There is a fun television advertisement that has lots of dancing and a good beat that I enjoy watching. The purpose of the ad is to entice you to come and see South Africa. I’ve not bought an air ticket yet, but every time I watch the ad, it just makes me feel good.When a Westerner thinks about Turkey, two things that usually come to mind are coffee and belly dancing. It’s true that belly dancing is very popular in Turkey, especially at weddings and circumcisions. Usually included on most planned tour packages is an evening at a restaurant or nightclub so you can enjoy a performance by belly dancers.
Visitors are surprised to learn that there are many other varieties of popular folk dance.
The folk dance that is probably the best known among most foreigners is the halay. This is enjoyed by many who live in the eastern, southeastern and Central Anatolian regions. Migrants to urban areas have brought halay to the big cities. It is one of the most striking folk dances. Depending on the situation, the dance is usually performed with a drum-zurna (oboe) combination; sometimes you will hear the kaval (shepherd’s pipe), sipsi (reed), çığrıtma (fife) or bağlama (an instrument with three double strings played with a plectrum). The traditional folk dancers wear rich and vibrantly colored costumes.
Traveling around the country, you will see that Turkey is divided into a few cultural regions with their own distinctive dance styles: Trakya (European Turkey), Marmara (on the coast of the Marmara Sea and the Black Sea), Karadeniz (north-central part of Anatolia along the coast of the Black Sea) and Anadolu, which includes Central Anatolia, eastern Anatolia and, as I mentioned already, the Southeast.
Some of the other popular Turkish folk dances are the zeybek (circle dance), kaşık oyunu (spoon dance), horon, which is sometimes described as shaking like a fish out of water, and çayda çıra (involving lighted candles on a tray, usually performed by women).
Each dance affects how you feel. The costumes worn by the dancers are often very colorful and symbolize happiness or very dull or dark when doing a slow, somber dance.
Tourists are usually caught off-guard when they see Turks dancing and music playing in the shops and on the streets. They are under the impression that this is not allowed in an orthodox Muslim country. I like the quote by Aaron Hill, an 18th century traveler, that I found in Arin Bayraktaroğlu’s book, “Culture Shock! Turkey.”
“No one can travel half a day in the Turkish territories but he shall see a grave, long-bearded Musulman sitting cross-legg’d under some large oak, or shady cypress, pleasing his conceit with melancholy ditties, to the strum-strum musick of his thrum’d ghittar, while his poor horse is turn’d to graze about the field, and seeks the pleasure of a more substantial entertainment.”
Everywhere in Turkey, you will hear classical Turkish music being played. The rhythm and scale are typically Middle Eastern, and the music is in a choral, folk and ballad style. There may be a full choir or just a solo singer. Typical instruments include the kanun (a zither-like instrument with 72 strings), tanbur (a long-necked stringed instrument similar to the mandolin), ud (like a lute), ney (a reed flute) and saz (a small lute).
If you have the chance to attend a performance, do so!
Just be prepared to join in when you are with a group of Turks -- they’ll start swaying and singing aloud. Turkish music is filled with emotion and expression, and this is one way it comes out in a crowd. Some restaurants with live entertainment advertise “Fasıl.” By this it means that the music to be played will include folk songs.
For the younger generation of Turks, a distinctively Western and Turkish fusion of music has emerged and is known as Turkish hip hop and Anatolian rock. We’ll explore more music in another piece.
Drop a note and share what kind of music you listen to!
“Music and rhythm find their way into the secret places of the soul” -- Plato
Note: Charlotte McPherson is the author of “Culture Smart: Turkey, 2005.” Please keep your questions and observations coming: I want to ensure this column is a help to you, Today’s Zaman’s readers. Email: c.mcpherson@todayszaman.com
