Istanbul theme in the vocal works of composers of Turkish music of the first half of the 20th century

The relation between a city and humans is reflected on their emotional and intellectual world. In this respect, when Istanbul, the city that has hosted many civilizations for centuries, is in question, its strong impact on every aspect of life can clearly be seen. The significance of the concept of space in several areas from art and literature to politics and economy has caused this study to focus on a city that lives within history as İstanbul. Taking the impact of time on space as a starting point, İstanbul's place in the history of Turkey and its historical periods have been analyzed together with the influence of historical transformations in the first half of the 20th century. The reflections of the diverging city on music, in particular on the vocal works of Turkish music, form the main theme of this study. Within the selected period, important developments in Turkish history, cultural politics of the era and their impact on especially Turkish music are put forward. The significance of Istanbul on Turkish music is emphasized with the aim of creating a source for further studies about the city. In this respect, the transformation of the city, the degree of its being affected by the political and cultural changes in the first half of the 20th century and the features of the period were analyzed; all the works in the archive of "Presidential Choir of Classical Turkish Music" with the theme of Istanbul were xii detected and a period limitation was applied according to their composers who lived in the first half of the 20th century. 125 of the 245 works with the Istanbul theme in literature located within the selected period were analyzed. The composers and lyricists of this period were mentioned in the study, classifying the vocal works with the theme of Istanbul through graphs and tables according to districts and quarters, maqams and rhythmic elements. Keywords: 20th Century, Turkish Music, İstanbul, Composer