Ahmed Adnan Saygun's Sonata for Cello and Piano: A recording and analytical overview (Turkey)

• Main Author: Elgun, Ozgur
• Format: Dissertation
• Language: English
• Subjects: biography; music
• ISBN: 9780493562476; 0493562478

After the declaration of the Turkish Republic in 1923, Turkey underwent many new modernization rules. Social and cultural reforms were created under the new national identity for the Turks. One of the major reforms made during this period was to create a synthesis of Turkish and Western music within the structures of Western polyphonic music. Young talented musicians were sent to Europe to pursue an education and, on their return, they produced the first examples of Turkish polyphonic music under the newly established Republic.
Ahmed Adnan Saygun (1907-1991) is one of the most important figures in the realm of Turkish music as a composer, an ethnomusicologist, and an educator. This present study compiles a complete biography of Ahmed Adnan Saygun, including information on his personal life, compositions, teaching, and contributions to the development of Turkish Western art music. This study consists of a recording of Saygun's Op. 12, Sonata for Cello and Piano , and a general theoretical analysis of that work. The study does not include an in-depth history of the cello or cello music, nor a history of Western art music in Turkey.
This present study consists of a preface, three chapters, references, and appendices. Chapter I traces the development of Turkish Western art music and gives biographical information on the "Turkish Five" composers. Chapter II consists of a biography of Ahmed Adnan Saygun, including his personal and professional life. Chapter III covers a general theoretical analysis of Saygun's Sonata for Cello and Piano. The appendices include a map of the Ottoman Empire, a map of the Republic of Turkey, a portrait of Saygun, a copyright permission letter from the publisher, and a compact disc recording of Saygun's Sonata for Cello and Piano.
This study contributes specific information about Turkish Western art music to research literature in addition to providing insights into this important composer's life, work, and influence on later Turkish composers. The recording project serves to further acquaint people with Turkish Western art music. Finally, the theoretical analysis of the cello sonata presents insights into Turkish polyphonic theory.