Research Article

NOTATION-PERFORMANCE RELATIONSHIP IN TURKISH MAKAM MUSIC AND TANBUR NOTATION IN CONTEMPORARY MUSIC

Volume: 8 Number: 3 September 30, 2025
EN TR

NOTATION-PERFORMANCE RELATIONSHIP IN TURKISH MAKAM MUSIC AND TANBUR NOTATION IN CONTEMPORARY MUSIC

Abstract

Turkish makam music has been transmitted through generations via the meşk system, with numerous notation systems devised as mnemonic aids in this transmission. Notation systems, often composed of letters and symbols, have garnered attention during their respective eras; nonetheless, they failed to convey performance in depth. In Turkish makam music, the five-line staff notation, initially implemented by Ali Ufki Bey to aid memory during performances, grew systematised and prevalent in subsequent centuries, ultimately becoming the predominant method for the written transmission of makam music. In the application of this notation system, a simple notation character was utilised extensively in an environment conducive to unrestricted execution. Thus, compositions notated in conventional plain notation acquire an idiomatic, instrument-specific quality solely through the performer's interpretation. Due to the endeavours of contemporary composers and performers to meticulously translate instrumental approaches into notation, detailed notation proposals have emerged, and written transmission has advanced significantly. The tanbur, significant in the history of Turkish makam music, has seen the identification and transcription of numerous idiomatic approaches, which are absent in standard notation but emerge during performance, due to advancements in written notation. Transcriptions have facilitated the incorporation of the tanbur into modern musical compositions and traditional performing methodologies. This study examines twelve contemporary works, focussing on aspects such as the influence of tunings on notation, the liberties afforded to performers beyond the written score, the roles associated with solo, chamber, and orchestral contexts, the depiction of microtonal pitches in tanbur notation within contemporary music, and the evolution of tanbur notation and its idiomatic characteristics. The study discovers idiomatic components in tanbur notation utilised in modern musical compositions, converting them into statistical data, and analyses the idiomatic notation of the tanbur through these examples.

Keywords

References

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Details

Primary Language

Turkish

Subjects

Composition in Western Classical Music , Composition in Turkish Folk Music , Composition in Turkish Classical Music

Journal Section

Research Article

Early Pub Date

August 13, 2025

Publication Date

September 30, 2025

Submission Date

June 16, 2025

Acceptance Date

July 29, 2025

Published in Issue

Year 1970 Volume: 8 Number: 3

APA
Demirbaş, T., & Altınbüken, E. (2025). TÜRK MAKAM MÜZİĞİNDE NOTASYON-İCRA İLİŞKİSİ VE ÇAĞDAŞ MÜZİKTE TANBUR NOTASYONU. Yegah Müzikoloji Dergisi, 8(3), 1338-1358. https://doi.org/10.51576/ymd.1720725