Neo-Shamanic rituals and music in Turkey

It can be stated that Shamanism has been attracting attention in the West since the end of the 19th century, adapted to urban life in an eclectic and syncretic way, and manifested in many areas. At the same time, it has evolved into the term "Neo-Shamanism" with its definition as a multilingual and pluralistic movement, intertwined with the spiritual and religious movements of the modern age, and points to a new and diverse structure that can be practised by anyone who wishes. It is understood that Neo-Shamanic formations have been observed in Turkey as of the beginning of the 21st century. It is seen that the research on Shamanism in Turkey started in the pre and post-Republican periods for various ideological purposes, especially Turanism, and then continued with studies in the fields of literature, folk literature, literary history, folklore, folk beliefs, plastic arts and fine arts. The expressions and practices of Shamanism continue to exist in various fields of Anatolian folk literature, folk beliefs and especially in rites of passage that contain these expressions. The subject of this study is not to discuss the history of Shamanism in and around Central Asia as it concerns the world or Turkish culture, or the history of studies in this field. The aim of the study is to discuss the appearance of shamanic music and the musical elements frequently used in shamanic rituals in today's Turkey in a musicological perspective, which has become a world music within the framework of the opportunities provided by sound recording technologies in the 20th century and the communication speed of the current century, following the anthropological and ethnographic interest in Shamanism in the 19th century. While realising this aim, it is to create a narrative from the mouths of those concerned in the field. The research is the story of how Shamanism, which is used as a new awakening movement in Turkey, is formed as a musical expression through the mouths of shaman music enthusiasts and ritual practitioners. It is possible to say that this data constitutes the framework of the research. The role of the researcher in this study is to create the narrative framework of these data conveyed by interviewees and practitioners of shamanic rituals, to compare this framework with the data in the literature, and to provide a narrative by both ritual practitioners and performers to this subject, which has just begun to attract attention in Turkey. Traditional music genres, which are positioned within ritual and have become world music, have started to attract more attention in the world with many factors such as globalisation, digitalisation and technological developments. Thus, these music genres, including Neo-Shamanism, have played an important role in meeting the demand for cultural diversity. While different elements of the rediscovered traditional music genres continue to be used in Neo-Shamanic rituals; it has been seen as a new trend in the alternative music community, gained popularity and reached large masses. While the digitalisation of music has also had a significant impact, with the widespread use of the internet, digital music platforms have facilitated the learning and access to these traditional genres. This music genre, which has many names such as shaman music, shamanic music, Central Asian music, Tuva music, throat music and has many examples in the world, has multiple schools where it is tried by enthusiasts or integrated into existing musical structures and presented in new formations. However, many elements such as sound, rhythm and syllable used by ritual practitioners performing shamanic rituals in today's Turkey have been tried to be understood within the performative attitude presented with the catalysation of music; a wide range of practices that vary depending on need and competence have been encountered. This study first examines the etymological origin, definitions and history of Shamanism. Then, Neo-Shamanism within the scope of New Age Movements and its spread in Turkey is analysed in the context of modern movements, based on the information provided by academic studies -although they are still few in number- as well as interview data with people who perform various practices within the framework of the Neo-Shamanism movement in Turkey. Then, music practices in Neo-Shamanism are presented and interpreted with the narratives put forward by both ritual practitioners and those interested in shamanic music.