4 popular Turkish traditional music intruments

My fourth novel, called Travelling Bounty, is set in the time of the Ottoman Empire. These days, the country which associates itself with it as their past history is Türkiye.

In this novel, you will find Nadia. She is a flautist. More specifically, she would be playing the Turkish flute called ney.

Want to know four instruments that were popular during those times?

1. Ney

Ney is made of reed and has a long body with holes on it that are meant to be covered with fingers to create different sounds, resembling a flute. Turkish Ney has a mouthpiece that is able to create different types of sound.

2. Saz

The saz is classified as a member of the lute family. Its construction and playing style sets apart from other string instruments. The body of the saz is typically crafted from mulberry, walnut, or similar hardwoods, and is either carved from a single block of wood or assembled from multiple ribs that are glued together, creating a rounded, hollow chamber that amplifies the sound produced by the strings.

3. Def & Bendir

Def is made with a goat or cow skin stretched over a wooden hoop. It is played with fingertips. Some of them have cymbals on the sides. Bendir is similar, yet it has a snare/snares (usually made of gut) stretched across the head inside, underneath the playing side, that gives the tone a buzzing quality sound.

4. Kanun

Kanun is a narrow wooden box. The strings are stretched, and it performs the function of a resonator.  One side has an acute angle, while the other runs diagonally. The performer sits on a chair and lays the kanun flat on his knees, playing it with small ivory plectra placed on the index fingers of both hands.

Source: 

https://www.turquazz.com/a-brief-history-of-the-ney-and-its-impact-in-anatolia/

https://organology.net/instrument/saz/ct-in-anatolia/

https://csames.illinois.edu/system/files/2020-12/MusicalInstrumentsinTurkey.pdf

https://wmic.net/morocco-bendir-drum/

https://www.ktb.gov.tr/EN-98667/kanun.html