MAKAM ANALYSIS IN FOLK SONGS COMPILED FROM ÇEKIÇ ALI

Abstract

The creators of the folk music culture of Kırşehir province and its region in the Central Anatolia region of Turkey are the nomadic Turkmen-Abdal, whose historical background dates back to the 14th century and whose roots are thought to be in the Caucasus. For the Turkmen-Abdals, music is not merely a form of entertainment or artistic expression, but rather a way of existence and a means of identity. It is an integral component of their lifestyle and cultural tradition, serving as a powerful tool for the transmission of their values, beliefs, and experiences from one generation to the next. In addition, the quality of music performance and interpretation plays an important role in the development and preservation of the region's musical traditions, while enabling a deeper understanding and appreciation of the historical roots of Turkish music maqams. In this article, it is aimed to determine and analyse the maqam characteristics of the folk songs of Çekiç Ali (1932-1973), a folk minstrel from Kırşehir, who represents the Abdallık tradition and is accepted as one of the important interpreters of the music genre specific to this tradition. The research employs the documentary scanning method, and the research area is limited to seven folk songs recorded in the TRT-THM repertoire and attributed to Abdal Çekiç Ali. The focus of the analysis is on the technical elements that determine the melodic and maqam structure of the selected works, such as the main pitches, decision voice, roaming, scale, equipment, seven sound, expansion, and phrases within the melody. The findings revealed that Abdal Çekiç Ali's folk songs have melodic and makam scales such as 'Kürdi', 'Segâh', 'Hüseyni', 'Acemkürdi', 'Uşşak' and 'Karcığar'. The research contributes to the establishment of the historical connection of the maqamality of Turkish music and the conscious understanding of its importance in terms of cultural memory.

Keywords

• kırşehir region
• çekiç ali
• turkish folk music
• folk song
• maqam series
• maqam analysis