The Music that was Lost in the Transition Period
In this paper, our main objective is to discuss the effects of social and institutional process of change on Ottoman–Turkish music between the 18th and the 20th centuries from several aspects. Here, there are two perspectives that complement each other: (i) reflections of the institutional and ideological transformation of the Ottoman State on musical institutions and (ii) the typical experiences that these transformations create within the lives of the composers, performers and consumers of Ottoman–Turkish music. In Part I, the “existential motives” and consequently “existential types” are established based on the existential themes (“desperation”, “anxiety”, “tode angst”, “sorge”, “das man” etc.) which are conceptualized by existentialist thinkers such as Kierkegaard and Heidegger. In Part II, the “ideal–typical age– of–transition composer” as a social type is formed on the basis of these existential types, and by means of this conceptualization, the social, institutional and ideological transformation that influence the Ottoman-Turkish music is exhibited. Consequently, the existential and psychological differences between Hafız Post and Tanburi Cemil Bey will explicitly demonstrate the true nature of these transformations.
VEFA SAYGIN ÖĞÜTLE
