Neşet Ertaş and the situation of the abdallik tradition

After Neşet Ertaş's death, it is thought that in the tradition of Abdal, which was continued in Kırşehir and its surroundings, there were changes in the social, cultural, religious, economic lifestyles of the musicians belonging to the Abdal tribe and the performance styles, repertoire and cultural shift of the music culture they represent. This study is aimed to describe the current situation by examining the social, cultural, artistic, and economic situations and changes of the Abdals living in the province of Kırşehir in the Central Anatolian region, after the death of Neşet Ertaş as the representatives of the Central Anatolian music tradition. A descriptive method was used in the research. The research group which was consist of thirteen Abdal performers who are in the Masters' Music and Play Group and staffed by the Republic of Turkey Ministry of Culture and Tourism and also Kırşehir Provincial Culture and Tourism Directorate. A comprehensive literature study based on library and archive searches with internet searches was carried out for collecting data. During the research process, "Structured Interview" type interviews were conducted with thirteen Abdal artists in the Masters' Music and Play Group, who are in the staff of the Kırşehir Provincial Culture and Tourism Directorate and Republic of Turkey Ministry of Culture and Tourism. The data obtained as a result of the interviews were organized, reported, and interpreted with the "Descriptive Analysis" approach. When the data obtained in the research is evaluated, it has seen that Neşet Ertaş has been taken as an example both in terms of the performance of the works he produced and with his artist personality, some changes have occurred in the music culture and lifestyles represented by the tradition from past to present, and member of the Abdal tribe who is over a certain age musicians remained more loyal to the local music repertoires than the younger generation musicians. The performance techniques and repertoires of the young musicians varied. The musicianship profession lost value over time therefore the young Abdals did not choose this profession. The rituals related to Alevi-Bektashi were not kept alive in Abdals beliefs, It has been concluded that Abdal music is introduced to the world, young Abdal tribe children attach importance to education and tend to different professions also they think it should be changed the Ministry of Culture "Masters Music and Play Group" name as "Neşet Ertaş Masters Music and Play Group".