TURKISH MUSIC DICTIONARY

Kaba

1. In Turkish Classical Music, the term for low notes.

2. The name for a type of halay in which the lead dancer dances individually with special movements while the rest of the dancers dance in unision.

Kaba Çargâh

In Turkish Classical Music, middle Do/C.

Kaba Dik Hicâz

In Turkish Classical Music, the note Do/C 8 komas sharp or Re/D one koma flat in the middle octave.

Kaba Dik Hisâr

In Turkish Classical Music, the note Re/D 8 komas sharp or Mi/E one koma flat.

Kaba Düdük

A type of flute made of boxwood.

Kaba Hicâz

In Turkish Classical Music, the note Do/C five komas flat or Re/D four komas sharp in the middle octave

Kaba Hisâr

In Turkish Classical Music, the note Re/D five komas sharp or Mi/E four komas flat.

Kaba Kaba

"The lowest." In Turkish Classical Music, the term for notes lower than the middle octave.

Kaba Kemençe

An alto kemençe, said once to have been used during köçekçe performances.

Kaba Nîm Hicâz

In Turkish Classical Music, Do/C five komas sharp or Re/D four komas flat in the middle octave.

Kaba Nîm Hisâr

In Turkish Classical Music, the note Re/D four komas sharp or five komas flat in the middle octave.

Kaba Sâz

In Turkish Classical Music, the ensemble that plays dance music and köçekçe music in particular.

Kaba Zurna

The widest and longest of the zurna family. Kaba zurnas are played in western Turkey, in Thrace and in some areas of Central Anatolia. They are also used in Mehter music.

Kabak Kemane

Lit. "gourd fiddle." A bowed folk fiddle about 30 cm long with three strings, a body constructed out of a gourd with a soundboard made of the pericardium of a large animal such as a cow or ox. Played mostly by the Turkmen in Southern and Western Anatolia, it may be played solo or as part of an ensemble that includes bağlamas, wind and percussion instruments. See Iklığ.

Kâbilî

A compound makam used in Turkish Classical Music. No examples have survived to the present.

Kadın Ağzı

The general name used ın Anatolıa for a singing style unique to women. The subjects of "kadın ağzı" songs generally include songs/laments about husbands who have gone abroad to work, dirges, lullabyes and henna songs.

Kafiye

Rhyme. Also Uyak, Ayak.

Kaide

Lit. "base," a term used colloquially in the sense of melody, air, makam, and mostly prounounced as "gayda."

Kalak

The bell of the zurna.

Kalenderî

1. A melodic pattern dedicated to the Kalenderî order, an important urban order of Alevism-Bektashism, and the makam characteristics of this pattern.

2. Poetry written in the hece and arus meters. The aruz meter is expressed as "mef'ûlü mefâ'îlü mefâ'îlü fe'îlün;" there are examples with two, four, five and six lines. The hece versions are mostly in eleven- and fifteen-line patterns as well as quatrains.

Kalıp

Form, pattern, mold.

Kalıp Ezgi

In folk music, a set melodic pattern which is part of local performance and determined by traditional rules.

Kalış

See Karar

Kalyonca

An old Turkish palace dance.

Kamış

The reed of any woodwind instrument.

Kanto

A type of "Fantezi" (See Fantezi) song which developed in the mid 19th century and became popular in the early 20th century. Believed to have developed under the influence of Italian music, kantos are light songs which the singer performs solo while dancing, on subjects from everyday life.

Kanûn

An harp-like instrument used in Turkish Classical Music, played with two plectrums. It became widespread in the mid 19th century and is played in most of the countries of the Near East.

Kanûnî

A player of the kanûn.

Kânûn-i Murassa'i Müdevver

An old type of kanûn.

Kapak

The face/soundboard of a stringed instrument.

Kapalı-Ağız (Kapalı Ağızla)

Lit. "(With) Closed mouth." To hum a piece.

Kâr

The highest form of Turkish secular music, generally composed in the major usûls and with Persian lyrics. In fasıl performance, it comes between the peşrev and the best. Its lyrics are in the murabbâ (quatrain) form but usually with more lines, and with much terennüm (vocal ornamented passages). They are distinguished from the bestes by the fact that they begin with terennüm, feature geçki (See Geçki) and are longer. Before the 18th century in particular, they were one of the most-used forms, and a composer's skill was measured in his proficiency in composing kârs.

Karabâğî

A compound makam used in Turkish Classical Music.

Karabatak

In Turkish Classical Music, instrumental pieces where certain instruments play solo at certain times rather than playing in unison. The most common forms played in this manner are generally peşrevs and saz semâîsis.

Karaçi

The term for musical ensembles used in Southern Anatolia, particularly in the area of Şanlıurfa, Mardin, Adıyaman, Diyarbakır and Siirt.

Karadüzen

1. A common tuning used with nearly all the members of the bağlama family. The lowest string is La/A, the middle string is Re/D and the upper string is Sol/G

2. The name for an instrument in the bağlama family, the size of a cura. Although it appears in historical sources, it is not used today.

Karar

In Turkish Classical Music, the note on which the seyir (course/progression) of a makam resolves. The tonic. See Karar Sesi.

Karargâh

See Durak, Karar.

Karar Sesi (Karar Perdesi)

The tone on which a melody resolves.

Karcığar

A simple makam of Turkish Classical Music, formed by adding a Hicâz pentachord transposed to nevâ to an Uşşâk tetrachord in place. It is descending-ascending in character. Its tonic is dügâh (La/A) and its dominant is Re/D). Its suspended cadences are the flavors Nikrîz on çargâh and Sûz'nâk on râst, the Hüzzam pentachord on segâh, and the notes eviç and hisâr.

Kârçe

A smaller, shorter version of the kâr form. See Kâr.

Kâr-ı Nâtık (=Kâr-ı Fihrist)

A type of kâr. It departs from the true kâr form in that every line of its lyrics is in a different makam and usûl. They are generally referred to by the makam in which they begin, and they conclude with that same makam.

Karma Fasıl

A fasıl program featuring a repertoire chosen from several different makams.

Karşılama

A type of folk dance most common in the Marmara Region, (especially Thrace) and the provinces of Giresun and Ordu on the Black Sea; and the music that accompanies this dance form. Wherever they are played, they are in nine, but the internal rhythm and structure differs.

Kâse

Lit. "Bowl." An old percussion instrument. See Tas.

Kasîde

The term for pieces in the gazel form of Turkish religions music, sung mostly in praise of one person. In addition to Turkish music, they also exist in the Iranian and Arab musical traditions.

Kasîde-Han

A performer of kasîde.

Kaşık

Lit. spoon. In the context of music, the folk percussion instrument consisting of short- and long-handled wooden spoons. They are played mostly in Central and Western Anatolia

Katakofti

In Turkish Classical Music, an eight-beat minor usûl, consisting of one cycle each of semâî and Türk Aksağı, better known as Müsemmen. See Müsemmen.

Kaval

A folk flute. The term applies generally to any flute constructed by hollowing out a cylinder of wood. Ranging from 30 to 80 centimeters in length, with seven holes in front and one thumb hole in the back, these instruments are familiar throughout Turkey. There are two types, one with a fipple, the other without; each with its own playing technique.

Kavuştak

A form of refrain, sung in between the words/verses of a folk song and generally having little to do with the meaning of the actual lyrics. Other terms including bağlantı, nakarat and dönderme are used regionally.

Kavvâl

In Turkish Classical Music, a term once used instead of hânende. In some eastern societies the term (qawwal) is used to denote singers of ilâhî.

Kayabaşı

A folk makam used in the Elazığ region for uzun havas, and by Northern Anatolian âşıks for rhythmic songs. Although the term frequently appears in historical texts, we have very little qualitative information about it.

Kayda

See Gayda, Kaide.

Kaynana Zırıltısı

Ratchet (Percussion instrument). Sometimes used in street festivities.

Kaytağı

A folk dance of Azerbaijan and the Caucasus region, and the music that accompanies this dance.

Kaytarma

A 7-beat dance of Turkish communities in the North Caucasus, the Crimea and the surrounding region, and the music that accompanies this dance.

Kazancılar Düyeği

A variant of the usûl düyek created in the 1880s by İsmail Hakkı Bey.

Kebûter

A compound makam once used in Turkish Classical Music. No examples have survived to the present.

Keman

Violin.

Kemança

An example of the stringed instruments from Azerbaijan. It is also called Kamança.

Kemâne

Fiddle. The general Turkish name for bowed upright string instruments. Ex. kabak kemâne (gourd fiddle), tırnak kemâne (the pear-shaped fiddles played by stopping the strings with the fingernails), Kıbrıs kemânesi (Cyprus fiddle), etc.

Kemençe

1. A bowed string instrument played in the Eastern Black Sea region from the Ordu and Giresun regions eastward. Insufficient research has been done on the origins of this instrument. It is distinct form the pear-shaped lyres in terms of both appearance and playing technique.

2. A three-stringed bowed "pear-shaped lyre" used in Turkish Classical Music, played upright resting on the knee. From low to high tones, the strings are tuned to yegâh, râst and nevâ.

Kemençeci (=Kemençevî)

A player of the kemençe.

Kemânî

A violinist.

Kerem

The name of tunes set to the poetry of Âşık Kerem, with differing rangers and makam characteristics from region to region, indicated by names such as Kesik Kerem, Yanık Kerem, Guba Kerem, etc. Today there are many songs referred to by thıs name but with lyrics that do not belong to Âşık Kerem.

Kesik

Lit. "cut," a type of uzun hava sung in the Elazığ area.

Kesik Kerem

A type of Kerem havası. See Kerem.

Kesinti

The term for the instrumental break in Zeybek songs. Instrumental break.

Kıbrıs Kemanesi

The name used in the İçel region for the kabak kemane (gourd fiddle) and sometimes the tırnak kemane (pear-shaped lyre).

Kıl Kopuz

A type of kopuz, commonly used by the Kazakhs.

Kına Havası

The term for folk songs sung in nearly ever region of Anatolia for the bride and groom on the henna night.

Kırık Düzen

1. Playing through all the notes of a chord one-by-one.

2. In folk music, "out of tune" when referring to a musical instrument.

Kırık Hava

The general term for a clearly rhythmic melody. This term encompasses all types of melodies except free-meter melodies. However this is a scholarly term and not used colloquially.

Kırık kadans (=Kırık kalış)

A cadence played in order to tie a fifth-degree chord to another chord other than the first degree, thus creating a feeling of incompleteness rather than of resolution.

Kırklar Semahı

A religious dance genre among Alevi-Bektashi communities performed in memory and to portray the Forty Saints; and the regional melodies that accompany this dance

Kırnata

A folk term for the clarinet. Also gırnata and among Gypsies, granet.

Kıt'a

A section of a poem composed of quatrains, consisting of at least two quatrains.

Kız Havası

Lit. "girl tunes," dance-type folk songs performed at womens' festivities in the Thrace and Teke regions.

Kız Neyi

1. A type of ney with a tuning based on the note gerdâniye one octave above La/A.

2. The basic tuning based on gerdâniye.

Kiriş

Old-style gut strings. Although they were once in common use, especially on bowed string instruments, they are not generally used today.

Kitabü'l-Edvâr

The music book written in Arabic by Safiyüddin Urmevî.

Klâsik Koro (Classical Chorus)

The choruses at Ankara and Istanbul Radio that perform Turkish Classical Music, which were first established by Mesut Cemil. Today the term is applied to ensembles under the umbrella of the Ministry of Culture as well.

Koçaklama

A term for folk songs with lyrics dealing with such subjects as bravery, nobility and heroism.

Koçkarca

A string instrument of the Uzbeks, played with a plectrum. It is one of the rare representatives of the long-neck lutes with a skin top.

Kol Bastı (=Kolbastı)

A folk dance of the Ordu, Giresun and Trabzon regions, and the folk tune that accompanies this dance.

Kolca Kopuz

A long-necked form of the kopuz from the Central Asian Turkic world, and known from the Dede Korkut stories.

Koma

The name for one of the nine divisions of a whole tone in Turkish Classical Music, derived from the Greek word "comma." Insufficient to completely represent the microtonal structure of Turkish music, it has nontheless become so widely used that it appears impossible to abandon the term.

Konser Saz Semâîsi

A special type of saz semâîsi composed in order to be played on a solo instrument in concert rather than at the end of a fasıl performance as is the usual case. The term was coined by Hüseyin Saadeddin Arel.

Kopuz

The name giving in the Turkic world chiefly to long necked string instruments played with a plectrum or the fingers. However the term is also known to have been used for the harmonica, the jaw harp and some stringed instruments.

Koro (Chorus)

Although Turkish music does not traditionally include the chorus, they have gained much importance over the course of the State-sponsored modernization of Turkish music. Turkish Music and Television (TRT), the Ministry of Culture and the State polyphonic music ensembles have all created large and small choral ensembles.

Koşa Nağara

The Azerbaijani term for the double nağara.

Koşma

A form of folk poetry which consists of at least three verses composed of four lines, and one the most commonly used form by folk minstrels. The melodies vary according to region, and they are known by various names such as Yelpük Koşma, Acem Koşma, Sıralı Koşma etc

Koşmak

To create a melody, a folk term for a type of composition. See Yakmak.

Koşuk

The name for various forms of quatrains in folk poetry. Koşma, Mani.

Köçek

Male dancers who dance accompanied by local music, usually dressed as women.

Köçek Takımı

A group of several köçek dancers. Köçek ensembles played a leading role in all festivities in Anatolia; such groups still perform in Central and Northern Anatolia.

Köçekçe

A type of melody, usually Anatolian and Rumeli folk songs played as a dance melody. Dede Efendi and Çuhacıyan both arranged these sorts of works.

Köçekçe Takımı

A collection of köçekçes in the same makam played end-on-end. Their refrains are sometimes joined with dance tunes.

Köroğlu

A famous folk hero and minstrel; the general name for this minstrel's songs.

Kös (Kûs)

A percussion instrument of mehter music played with two beaters.

Kövür

Another instrument for the çöğür, an instrument in the bağlama family.

Kubuz

The name used for the el armonikası by the immigrants from the Caucasus living in the Tokat, Eskişehir, Adana and Mardin.

Kûçek

A compound makam used in Turkish Classical Music, formed by adding a Hüseynî pentachord transposed to hüseynî-aşîrân to the scale of the makam Sabâ. Its tonic is dügâh (La/A), and its dominants are çargâh (Do/C) and aşîrân (Mi/E). It is ascending in character. Its suspended cadences are the flavors Hicâz on gerdâniye (Sol/G), Nikrîz on acem-aşîrân (Fa/F), Hüzzam on dik hisâr (Re/D eight komas sharp) and Segâh; as well as suspended cadences on hüseynî (Mi/E).