String instruments
Bağlama (saz)
Bağlama (saz): The best-known string instrument of Turkish folk music; it is played using the frets tied onto its long neck. The most widespread Anatolian form of the long-necked string instruments descended from the Central Asian kopuz tradition. As the core instrument of the âşık (minstrel) tradition and of folk music, it has been played everywhere from village to city for centuries.
In brief
- Family: Plucked string instrument (long-necked, fretted lute family)
- Body and materials: Carved or stave-built bowl of mulberry, walnut, chestnut or hornbeam; spruce soundboard
- Strings: In three courses, 2 to 12 depending on the region; most common is seven strings, 2+2+3
- Frets: Nylon frets tied to the neck; 8 to 30 depending on region and maker
- Tuning: Nearly forty regional tunings; the main ones are bağlama, bozuk (kara) and misket tuning
- Sizes: From smallest to largest cura, bağlama, tambura (çöğür) and divan sazı
- Other names: Saz; regionally bozuk, çöğür, ırızva, meydan sazı[1, 2]
Listen
History
The most widespread Anatolian form of the long-necked string instruments descended from the Central Asian kopuz tradition. As the core instrument of the âşık (minstrel) tradition and of folk music, it has been played everywhere from village to city for centuries.
Construction
It consists of a pear-shaped body carved from mulberry or walnut, a spruce soundboard and a long neck. Nylon frets tied to the neck divide the octave into intervals different from those of Western music; usually seven strings are fitted in three courses. By size it is divided into divan sazı, bağlama and cura.
How it is played
It is played with a tezene (a plectrum of cherry bark or plastic), or without one using the şelpe technique, in which the strings are struck with the fingers. Bağlama düzeni, bozuk düzen and misket düzeni are the main tunings.
Its place in makam music
In folk music it is played in scales called ayak; the Hüseynî, Uşşak, Kerem and Garip ayaks are close to the Hüseynî, Uşşak and Hicaz scales of makam music. Because its frets are fixed, some commas are rendered by the nearest fret.
Getting started: types, sizes, tuning
- Sizes: Cura, bağlama, tambura and divan sazı are the best-known sizes; there is no standard for dimensions, and the order also varies by source.
- Short neck, long neck: Turkish Standards (TS 13263) divide the bağlama into two types; the long neck is based on bozuk düzen and the short neck on bağlama düzeni (tunings).
- Size and tuning: The body size determines the tuning; on bodies smaller than 40 cm the strings stay too slack for C, so these are tuned to C sharp or D.
- Strings: There are 2–12 strings in total in 2 or 3 groups; the thinnest string is called cin teli and the thick wound string bam teli.
- Tied frets: Since the second half of the 20th century, 17 frets per octave have been common; today the frets are made of fishing line.
- First step: Most beginner books start with bozuk düzen; at first the tuning (düzen) is usually set by the teacher.
- Starting age: According to 291 bağlama teachers who teach children aged 6–15, ages 7–10 are suitable for starting; the teachers use the short-neck and long-neck bağlama together.
- Aptitude: Teachers look at the child's musical memory (repeating melody and rhythm) together with physical characteristics.[1, 3, 4]
Start with this instrument
Masters on recordings
Performers who play this instrument on recordings of works in the score archive (MusicBrainz).
Frequently asked questions about the Bağlama (saz)
Are the bağlama and the saz the same instrument?
In everyday speech the two words are mostly used interchangeably. “Saz” is the general name in Anatolia for long-necked string instruments played with a plectrum, while “bağlama” is the medium-sized and most common member of this family. Its name is thought to come from the frets tied (bağlanan) onto its neck. By size, from small to large, the family includes the cura, the bağlama and the divan sazı; from region to region you also hear names such as tambura, çöğür or bozuk.
What is the difference between the short-necked and long-necked bağlama?
The long-necked bağlama has a longer string length, more frets on its neck and a fuller sound; traditionally it is mostly played in the bozuk tuning. The short-necked bağlama is easier to hold, its frets are closer together, and it is usually tuned in the bağlama tuning. Beginners and türkü accompaniment tend to favor the short neck, while uzun hava and traditional performance favor the long neck.
How are the strings of the bağlama tuned?
The strings are grouped into three courses: lower, middle and upper. The pitch of each course and the intervals between them are set by a tuning scheme called “düzen”. Because the same finger position gives a different note in another düzen, each türkü is learned in its own tuning. The bağlama düzeni and the bozuk düzen are the most common; regional tunings such as misket, müstezat and abdal düzeni are also used.
Is the bağlama hard to learn, and where do I start?
It usually takes a few months to reach the level of playing simple türküs. The real effort goes into making your plectrum (tezene) strokes steady and finding the frets on the neck without looking. Beginners are usually advised to start with a short-necked bağlama in the bağlama tuning, with slow melodies of narrow range. Having a teacher correct your tezene grip in the first weeks prevents habits that are hard to break later.
Can I play the bağlama on this site?
Yes. The “Play in the browser” button on this page opens the virtual bağlama; the sounds are notes recorded from a real bağlama. When you choose a makam, each pitch plays at that makam's comma value, so you also hear at their exact value the intervals that a real saz approximates with the nearest tied fret. You can also try the makam of a piece from the sheet music archive on the same virtual instrument.