durak", etc.) and fasil music. The latter is more secular.Composers and Performers
Other famous proponents of this genre include Dede EfendiDede Efendi
Hammamizade İsmail Dede Efendi was a composer of Turkish classical music. He was born on 9 January 1778, in Istanbul, Şehzadebaşı. He started studying music with Mehmed Emin Efendi, at the age of eight. He attended rituals at Yenikapı Mevlevihanesi, a place of Mevlevi gathering. He studied with...
, Prince Cantemir
Dimitrie Cantemir
Dimitrie Cantemir was twice Prince of Moldavia . He was also a prolific man of letters – philosopher, historian, composer, musicologist, linguist, ethnographer, and geographer....
, Baba Hamparsum
Hamparsum Limonciyan
Hampartsoum Limondjian was an Ottoman Armenian composer of Armenian church music and Turkish classical music and musical theorist who developed the Hampartsoum notation system...
, Kemani Tatyos Efendi
Kemani Tatyos Ekserciyan
Tatyos Ekserciyan , or Tatyos Efendi, was a famous composer of classical Turkish music, and his works continue to be among the best-remembered and often played pieces of the genre....
, Sultan Selim III
Selim III
Selim III was the reform-minded Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1789 to 1807. The Janissaries eventually deposed and imprisoned him, and placed his cousin Mustafa on the throne as Mustafa IV...
and Sultan Suleyman the Magnificent. The most popular modern Turkish classical singer is Münir Nurettin Selçuk
Münir Nurettin Selçuk
Münir Nurettin Selçuk was a Turkish classical musician and tenor singer. He was one of the most revered names in Turkish music.-Biography:...
, who was the first to establish a lead singer position. Other performers include Bekir Sıdkı Sezgin, Alaeddin Yavaşça, Müzeyyen Senar
Müzeyyen Senar
Müzeyyen Senar is a Turkish classical music performer. Born in Gököz in the Keles district, Bursa, Ottoman Empire, she is known as the diva of the Turkish Republic.- Discography :- Links :...
and Zekai Tunca.
Other Composers
- Sultan Abdülazîz (1830-1876)
- Kara Ismail Ağa (1674-1724)
- Nikoğos Ağa (1836-1885)
- Sadik Ağa (1757-1815)
- Sadullah Ağa (1730-1807)
- Tanbûrî Numan Ağa (1750-1834)
- Zeki Mehmet Ağa (1776-1846)
- Refik Talat Alpman (1894-1947)
- Hüseyin Sadettin Arel (1880-1955)
- Giriftzen Asim (1852-1929)
- Lemi Atli (1869-1945)
- Reşat Aysu (1910-1999)
- Aleko Bacanos (1888-1950)
- Yorgo Bacanos (1900-1977)
- Hacı Arif BeyHaci Arif BeyHaci Arif Bey was a Turkish composer from Istanbul, most known for his compositions in the şarkı form, the most common secular form in Turkish classical music. He was a very prolific composer, who on some days, composedmore than 6-7 songs....
(1831-1885) - Ismail Hakki Bey (1865-1927)
- Kaptanzade Ali Riza Bey (1883-1934)
- Neyzen Salim Bey (1829-1884)
- Rahmi Bey (1864-1924)
- Rifat Bey (1820-1888)
- Şevki Bey (1860-1891)
- Tanbûrî Cemil BeyTanburi Cemil BeyTanburi Cemil Bey , was a Turkish tanbur, yaylı tanbur, kemençe, and lavta virtuoso and composer, who has greatly contributed to the taksim genre in Ottoman classical music...
(1871-1916) - Tanbûrî Osman Bey (1816-1885)
- Ûdi Nevres Bey (1873-1937)
- Cevdet Çağla (1900-1988)
- Tanbûrî Mustafa Çavuş (1700-1770)
- Nayi Osman Dede (1652-1730)
- Neyzen Aziz Dede (1840-1905)
- Neyzen Emin Dede (1883-1945)
- Zekaî Dede (1816-1885)
- İsmail Dede Efendi (1778-1846)
- Kanuni Artaki Candan Efendi (1885-1948)
- Kemani Riza Efendi (1780-1852)
- Kemani Tatyos Efendi (1855-1913)
- Misirli Udi Ibrahim Efendi (1872-1933)
- Neyzen Dede Salih Efendi (1818-1888)
- Tab-i Mustafa Efendi (1705-1770)
- Rakim Elkutlu (1869-1948)
- Subhi Ezgi (1869-1962)
- Refik Fersan (1893-1965)
- Gazi Giray Han (1554-1607)
- Şerif Içli (1899-1956)
- Tanbûrî Isak (1745-1814)
- Buhurizade Itrî (1640-1711)
- Dilhayat Kalfa (1710-1780)
- Dimitri KantemirDimitrie CantemirDimitrie Cantemir was twice Prince of Moldavia . He was also a prolific man of letters – philosopher, historian, composer, musicologist, linguist, ethnographer, and geographer....
(1673-1723) - Sadettin Kaynak (1895-1961)
- Fahri Kopuz (1882-1968)
- Seyfettin Osmanoğlu (1874-1926)
- Suphi Ziya Özbekkan (1887-1966)
- Yusuf Paşa (1840-1895)
- Selahattin Pinar (1902-1960)
- Nuri Halil Poyraz (1885-1950)
- Hâfız Post (1630-1694)
- Sultan Selim III (1761-1808)
- Kemal Niyazi Seyhun (1885-1960)
- Bekir Sıdkı Sezgin (1936-1996)
- Bimen Şen (1873-1943)
- Cinuçen Tanrıkorur (1938-2000)
- Rauf Yekta (1871-1935)
External links
- Neyzen, the most complete collection of Ottoman sheet music, available for free online. The long list of Turkish words on the screen are names of individual 'makam'. Each makam has its own quality and repertoire, click on any of these to get a list of the sheet music available to view and download.
- TurkMusikisi, the premier Turkish-language website dedicated to Ottoman music. Highly recommended, regardless of Turkish ability.
- Secular classical music: selection from gazel improvisation sung by Safiye Ayla mp3, 829 kB, 0:00:53 duration
- Mosque music: selection from "Merhaba bahrı" (Mevlit) sung by Kâni Karaca mp3, 1.3 MB, 0:01:28 duration
- Mevlevi music: selection from 4th selam, Beyati Mevlevi Âyini mp3, 793 kB, 0:00:50
- Kalan Music, a major producer of new recordings and reissues of Turkish classical, mosque, and Sufi music
- The Turkish Music Portal is the most comprehensive website about Turkish music on the Internet. It explores the history, reviews the instruments of Turkish classical and folk music, and meets the composers and performers of all types of Turkish music. It is available in four languages: Turkish, English, French and German.
- Turkish New Musics You can find New Turkish musics
- Turkish New Musics You can find New Turkish musics