Bowed instruments
Black Sea kemençe
Black Sea kemençe: A three-string instrument native to the Black Sea region, held upright and played with a bow. The emblematic instrument of the Eastern Black Sea; horon and kemençe tunes are played on it. The same instrument also lives on in the music of the Pontic Greeks under the name "lyra".
In brief
- Family: Bowed, fretless (lyra family)
- Origin: From the Byzantine lyra; thought to have taken shape in Pontus in the 11th–12th centuries
- Body and materials: One-piece body of plum (also mulberry, walnut, juniper); spruce or pine soundboard
- Dimensions: About 55–56 cm long; narrow, bottle-shaped body
- Strings and tuning: Three strings tuned in fourths; silk strings until the 1920s
- Playing: Held upright on the knee, strings stopped with the fingertips, usually two strings at once
- Other names: Pontic lyra (Pontiakí lýra), Laz çilili[1, 2]
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History
The emblematic instrument of the Eastern Black Sea; horon and kemençe tunes are played on it. The same instrument also lives on in the music of the Pontic Greeks under the name "lyra".
Construction
It consists of a narrow, long, bottle-shaped body made from a single piece; three strings are fitted, lying very close to one another.
How it is played
It is held upright on the knee and played with a bow; the strings are mostly played two at a time to produce a drone. The strings are pressed with the fingertips.
Its place in makam music
Black Sea melodies are mostly close to the Hüseynî and Uşşak scales; they are played with fast horon rhythms and ornaments.
Getting started: types, sizes, tuning
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 Black Sea kemençe
What is the difference between the Black Sea kemençe and the classical kemençe?
The Black Sea kemençe has a narrow, long, bottle-shaped body; the classical kemençe is pear-shaped and shorter. On the Black Sea kemençe the strings are very close together and two strings are mostly played at once, producing a continuous double sound; on the classical kemençe, fine ornaments on a single string stand out. One is the instrument of the horon, the other of Istanbul's classical music.
How is the Black Sea kemençe tuned?
Its three strings are usually tuned in fourths. Since the bow often draws across two strings at once, while the melody is played on one string, the neighboring string sounds as an accompanying tone; this gives the kemençe its distinctive full sound. The exact tuning pitch can vary by player and region.
What music is the Black Sea kemençe played in?
It is the main instrument of the horon melodies, kemençe tunes and atma türküs of the eastern Black Sea, especially around Trabzon, Rize and Giresun. Its fast, lively playing merges with the stamping of feet and the horon circle. In Pontic Greek music the same instrument continues to be played under the name “lyra”.
Is the Black Sea kemençe hard to learn?
You can start on basic horon melodies in a relatively short time, but fast bow changes, double-string playing and keeping the rhythm lively take long practice. Because it is fretless, you have to find the right pitches by ear. Most players learn from regional masters by listening and playing along; a common method is to settle short melodies at a slow tempo and then speed them up.