Information AboutMakam |
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The word ''makam'' is simply the Turkish word for the Arabic ''maqam'', and indeed the concept is fundamentally similar to that in the Arab world; the makams, however, are organized in a somewhat different way in the two musical cultures. Although makams do provide a framework for Improvisation s—known as ''taksim'' in Turkish—they are primarily a means of Melodic Composition . In this regard, it should be kept in mind that Turkish music, and particularly Turkish classical music, is Heterophonic ; i.e., traditionally all of the voices play the same melody, with small flourishes and Ornament s occasionally being introduced. In terms of notes, one whole tone is divided into nine Comma s in Turkish music, which are given symbols in accordance with the following table: (N.B. ''Aralığın Adı'' means "Name of Interval"; these should be learned in Turkish as this system is unlikely to be encountered outside of Turkish music. ''Koma olarak değeri'' means "value in terms of commas". ''Diyez'' means "sharp" and ''bemol'' means "flat"; in the sharp column, the lower tone should be imagined at the top and the higher tone at the bottom (vice versa for the flat column), and then the table becomes a map of the Interval s occurring as one moves between, for example, the notes C and D. Accordingly, the table can be depicted horizontally as follows, with the basic notes named according to the Solfege system and thus, for example, "Do" is C and "Re" is D: As noted above in the context of the Arab maqam, this system is not of Equal Temperament . In fact, in the Western system of temperament, C-sharp and D-flat—which are functionally the same tone—are equivalent to 4.5 commas in the Turkish system; thus, they fall directly in the center of the line depicted above. As for the last column in the table, ''simge'' means "symbol", and is used—as will be seen below—for a shorthand system of writing the different intervals used in the different tetrachords and pentachords that go into making up a makam.) Unlike as in Western music, where the note C, for example, is called C regardless of what Octave it might be in, in the Turkish system the notes are—for the most part—individually named (although many are variations on a basic name); this can be seen in the following table, which covers the notes from middle C ("Kaba Çârgâh") to the same note two octaves above ("Tîz Çârgâh"): Similar to the construction of maqamat noted above, a makam in Turkish music is built of a tetrachord built atop a pentachord, or vice versa (trichords exist but are little used). Additionally, most makams have what is known as a "development" (''genişleme'' in Turkish) either above or below, or both, the tonic and/or the highest note.
In the following image, tetrachords (''dörtlü'') are on the left, pentachords (''beşli'') on the right. The symbols (''simge'') from the table above are here used to signal the intervals used in these patterns; it is worth keeping in mind that these patterns can be Transposed to any note in the scale, so that the tonic A (Dügâh) of the Hicaz tetrachord, for example, can be moved up a major second/9 commas to B (Bûselik), or in fact to any other note. The other notes of the tetrachord, of course, are also transposed along with the tonic, allowing the pattern to preserve its character. BASIC MAKAM THEORY A makam, more than simply a selection of notes and intervals, is essentially a guide to compositional structure: any composition in a given makam will move through the notes of that makam in a more or less ordered way (in this, it resembles a Tone Row à la Schoenberg or Von Webern ). This pattern is known in Turkish as ''seyir'' (meaning basically, "route"), and there are three types of ''seyir'':
As stated above, makams are built of a tetrachord plus a pentachord (or vice versa), and in terms of this construction, there are three important notes in the makam:
Additionally, there are three types of makam as a whole:
SIMPLE MAKAMS Çârgâh Makam This makam is identical to the Western C-major scale, and consists of a Çârgâh pentachord and a Çârgâh tetrachord starting on the note Gerdaniye (G). Thus, the tonic is C (Çârgâh), the dominant G (Gerdaniye), and the leading tone B (Bûselik). (N.B. In this and all subsequent staves, the tonic is indicated by a whole note and the dominant by a half note.) Interestingly, insofar as C-major is considered the most basic scale of Western music and accordingly used very often, the Çârgâh makam is very little used in Turkish music, and in fact has at certain points of history been attacked for being a clumsy and unpleasant makam that can inspire those hearing it to engage in delinquency of various kinds. Bûselik Makam This makam has two basic forms: in the first basic form (1), it consists of a Bûselik pentachord plus a Kürdî tetrachord on the note Hüseynî (E) and is essentially the same as the Western A-minor ; in the second (2), it consists of a Bûselik pentachord plus a Hicaz tetrachord on Hüseynî and is identical to A-harmonic minor. The tonic is A (Dügâh), the dominant Hüseynî (E), and the leading tone G-sharp (Nim Zirgüle). Additionally, when descending from the octave towards the tonic, the sixth (F, Acem) is sometimes sharpened to become F-sharp (Dik Acem), and the dominant (E, Hüseynî) flattened four commas to the note Hisar (1A). All these alternatives are shown below: 1) 2) 1A) Rast Makam This much-used makam—which is said to bring happiness and tranquility to the hearer—consists of a Rast pentachord plus a Rast tetrachord on the note Neva (D); this is labeled (1) below. The tonic is G (Rast), the dominant D (Neva), and the leading tone F-sharp (Irak). However, when descending from the octave towards the tonic, the leading tone is always flattened 4 commas to the note Acem (F), and thus a Bûselik tetrachord replaces the Rast tetrachord; this is labeled (2) below. Additionally, there is a development (''genişleme'') in the makam's lower register, below the tonic, which consists of a Rast tetrachord on the note D (Yegâh); this is labeled (1A) below. 1) 1A) 2) In Turkey , the particular Muslim call to prayer (or ''ezan'' in Turkish) which occurs generally in early afternoon and is called ''ikindi'' , as well as the day's final call to prayer called ''yatsı'' , is often recited using the Rast makam. Uşşâk Makam This makam consists of an Uşşâk tetrachord plus a Bûselik pentachord on the note Neva (D); this is labelled (1) below. The tonic is A (Dügâh), the dominant—here actually a subdominant—is D (Neva), and the leading tone—here actually a subtonic—is G (Rast). Additionally, there is a development in the makam's lower register, which consists of a Rast pentachord on the note D (Yegâh); this is labeled (1A) below. 1) 1A) In Turkey, the particular call to prayer which occurs around noon and is called ''öğle'' is most often recited using the Uşşak makam. SOURCES
http://usul-editions.com/
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