SV_T_oud
Oud Maniac
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Karadeniz kemenche (of The Black sea) info
Hello again, here is another quest on a related to oud instrument. I recently posted a question on Kabak Kemane - no answers so far. I hope someone is
interested in Kemenche.
This is a folk instrument with a long body and short neck unlike Classical Ottoman Kemenche which is a totally different beast.
Please post any useful info you might have on Kemenche playing techinques and repertoire.
I didn't find much info on the Internet. There is a Web Site in Turkish dedicated to Kemenche but it's very basic and not finalized. Here it is:
http://www.kemence.com/
The sound samples are apparently missing as they are not properly referenced.
The question I'm most interested in is: "What scales are used to play the Kemenche?". In other words what "makams" are used to play Kemenche? I
understand since this is a folk instrument makams are not directly related to its playing but we need to call somehow the set of notes that make up
the common scales.
So what are the most often used scales for Kemenche playing? I guess with this question I could request information in a much wider sense, probably
like this: "Since Kemenche is a folk instrument what are the scales most widely used for playing Turkish folk music as opposed to Turkish Ottoman
music?".
My second question is about Kemenche repertoire and I think it should be closely related to the first question. Since the Turkish folk repertoire is
based on certain popular scales it will reflect the character of these scales.
What are the most popular repertoire pieces for the Kemenche of the Black Sea?
If you have any useful Web references please post them.
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rootsguitar
Oud Junkie
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A couple of years ago DoggerelPundit was kind enough to post this on a thread in this forum...
It was the first I had ever heard a Kemenche and I found ( & still do) that the clip is excellent for getting ideas rolling.
Here's the archive post:
( it was a conversation about micro tones/ slide tones & unique timbres)
"... Kanun players I know tell me that, prior to the mandal system, pitch changes, vibrato, and slurs on the open strings were done bottleslide-like
with fingernails and/or using the metal pick rings. Ah ha!
Further, the Cretan Lyra, Gaidulka, and certain of the Kemence are noted using the fingernails instead of the pads."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uvNEtHaHkWk
Not sure if you ran across the clip before...good stuff.
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SV_T_oud
Oud Maniac
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Thank you for your response but that' exactly what I don't need 
That is the information related to the Ottoman Kemenche which is played with fingernails. The Karademiz Kemenche is a different instrument (I
indicated this in my first post).
Please see the link I provided to identify the kind of Kemenche I'm talking about.
By the way, here is some YT talk and performance:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iX-yhA7zS9o
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Jody Stecher
Oud Junkie
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This kind of kemance is played in the Black Sea region in the North of Turkey. Historically it has been played by Laz people. The music is rapid, and
typically the melodies are made of short rhythmic phrases played in parallel fourths on two strings at once and then repeated in a new key with
improvised variations. What I've heard of this music has been limited to perhaps half a dozen occasions but I have the impression that this music has
more in common with other Black Sea musical cultures (Georgia, Pontic Greek, coastal Bulgaria, etc) then with the rest of Turkey. The music is based
more on repeated rhythm patterns than on scales or tetrachords. It is not makam music.
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Jack_Campin
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If you can find it, there is a good description in Laurence Picken's book "Folk Music Instruments of Turkey".
I have one. Can't do very much with it.
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Microber
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There are a lot of video available.
http://youtu.be/iX-yhA7zS9o
http://youtu.be/0VbZP8RjLfc
http://youtu.be/4ze38u5MOe4
A channel on Youtube
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3lsaFzW3nxqM6QNHu3KRVg
A lot of pieces here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uZj_8gvI1D8&list=RDuZj_8gvI1D8#t...
http://youtu.be/5IdtRKX1RoQ
http://youtu.be/sHziO6AIXZE
http://youtu.be/Uv9-eZkA32E
http://youtu.be/Ag06Jnh2EFc
And also a video about the Kabak Kemane
http://youtu.be/7iqcPAjtPYY
Hope it helps.
Robert
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sbj
Oud Lover
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I can't help you with the technical parts. I have seen your thread about tanbur and kabak kemane also, but I dont have knowledge in music theory at
all.
If you are interested in these instruments, dont know why, you MUST learn Turkish. Thats the only way you can get further.
In case of Karadeniz Kemence(si), Picoglu Osman is the most known player who influenced all players.
The living legend is Katip Sadi. Not much to say, there is nobody in the Black Sea region who doenst know him or listens to him. Everyone grew up practically while
listening to him.
You must visit Turkey. Everywhere you can find courses for this instrument.
There is a method book but it is in Turkish.
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Jack_Campin
Oud Junkie
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If that's the same method book I have, it's a small A5 booklet and not very much use. I don't think you'll get far without learning from a human.
The music is unbelievably fast and it's very difficult to catch on just by watching.
What makes it different from almost every other stringed instrument is the continuous double and even triple stopping. The booklet doesn't tell you a
lot about that.
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sbj
Oud Lover
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Dont know if it is.
Ah, by the way, search for "kemence dersi" on youtube, there are some very basic stuff for teaching.
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SV_T_oud
Oud Maniac
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Thanks for all your replies. All is useful info.
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