Determination of region-specific musical identities in traditional Turkish Folk Music 'The case of the Aegean region'

The present study focuses on the identification/classification of various features in folk songs that are specific to certain regions/areas in traditional Turkish folk music (TTFM). The Aegean Region was selected as the study sample and it was aimed to identify the musical features in the styled/spoken folk songs in the region. Within the scope of the present study, 534 folk songs that are accessible and archived by TRT were examined from various aspects. In addition to identifying the styles, modal scales and local performance characteristics in the folk songs examined, works were carried out towards determining the musical characteristics that are specific to the provinces/areas in the region based on the general features in the folk music culture of the provinces, as well. While the present study is a descriptive study directed towards the determination of the current situation, it also involves a qualitative model in which literature review and document review methods are used. As a result of the study, it was concluded that styles in 9/8, 4/4 and 9/4 are dominant in the folk songs from the Aegean Region, that the modes Hüseyni, Uşşak, Karcığar and Hicaz are widespread, and that there are types of folk songs in the folk music culture of the regions examined that are of importance for the TTFM repertoire/theoretics in the provinces located in the region as well as various musical characteristics that are shaped indigenously. Based on these results, various suggestions towards the determination of the musical identities that are specific to the provinces/areas in the region were presented. Keywords: Traditional Turkish Folk Music, Musical Identity, Modal Scale, Style, Local Performance