Abstract:

Dârülelhan served as the national school of music both during the late Ottoman era and the newly founded Republic of Turkey. During this period, there were considerable changes in the cultural production of music, similar to those in the military and social life of the Ottoman State that was undergoing modernization -and the rationalizing its effect- as early as the late 18th Century. During this process, when the fields of teaching, theory, and performance of Turkish music were rapidly transforming, a rationalization and an underlying idea for constructive change was put into place. It was ultimately anticipated to arrive via modern educational institutions, and thus the institutionalization of Turkish music gathered momentum. Dârülelhan, which became operational in 1916 and continued offering its training even after a restriction of its functions in 1923, was charged with an important mission in shaping both traditional Turkish music and the musical taste of the time. This study -although the topic necessitates a general outline- does not deal with the history of the institution itself but rather focuses on Turkish music’s teaching and performance traditions that changed during the late Ottoman and early republican eras at the hands of Dârülelhan. The paper examines the institution’s directives, legislation, and publications during the said period and discusses the time’s socio-cultural implementations by considering news articles and interviews in periodicals as well as other archival documents. Additionally, it studies their reception within prominent musical circles, making additions to predicate studies on the institution’s history by analyzing newly discovered documents and other supplementary information.