Müzik Sosyolojisi Açısından Arabesk Müziğin Dönüşümü

Sosyoloji Dergisi 38(1): 89–106 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.26650/SJ.38.1.0004 tjs.istanbul.edu.tr Sosyoloji Dergisi Başvuru: 22 Şubat 2016 Kabul: 8 Haziran 2017 ARAŞTIRMA MAKALESİ Müzik Sosyolojisi Açısından Arabesk Müziğin Dönüşümü Nuran Erol Işık1 Öz Müzik ve toplum ilişkisi karmaşık sosyal bağlara işaret eden bir ilişkidir. Müziğin içsel özelliklerinin yanısıra ‘sosyal’in değişken ve akışkan özellikleri müzik sosyolojisi hakkında temel sorunsalları tartışma ve belirli bazı konuları tanımlayabilme gereğini ortaya çıkarmıştır. Bu makalede, müzik sosyolojisinin temel tartışma noktalarından hareketle bir müzik türü olarak arabesk müziğin son yıllarda geçirdiği dönüşüm ele alınmakta, söz konusu tartışma noktalarının müzik hakkında üretilecek sosyolojik ve metodolojik gündeme taşıyabileceği konu alanları hakkında öneriler sunulmaktadır. Anahtar Kelimeler Müzik sosyolojisi • Arabesk The Transformation of Arabesk Music within the Framework of the Sociology of Music Abstract The link between music and society is a relationship with complex social ties. The internal characteristics of music and the changing and fluid features of society reveal a need to define and evaluate the major problems of the sociology of music. The purpose of this article is to evaluate the major transformation of arabesk music through examining the principles of music sociology and proposing new topic suggestions revealed through major discussions on the agenda of sociological and methodological problems. Keywords Sociology of music • Arabesk 1 Nuran Erol Işık (Prof. Dr.), İzmir Ekonomi Üniversitesi, Fen-Edebiyat Fakültesi, Sosyoloji Bölümü, Balçova 35330 İzmir. Eposta: Atıf: Erol Işık, N. (2018). Müzik sosyolojisi açısından Arabesk müziğin dönüşümü. Sosyoloji Dergisi, 38, 89–106. http://dx.doi.org/10.26650/SJ.38.1.0004 ©Yazarlar. İstanbul Üniversitesi tarafından Creative Commons Lisansı (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) kapsamında yayımlanmıştır. SOSYOLOJİ DERGİSİ Extended Abstract Music and society have complex social bonds. In addition to the internal characteristics of music, the flowing and changing features of social aspects emphasize the need to discuss the major issues within the sociology of music, and to define certain problems. The purpose of this article is to evaluate the major turning points in arabesk music in recent years by underlining the main themes in the sociology of music that lead to the emergence of new insights about the themes within the framework of the sociological and methodological agenda produced by evaluation tracks. In Turkish society in the 1950s, there was a unique way of living called “the arabesk culture,” which can be sociologically and anthropologically observed in the forms of music, daily rituals, and even in political attitudes. Arabesk music was accompanied by a unique mentality, or way of thinking and feeling, which became part of the Turkish mainstream popular culture, and it deserves to be investigated not only as a way of life, but also as a method of expression about the world. An in-depth cultural analysis reveals that the sociological phenomenon called “arabesk” transcends description as a mere sentimental mood or cultural artifact of a migration process; on the contrary, it has become a significant cultural value for many people from various social backgrounds. This paper also attempts to offer a cultural reading to gain an understanding of the intertwining of culture and society, in the sense that the formation and the mediation of cultural meanings can provide a map to decipher the positions and roles of major actors, ideological scripts of media texts, and rhetorical choices of popular cultural icons. “Arabesk” is not only a cultural form; it also describes a condition which refers to a unique mentality, a form of thinking, and a way of life, all of which are produced and reproduced by living practices of many people experiencing different worlds. In other words, the “arabesk” cultural condition is a significant cultural reference for many people within a wide range of settings, and the lyrics are formulated in such a way as to depict a tension between cultural forms of Western and non-Western lifestyles. The arabesk cultural condition is also related to understanding ambivalent elements in identities of different natures; that is, city dwellers in Turkey have identities that combine rural, traditional, and semi-urban characteristics. “Arabesk” is also a cultural artifact stemming from the process of creating an otherness in the lifeworld of Turkish society. The “arabesk” cultural code is a product of a complex sociological transformation, ostensibly marked by a rapid migration from rural areas to various urban settings, starting in the 1950s, and leading to the formation of a class of migrants unable to identify themselves with the urban culture, its practices and the lifestyle to which they were exposed. In general, the lyrics included themes such as sorrow, love, passion, 90 Erol Işık / Müzik Sosyolojisi Açısından Arabesk Müziğin Dönüşümü separation, resignation to fate, and resentment. Arabesk music and its performers became well-known in popular culture, and there have been different forms of the arabesk music that are popular not only with the newly urbanized, but also with those already defined as urbanites from different segments of the society. The gecekondu culture has been differentiated and transformed to such an extent that new trends in the music industry made access to music widely available. This picture helps us to understand the ways in which individuals who follow Müslüm Gürses, an Arabesk cult figure since 1970s, desire to be recognized as equals, and to be protected by “Müslüm,” defined as their “father.” Although the followers of Müslüm Gürses were labelled “illiterates” due to their tendency to internalize sentimentality instead of material and rational objectives, they reject a cultural position which projects their deprivation from material demands in such a highly “unjust and unfair world.” Being accepted into the cult-like subculture of Müslüm’s followers has been signified through various different rituals and practices, such as cutting or blading their bodies during concerts as a reference to or sign of being accepted as a member of the so-called group. Some fans involved in such rituals during the concerts seem to be seeking recognition within their own subculture, as well as within the wider society. In this context, the body also becomes a signifier in a world within which one is left with nothing else. The icon of Müslüm Gürses has been transformed by the culture industry since the 1990s. He was seen in famous brand commercials, took part in live music shows, and even produced an album with pop music artists, indicating the extent to which a local/ national cultural celebrity could transform into a well-known figure appreciated by the global cultural industry. His authenticity was questione (...truncated)