Examination of Zaralı Halil Söyler's life and works

The existence and continuity of a society can only be ensured by its culture. The province of Sivas, which sheds light on a deep-rooted past in the Anatolian geography, is one of the centers that has made a difference with its cultural richness and the artists it has trained. This city, which has hosted many civilizations, has trained many master artists. Zaralı Halil Söyler, one of these masters, took his place among the artists who became famous in the geography where he lived at a young age with his strong voice and unique performance. His demeanor and local style, which he skillfully used in the works he performed, were the reasons that led him to our research. In the study, information about the life of Zaralı Halil Söyler is given. The sound recordings of 41 accessible works were transcribed by notation. The basic musical characteristics were revealed by examining the works transferred to the notation in terms of genre, tempo, modal similarity, strong voice, decision tone and vocal width. In the examination, it was determined that the majority of the works were similar to the Hüseyni makam. Their strong voices were generally used in the 5th degree and La formed the majority in the decision. On the procedural aspect, mainly 4/4 and 10/8 methods were used. In terms of metronome, Prestosimo (193…) was often included, and it was determined that he sang folk songs in the range of 7 and 8 voices. The data were obtained by using documentary scanning and interview technique and were analyzed by content analysis technique.