Country in Central Asia.
II. Opera, ballet, orchestral and chamber music
MARK SLOBIN/SŁAWOMIRA ŻERAŃSKA-KOMINEK (I), FATIMA ABUKOVA-NURKLYCHEVA (II)
Turkmen traditional music culture has a highly distinctive character but also has ties with two large neighbouring areas, the Near East Turkestani region (Azerbaijan to Uzbekistan) and the Kazakh-Kyrghyz zone (fig.1). Some of the traits shared with the former area are the ghidjak spike fiddle, the use of Arabo-Persian metric patterns, verse forms and imagery, the spread of the Görogly epic and recent romantic tales, and some microtonal scales. Characteristics relating more closely to the Kazakh and Kyrgyz region are the traditionally weak development of the dance, paucity of percussion instruments, use of the qobuz horsehair fiddle (now obsolete), singing contests, and a stress on instrumental music, particularly the high development of polyphonic lute styles with highly esteemed virtuoso performers. Some features of Turkmen music, such as the ˙ar-˙ar wedding song, patterns of Turkic versification and use of a metal jew’s harp (gopuz), are common to Central Asia as a whole. Turkmen music culture seems analogous to the Turkmen language, which is transitional between the eastern and western wings of the Turkic language family. It may be divided into three genres: oral epics and narrative tales performed by professional bards, an independent instrumental repertory and folk music.
Turkmen professional music is primarily a vocal art performed by a male bagşy, who is simultaneously a poet, singer, musician and inspired bard. The word bagşy has its origins in the Turkish term bak (bakmak), meaning ‘to look carefully’ or ‘to watch’. Hence bakyjy or bagşy means a person who investigates or divines. A fortune teller and shaman, he is also a wise man, teacher or guardian. The same term is used by Kazakhs, Kyrgyz and Uygurs to describe ‘shaman’, ‘soothsayer’, ‘doctor healing by uttering charms’ or ‘magician’, and by Uzbeks for reciters of epic tales (see Uzbekistan, §3(i); Kazakhstan; and Kyrgyzstan). In remote Turkmen history, the singing of tales was the job of shamans. This link still affects the self-perception of the bagşy and provides a key to many aspects of the tradition he conveys. The Turkmen bagşy receives the gift of poetry during sleep from his patron saint, Baba Gambar or Aşyk A˙dyń. Traditionally, those learning the art had to train both in their own homes and in that of their teacher, where they stayed for several years. Having completed his apprenticeship the new bagşy was introduced to the community by the master (halypa) in a ritual of blessing (pata). Anyone who had not been granted the pata was treated as an illegal (haram) performer.
The bagşy repertory includes both dessan and songs. The dessan is an epic tale in prose, usually a monologue or dialogue, performed by a specialized bagşy known as dessanēy-bagşy. There are two types of Turkmen dessan. One comprises parts of epic-cycles such as Oguz nama (The Tale of Oguz), Gorkut atanyń kitaby (The Book of Dede Korkut), and Görogly, as well as Yusup-Ahmet attributed to Gurbanaly Magrupy, an 18th-century Turkmen poet. The other comprises ‘folk novels’, which fall between oral folktales and classical written texts. A number are anonymous (e.g. Şasenem-Garyp, Nejep Oglan); others are the performers' own interpretations of tales, fables and stories drawn from folklore or from classical Persian or Turkish literature (e.g. Se˙pelmelek-Methaljemal by Gurbanaly Magrupy; Yusup-Züleyha by Nurmuhammet Anadalyp (1710–80). The heroic dessan (e.g. Görogly and Yusup-Ahmet) and the anonymous dessan known mainly in northern Turkmenistan, is usually performed to the accompaniment of a dutar (two-string long-necked lute) and a ghidjak (spike fiddle). In south-eastern Turkmenistan, especially in Yoloten district, the dessan is performed to the accompaniment of one or two dutar. The recital of a dessan is called ˙ol, meaning ‘road’ or ‘journey’.
There are also tirmeēy-bagşy, who perform poem-songs from different dessan and the work of poets, such as Magtymguly Pyragi (1733–83), Nurmuhammet Andalyp (1710–80), Abdylla Şabende (1720–1800), Se˙itnazar Se˙idi (1775–1836), Gurbandurdy Zelili (1795–1850), Kemine (1770–1840) and Mollanepes (1810–62).
The bagşy concert, which is also called ‘journey’ (˙ol), consists of preliminary, middle and concluding stages. The preliminary stage introduces the concert and its length varies according to the expected duration of the performance. During the middle stage, which is the longest part of the concert, the bagşy ‘enters the right road’, referring both to his style and emotional intensity. The concluding stage, in which the concert reaches its climax, is relatively brief, consisting of less than a dozen songs. In Turkmen tradition, the three concert stages are equivalent to three zones of tonal space: a low, middle, and high zone, each related to vocal registers. The rise to higher registers is effected by altering the tuning of the dutar. As he begins his performance, a bagşy tunes his instrument as low as possible, adjusting it to the lowest register of his voice. After some time, he raises the pitch by a quarter- or semitone, a change that pleases the audience as it signals the increasing expressiveness of the bagşy and a rise in emotional tension. Despite frequent adjustments, Turkmen musicians distinguish three principal tunings of the dutar: low tuning (pes ēekim), middle tuning (orta ēekim) and high tuning (beik ēekim). These correspond to the following approximate tonal ranges: from a–d' to c'–f'; c'–f' to e'–a' and e'–a' upwards.
Particular songs are linked to each tonal range, and so to each stage of the concert. The vocal repertory of Turkmen bagşy falls therefore into three classes: songs prepared for the low register (˙apbyldak a˙dymlar) played in the first stage of the concert; songs prepared for the middle register (orta a˙dymlar) played in the second stage; and songs prepared for the high register (ēekimli a˙dymlar) performed in the third and final stage of the concert. Low songs are characterized by a narrow range (a 4th or 5th); middle songs by a medium range (an octave); and high songs by a range of more than an octave. Within each performance, a strict ordering of registers for works is closely observed.
The texts of songs performed by the bagşy are mostly based on a syllabic system termed barmak, characterized by an equal and unchanging number of syllables in a line. The most frequent are seven-, eight- and eleven-syllable lines with a varying and irregular division of the line. Less popular with the bagşy are texts written according to the Arabo-Persian aruz system. The link between poetic and musical layers of song is complicated in Turkmen music. Although the strophic verse form accounts for the division of the song into melodic stanzas, the melody within these stanzas is rarely synchronized with the structure of the text. The songs of the bagşy are based on an approximate metrical-rhythmic model of ten beats referred to as kaku (kakmak means ‘to beat’) related to the free manner in which poems are set to music. The basic kaku structure is identified by the mnemonic pattern of the hand's movements on the dutar. However, during performance the structure is frequently modified, producing irregular rhythms that constitute one of the characteristic features of Turkmen music and an aspect of the song performance style also referred to as ˙ol.
The Turkmen bagşy distinguishes at least eight styles of performance: Yomut-Gögleń, Ēowdur, Ata, Ärsary, Saryk-Salyr, Ahal-Teke, Damana and Gazanjyk (also called the Yomut style, in western Turkmenistan). Those in use today probably became established during the last two centuries, that is, when Turkmen tribes abandoned nomadism and settled. Ethnocultural processes in Turkmenistan from the 18th century to the early 20th resulted in the emergence of two main performing styles: a northern style (comprising Yomut-Gökleń, Ēowdur and Ata styles) and a southern style (Saryk-Salyr). A distinctive feature of the vocal art of the bagşy is the extraordinary profusion of non-musical acoustic effects, a phenomenon associated with shamanic magical spells. They can be put roughly into one of three categories: rustling sounds (snoring, moaning, murmurs); shouts or cries; and ‘barks’ or ‘hiccups’ called juk-juk. The first two categories of sounds are more common in northern-style performances. Calls, such as ‘e˙’, ‘a˙’, ‘˙are˙’, ‘ha’, ‘ah’, have usually no definite pitch. The southern style is much more restrained. Indefinite throaty-murmurs turn in the south into an effect called hümlemek (slightly throaty singing on the syllable ‘hü’), performed on definite pitches in a low register. The juk-juk is a favourite song-ornament found in northern as well as southern styles. In the southern style, it is performed very narrowly (usually on the vowel ‘i’ or ‘ü’), and very deeply, on the diaphragm. In the north, it is shallow, guttural, and performed on the vowels ‘e’, ‘a’ and ‘u’. In south-eastern Turkmenistan, the bagşy usually sing in a broad, sonorous, slightly nasal voice. Singing in a very high register is typical of a bagşy representing the southern style. A throaty, flat, stifled, hoarse voice is typical of northern performances which are often recitatives with little accuracy of intonation. The rapid tempo and parlando articulation often blur the clarity of the melodic line. In high registers, singing occasionally turns into protracted, intense cries.
The instrumental repertory comprises mostly versions of vocal pieces performed on three professional instruments: the dutar, the gargy tüidük (long, end-blown flute; fig.2) and the ghidjak.
In southern Turkmenistan, the bagşy is accompanied by one, occasionally two and, very rarely, three identically-tuned dutars. The dutar, an instrument producing very soft sounds, repeats the contours of the melody while at the same time upholding its rhythm. The bagşy touches the strings softly, producing fine vibrating sounds. In the north, the dutar is used as a percussive instrument substituting for drums that do not exist in Turkmen music. The manner of playing of the bagşy is sharp and the dutar sound is quick and dry. The tune of the song is played first by a ghidjak. The high and shrill sound of the ghidjak, which often dominates in northern performances, gives greater precision to intonation and melody.
The independent instrumental repertory consists of dutar pieces that emerged from the Gökdepe school (Ahal region) and are widely known only among the Aşgabat dutarēys (musicians specializing in performing on the dutar). These include: the five mukam (Gońgurbaş, A˙ralyk, Mukamlarbaşy, Şadilli); the Gyrklar cycle comprising the following seven pieces: Dillin kyrk, Keēeli kyrk, Mendag kyrk, Selbin˙az kyrk, Yandym kyrk, Dövlet˙ar kyrk; and the Saltyklar cycle, consisting of a set of versions of one composition (see Mode, §V, 2 and Uzbekistan, §2(ii)).
As in the case of the Uzbek dutar and Kazakh dömbra, the basic left-hand technique on the Turkmen dutar consists in stopping the lower string with the thumb and upper string with the fingers, the thumb thus often maintaining a stable position against which the fingers move. Right-hand technique includes a variety of strokes, but not as varied as on the Kirghiz komuz. The frets of the dutar form a chromatic scale with a major 2nd between the two highest frets. The structure of dutar pieces is varied but there are two fundamental forms: the ABA type with subdivisions in each section, and multi-sectional works in which each section begins at a different pitch above the tonic (e.g. 4th, 5th, then octave) and gradually descends to the tonic (open string).
Turkmen folk music, which has been insufficiently studied, includes a repertory performed in connection with annual- and life-cycles, and a small number of work songs. Celebrations marking the first day of Ramadan embraced a very rich repertory of carols. The carols, referred to as ˙a ramazan, very often of a joking and satirical nature, were performed either by a choir of dervishes (diwana) or by children between seven and 15 years of age. Before the October Revolution, all Turkmen tribes solemnly celebrated the end of Ramadan (gadyr gijesi, literally ‘the night of omnipotence’, ‘the night of destiny’). Celebrations lasted throughout the night, culminating in the making of a sacrificial offering to St Hyzyr at a cemetery, where ritual dances (zykr) were performed, with the dancers finally falling into trance. Religious poems (ghazel) were recited simultaneously with the dances.
Music related to the life-cycle primarily embraces lullabies (huwdi), girls' songs (läle), wedding songs (with different, regional names ölńer, to˙ a˙dymlary, ˙ar-˙ar), wedding dances (zykr) and funeral laments called agy, tawuş, ses etmek. Girls' game songs (läle) comprise: damak läle, during which singers hit their throats with their fingers to produce a tremolo effect; dodak läle, during which they hit their upper lips with their fingers; dyz läle (‘dyz’ means ‘knee’), also called a˙ak läle (a˙ak means ‘a leg’) during which a girl sings the song, vigorously rocking the upper part of her body while resting on one leg; and egin läle (‘egin’ means ‘the back’), also called hymmyl. This is a kind of counting game, with some dance elements, performed by two girls.
No research has yet been undertaken on wedding songs. These differ from region to region and are performed before and during the bride's journey to the bridegroom's house. The majority are dialogue-songs, performed by two groups (of two or three female singers each) or by the bridegroom and bride. In western Turkmenistan an important element of wedding celebrations is the so-called entertaining zykr, which includes a sequence of parts, each with a different kind of movement, rhythm and melody: diwana, bir depim, sedrat, üē depim, oturma gazal, zem-zem. Performance of the wedding zykr is accompanied by cries of ‘huw-hu’, ‘ah-ha’, and ‘alla’. In western Turkmenistan, a combination of wedding songs and dances (kuştdepme), transformations of bir depim and üē depim, is also popular.
Work songs, most of which have been recorded in western Turkmenistan, include degirmenēi (sung while grinding grain) and howlum (sung while milking cows). A separate group comprises songs or charms (monjukadty).
Folksong is strongly dependent on strophic verse in the barmak system which is based on the seven-syllable line divided into 3+4 or 4+3. Their metrical-rhythmic structure is much simpler than that of bagşy songs. Typical are simple duple rhythms (4/4 and 2/4) and triple rhythms (3/4 and 6/8). Turkmen folksong is strictly diatonic with a narrow range (never exceeding a 4th) and an irregular tonal structure. Like professional music, folk music is characterized by a rich performance style that varies regionally and has many genres. The major components of the performance style of Turkmen folksong include articulation, ornamentation and tonal colour.
There are few Turkmen folk instruments, including the shepherd's single-reed pipe (dili tüidük) (see above, fig.2) and jew's harp (gopuz). The former are often used to play pieces that have a slow, protracted melody followed by a quicker, dance-like section. The latter, formerly a shaman's instrument, is now played mainly by women who treat it as a toy.
Turkmen dance is traditionally limited to a few local genres. One of these is the kushtüpmi circle-dance of the Krasnovodsk area (near the Caspian Sea), incorporating a call-response song in which the group dances while chanting the last phrase sung by the leader. In addition to the girl's game-dance and some female wedding dances there are also shepherds' dances.
Soviet Turkmen music developed rather more slowly than the music of neighbouring republics, but an active school of local composers has emerged, including such figures as Kholmahmedov and Nurimov. An ensemble of folk instruments has been established, led by the well-known musician Tashmahmedov. An electro-dutar has been devised enabling the normally gentle sound of the dutar to be combined with the piano.
The works of Turkmen composers are based on the Russian and Western European cultural tradition; most Turkmen composers were educated in Russia. As in other Central Asian republics, genres of art music (opera, ballet, the symphony, chamber music and vocal works) were synthesized with elements selected from traditional Turkmen genres. Opera holds a special place in the new hierarchy of genres in Turkmenistan's music. For it was with opera that the process of refining the method of unifying Turkmen and European musical principles began, and the expressive possibilities of the new system were tried. The development of opera has been orientated to two particular genres. Great popularity has been won at various times by operas created on themes from famous epics (destan), including Leyli Medjnun (1946) by Dangatar Ovezov and Yu. Meytus, Shashsenem i Garib (1944) by Adrian Shaposhnikov and Ovezov, Zokhre i Takhir by Veli Mukhatov and Shaposhnikov, and Keymir Ker (1977) by Nury Mukhatov. These formed the basis for the repertory of the Theatre of Opera and Ballet, which was opened in 1941.
Operas on contemporary subjects to a great extent expressed Soviet ideology; from a musical point of view they were valuable as a vehicle of the new means of artistic expression. The best-known opera of this type is Konets krovavogo vodorazdela (‘The End of Bloody Watershed’, 1967) by Veli Mukhatov. Ballet, which was introduced as an art form in Turkmenistan almost simultaneously with opera, is less developed as a genre, possibly because dances are not typical of Turkmen culture. In the 1970s ballets with various themes were written and performed at the Theatre of Opera and Ballet, including Schast'ye (‘Happiness’, 1970) by K. Kuliyev, Dobraya volshebnitza (‘The Good Enchantress’) and Nusai (1979) by D. Nurļyev, and Bessmertiye (‘Immortality’, 1972) and Kugitanskaya tragediya (‘A Kughitang Tragedy’, 1977) by Chary Nurļmov.
The symphonic genre began to gestate before the 1960s. Many symphonies were written during the 1970s and 80s. In later decades a departure from programmaticism may be noticed in the symphonies of composers such as R. Allayarov and D. Khļdļrov. There are, however, rare examples of programmatic compositions, such as the works of Veli Mukhatov. Within the framework of this genre the stylistic synthesis of Turkmen traditional music and the European tradition has been particularly innovative, for example in works by Chary Nurļmov.
Chamber music is extremely popular. Since the end of the 1970s new chamber music styles have been explored, for instance in Nurļmov's quartet, R. Redzhepov's sonata for solo cello and N. Khalmamedov's quartet. In small vocal ensembles, arrangements are made of the classical poets of the East, including the cycles of romances and songs by Karadzhaoglan, Zelili, Azadi, Makhtumkuli, Mollanepes, N. Khalmamedov, R. Allayarov, A. Agadzhikov, D. Nurļyev, R. Kutlļyev, V. Akhmedov and others. There are also examples of references to the works of European poets such as Heine and Pushkin. Since the 1970s the musical art of Turkmenistan has increasingly developed its own national and stylistic features and the skill of Turkmen composers has reached a high level.
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