Music and Society in the Ottoman Sphere.

Robert Garfias

The unique character of Ottoman society created a musical culture which spread throughout much of Eastern Europe and into much of the Arabic speaking world as well and this influence is still clearly manifest in these regions as well as in Turkey. In part drawn from Persian sources and combined with autochthonous elements, the court, military and Sufi traditions of Turkey as a reflection of their social contexts will be studied along with the manner in which they currently thrive in Greece, Macedonia, Yugoslavia, Bulgaria and Romania.

The popular image of the Turk as fierce and aggressive conquerors, defiantly putting to the sword all who opposed them, belies an elaborate and complex society and one in which, once having accepted the Ottoman rule, tolerance of its diverse population and of the diverse religions within its borders was exercised to a degree not common in the West until hundreds of years later.

The focus in the course will be on the musical expression imparted to our times from the Ottoman days of rule. In order to better understand this contribution we must also consider the other arts of the Ottoman Empire and of their role in that society, of the contributions made by peoples of different ethnic groups to this larger culture and of the special role of women as artists in the court. Related to but separate from the artistic life of the court, folk music and its Central Asian roots played a role in the development of the aesthetic of the Ottomans, as did the traditions of the Persian courts. The special music of the Sufi religious sects and of the Janissaries also form a part of the mosaic of life in the Ottoman sphere.

Consideration in some detail will be given to the influence of Turkish folk and art music on the cultures which came under the direct and indirect influence of the Ottoman sphere. THe music of the Balkans, Greece, Yugoslavia, Bulgaria and Romania are noteworthy. Turkish style was important also in the late 17th Century in Central Europe and the influence of 'ala turca' and the development of the European military band are significant.

More recently the emigration of Greeks living in the Smyrna region of Turkey back to Greece brought a renewal of the Turkish elements back into Greek rebetika and throughout the Balkans the Gypsies played a special role as preservers and transmitters of Turkish musical elements. Although the focus will be on the musical expressions of the range of Turkish cultures within the Ottoman sphere, the cultural context of these and the political and economic forces which played upon them will also be taken into account.

The first portion of course will deal with music in the Ottoman Empire with concentration on Turkey itself. The second part of the course will deal more with influence of Ottoman culture on the music culture of Armenians, Georgians and then of its influence on the musics of Greece adn the other Balkan states, those constituting the former Yugoslavia, Albania, Bulgaria, and Romania

Music and Society in the Ottoman Sphere.

Course Outline

Part I
I. The Roots of the Ottoman Style.

Part II