RobMacKillop
Oud Addict
Posts: 39
Registered: 1-10-2014
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Tanburi Rob :-)
Hi folks. It's a long time since I last visited. I've had an on-off relationship with Turkish ouds and tanburs, but am determined to keep focussed
this time, as I have more time.
I've started again to play the Turkish tanbur, and have created a website to enthuse about the instrument, its players and luthiers, while uploading
videos of my own journey with the instrument.
With a certain degree of humour, I've called it TanburiRob.com. Here's a direct link to the Blog section, where I will be discussing my latest
uploads:
https://tanburirob.com/2016/08/26/starting-again-three-videos/
The website is only a few days old, and will develop over time. Comments there and here are welcome.
Any Turkish tanbur players here?
Rob
https://tanburirob.com/2016/08/26/starting-again-three-videos/
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freya
Oud Junkie
Posts: 276
Registered: 2-8-2004
Location: Asheville NC
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Mood: Happy in the mountains of WNC
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Rob,
Thanks so much for posting here. I was following your tanbur stuff a few years ago and was sad to see it put on hold. I only have a cumbus tanbur
(currently set up for bowing with a "yayli" bridge) but have wanted to dig deeper into the instrument. It seems that my fret positions are way off but
I can deal with that. One question that I have not been able to resolve by web searching is what the expected string height (say where the neck meets
the body) should be. The cumbus tanbur action is adjustable but if set too low compromises the string tone. Could you share the string height on your
instrument where the neck meets the body?
Thanks,
Harry
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Jody Stecher
Oud Junkie
Posts: 1373
Registered: 11-5-2011
Location: California
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Rob, one thing you probably realize but the parts of your website I saw did not make clear, is that Turkish notation is written a fourth higher than
it usually sounds and that the actual pitch may be something yet again in certain contexts. For instance: the pitch and the fret Segah is not likely
to sound like a variety of B even though it looks like that on the page and the pitch the fret Rast will produce is more likely to be D than G even
though it looks like G on the page. For this reason reading Turkish music and playing it on the oud (I've never attempted tanbur) makes my eyes spin
especially because I'm more used to Arabic tuning where Rast is represented on the page by C. So I finger Rast on the Turkish oud and it sounds as D
as I'm expecting C and I'm reading it as G. If I call it Rast and not C or D or whatever it's easier, and easier still if I don't think at all.
BTW, I'm glad to see you included Izzettin Ökte in your Players page. I like his music a lot.
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RobMacKillop
Oud Addict
Posts: 39
Registered: 1-10-2014
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Freya - nice to hear from you. I'll measure the string height later today, but I wouldn't rely too much on that figure. Tanburs are expected to sink
downwards under the bridge, and the maker gave me two bridges, one taller than the other. The sinking happened too quickly for my liking, and soon
even the taller bridge was not tall enough. I actually sold the instrument to a local musician, and he installed an even higher bridge, but now the
strings are buzzing in the lower positions again. I don't know how high we can go before the whole thing cracks. Now, is this a fault of the Scottish
weather, or the manufacturer? I'd like to know. I hope to upgrade eventually.
Jody - nice to see you here. Yes, I haven't had time to go into detail yet about such things, but they are in the pipeline. I also need time to get my
head around them too. I'm aware that Segâh is a moveable feast, but exactly when and where is a mystery to me at the moment. This is where I get
frustrated at myself for my poor ability in learning languages - I've never been good at it, and Turkish is not easy! And this is one of the reasons
for going public with my learning, in the hope that those who know better can inform me, if they have the time and inclination. Also, 99.9% of the
people I mention the tanbur to have never heard of it, know nothing about it. So, technicalities aside, the website has already generated a few
messages and emails from friends and strangers. It's been online for less than a week, and I intend to expand it over time, but I'm still very much a
beginner on the instrument.
And, yes, Izzettin Ökte is a wonderful player. Quite different to Necdet Yasar.
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RobMacKillop
Oud Addict
Posts: 39
Registered: 1-10-2014
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Freya - it's 7mm at the body/neck joint. Should probably be a little higher to stop the buzzing on the lowers frets.
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Jody Stecher
Oud Junkie
Posts: 1373
Registered: 11-5-2011
Location: California
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Ökte is a skilled minimalist and achieves a lot using few notes. He makes excellent use of silence. His renders compositions with "magnetic"
clarity. In taksim playing he tends to stay within a given makam for some time. Yasar is a magician in taksim. He starts out in one makam and makes
a coherent musical statement. When he's done with his statement the listener realizes that the walls which had been red at the beginning are now
painted blue. He has changed the makam without making it blatantly apparent that he's doing that.
The listener is left wondering : now how did he manage that?
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RobMacKillop
Oud Addict
Posts: 39
Registered: 1-10-2014
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Yes, it is the silence in Ökte's playing that grabbed me on first hearing.
As for Yasar's modulations - I'm not up to hearing the subtleties at the moment. Much listening to do!
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RobMacKillop
Oud Addict
Posts: 39
Registered: 1-10-2014
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I have good news: I made contact with Murat Aydemir, and he tells me he is bringing out a tuition DVD, and it will be available in a version dubbed in
English. Just what I need!
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alchemy
Oud Maniac
Posts: 57
Registered: 11-30-2014
Location: Buenos Aires, Argentina
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Hi Rob, congratulations for getting back into practice! I've read your website a few times, it's one of the first ones I found in english with some
information about the Tanbur. I don't play that instrument myself but I do play Turkish Ûd. I would love to get a Tanbur some day but it's a bit
expensive to get a nice one, specially to South America.
I wish you all the best in your practice endeavors.
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Jack_Campin
Oud Junkie
Posts: 333
Registered: 5-6-2007
Location: Scotland
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Mood: No Mood
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I can't access Rob's site on this computer. But since someone here has mentioned the yayli tanbur: anyone here play it? I've love the sound but
trying to bring one back from Turkey has always seemed too difficult - do you disassemble it for transport? (I need to write a sequel to "United
Breaks Guitars" - "KLM Busted My Davul").
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