Dârülelhan as the Cultural Stage of Tumultuous Times: Redefining of Tradition
Dârülelhan served as the national school of music both during the late Ottoman era and the newly founded Republic of Turkey. During this period, there were considerable changes in the cultural production of music, similar to those in the military and social life of the Ottoman State that was undergoing modernization -and the rationalizing its effect- as early as the late 18th Century. During this process, when the fields of teaching, theory, and performance of Turkish music were rapidly transforming, a rationalization and an underlying idea for constructive change was put into place. It was ultimately anticipated to arrive via modern educational institutions, and thus the institutionalization of Turkish music gathered momentum. Dârülelhan, which became operational in 1916 and continued offering its training even after a restriction of its functions in 1923, was charged with an important mission in shaping both traditional Turkish music and the musical taste of the time. This study -although the topic necessitates a general outline- does not deal with the history of the institution itself but rather focuses on Turkish music’s teaching and performance traditions that changed during the late Ottoman and early republican eras at the hands of Dârülelhan. The paper examines the institution’s directives, legislation, and publications during the said period and discusses the time’s socio-cultural implementations by considering news articles and interviews in periodicals as well as other archival documents. Additionally, it studies their reception within prominent musical circles, making additions to predicate studies on the institution’s history by analyzing newly discovered documents and other supplementary information.
Çalkantılı Bir Dönemin Kültür Sahnesi Olarak Dârülelhan: Geleneğin Yeniden Tanımlanması
Dârülelhan, hem Osmanlı Devleti’nin son dönemlerinin hem de yeni kurulmuş olan Türkiye Cumhuriyeti’nin müzik alanındaki okulu olarak faaliyet göstermiştir. 18. yüzyıl sonlarından itibaren modernleşme etkisinde olan Osmanlı Devleti’nde askerî ve toplumsal yaşamda olduğu gibi müziğin kültürel üretim sahasında da değişmeler yaşanmıştır. Türk müziğinin özellikle aktarım, nazariyat ve icra geleneğinde dönüşümlerin yaşandığı bu süreçte, değişmenin modern eğitim kurumları eliyle yeniden inşa edilmesi ve Türk müziği eğitiminin kurumsallaşması ihtiyacı ve fikri gündeme gelmeye başlamıştır. 1916 yılında eğitim faaliyetlerine başlayan, 1923 yılında yeniden yapılandırılan Dârülelhan’a; Türk müziğini ve dönemin müzikal beğenisini şekillendirme hususunda önemli bir misyon yüklenmiştir. Bu çalışmanın amacı, -konu gereği genel bir çerçeve çizilmiş olmakla beraber kurum tarihini anlatmaktan ziyade- Osmanlı Devleti’nin son dönemleri ve Cumhuriyet döneminin ilk yıllarında Türk müziğinin aktarım ve icra geleneklerinin Dârülelhan aracılığıyla nasıl şekillendirilmeye çalışıldığını ele almaktır. Çalışmada Dârülelhan ile gerçekleştirilmeye çalışılan yenilikler ve amaçlar, kurumun yönetmelikleri, mevzuatları ve dönemin yayınları incelenerek saptanmış; belirlenen amaçların uygulamaları dönem şartları içerisinde değerlendirilmiştir. Bunların yanı sıra makalede, gerçekleştirmeye çalışılan yeniliklerin, müzik çevrelerinde ne şekilde karşılık bulduğu incelenmiştir. Ulaşılan yeni belge ve bilgilerle de kurumun tarihsel süreciyle ilgili yapılmış olan öncül çalışmalara ilaveler yapılmıştır.
Westernization movements that began during the Tulip Age (1718–1730) in the Ottoman State were observed in the periphery of the palace, initially taking roots in the military and subsequently affecting social, cultural, educational, musical, and virtually all cultural spheres. Its impact on Turkish music can be seen in the transformed performance styles and modernized teaching traditions. These factors, along with standardization efforts, have brought about the need for a school wherein Turkish musical education would be sustained, and the music would be institutionalized.
Prior to Dârülelhan; the teachings of Turkish music occurred in institutions and venues such as the Mevlevîhane, Mehterhane, Enderun, Muzıka-yı Hümâyûn; and specialized societies such as Dârü’l-Musiki-yi Osmanî, Dârü’l Feyz-i Musiki, Dârü’t-Talim-i Musiki, Gülşen-i Musiki, and Şark Musikisi Cemiyeti (Western Music Society). As well as grand mansions belonging to music lovers and cult convents have served a similar purpose.
The music department of Dârülbedayi -originally established for theater in 1914- is important as it is regarded as a stepping-stone to the establishments of Dârülelhan. However, the Turkish music department at the institution was shut down in 1916 due to the economic impacts of World War I.
Dârülelhan was subsequently established in 1916 to address the need for the institutionalizing and representing Turkish music by offering quality education in the field. In its initial configuration, it was planned as an institution with two campuses, offering separate classes for men and women. The men’s campus was closed due to the economic effects of WWI and classes at the institute continued solely in the women’s branch.
Dârülelhan was restructured with Eastern and Western music departments and reopened in 1923 during the republic period, during which it operated as a far more efficient institution compared to its past form, producing concerts, compilations, and publications as well as offering numerous classes. However, prolonged discussions on Eastern and Western music, widely covered by the media in 1926, led to the idea of entirely eliminating Turkish music from official institutions.
At the first conservatory of the Ottoman State and the Republic of Turkey, Dârülelhan was charged with the important mission of reconstructing the musical taste and production of its day during both eras of its activity. A review of interviews during its establishment, and articles stipulating the institution’s purposes in the legislation, clearly show that the institution was perceived as the government agency that would shape the anticipated change in the field of music. Established to meet Turkish music’s need for institutionalization, Dârülelhan’s fundamental purposes included the scientific application of Turkish music along with registering and reviving old works and compositions that were a part of its inception in 1916, when the ordinance regarding the institution was first published. Education, both through notation and makams (melody types) in realizing these purposes, was gravely emphasized. The fundamental goals of the institution are a reflection of the positivist and rationalist thought on music that were prevalent during the period. There was an attempt to convert the teachings of Turkish music, which occurred primarily through meşk -an element of oral culture- that followed the footsteps of its precursors into written culture. Although notation -an element of Western culture- was used, edvars, which were the most significant source in teaching Turkish music theory, were reference points in scientific discipline. Another aim was to propel change in various fields of Turkish music tradition, which began with the westernization process in the Ottoman State through Dârülelhan’s education and arts activities as well as the efforts of the alumni. However, the institution was unable to operate as planned during its inception due to financial troubles and the effects of the World War.
Beginning in 1923, Dârülelhan was once again expected to operate as a “modern” institution much like its counterparts in Europe. This second period was far more productive than the first, both in the sense of works carried out at the institution and its artistic activities, along with a better convergence of planning and implementation. The institution organized concerts that exemplified the use of notation, and the publication activities along with it illustrated the changes that were implemented in Turkish music’s performance and teaching traditions. The surviving art forms carried an unprecedented concerted purpose of creating literature through a register of Turkish music and the first systematic efforts that took place in the field.
Dârülelhan, which operated non-continuously due to and under two different structures between 1916 and 1926 due to a consequence of its times, made significant contributions to the transition of written culture and developments in the creation of literature, registering and recording compositions, and transitioning education through notation in a time period that was too short to realize the missions it had assumed.
