Traditional Turkish Music Instruments

Before Islam, the head of the religious ritual was called “saman”, “kam” or “baksı” and he was enchanting the audience with a piece of iron producing periodic sounds. The drum was an important tool in these rituals. Most of the Turkish nations like Turks living in the north of China, Hun Turks, Uygur Turks, Seljuks and Ottomans had paid great importance to music. In the palaces and army headquarters of the elder Turkish khans, musicians played the songs called "9 kok" (9 roots) everyday.

Today, Turkish music is a fusion of classical art music, folk songs, Ottoman military music, Islamic hymns and the norms of western art music. Classical Turkish music was the courtly music of the Ottoman sultans that is an offspring of the Arabic and Persian traditions. This music is not written down in scores; with only the maquam, which is a similar pattern of major-minor scale system, being marked down.
Improvisation (taksim) is a traditional
variation technique, featuring the form.
One of the characteristics of
Turkish classical and folk music, as well as
the military music and the hymns, is being
monophonic. There are about 24 unequal
intervals and almost numberless modes.

 

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