Re: new cd notes, arabic links

[Paul M. Gifford <PGIFFORD...>]

Ernie Gruner / Cathy Dowden <erniegru (at) mira(dot)net> wrote:

> After 3 Glaces (freylach in Mart Heijmanns first klezmer tune compilation)
> Terk in America / Uskadar - have seen a fair bit but any extra information
> on JEWISH/TURKISH/ARABIC/GREEK music links would be appreciated - I heard a
> suggestion that Moldovia had Greek administrators at one stage. (Ottoman
> empire?)

You might read any book on the history of Romania for the system of 
government of Moldavia and Wallachia in the 17th, 18th and early 19th 
centuries. Ottoman rule was indirect; Greek families ran the country, 
but owed allegiance to the Sultan. In 1781, Franz Joseph Sulzer 
described the Turkish music at the courts of the hospodars. 
Presumably as in Turkey, Sephardic Jews (and other non-Muslims, as 
well as Gypsies) were some of the musicians. Maybe there are specific 
examples of Ashkenazic musicians performing at these Greek courts, 
but as there still was a lot of migration from Galicia into Moldavia 
in the 18th and 19th centuries (see Encyclopedia Judaica, for 
example), one would suspect little Ottoman influence on Jewish music 
then. Perhaps the Greek connection can be explained by the existence 
of Greek communities in Moldavia. They were merchants and maybe 
Jewish musicians played at their weddings. The Gypsy lautari, who 
used some of the old instruments of 18th century Turkish music, like
the muscal (miskal) (panpipes), might have been more prone to know 
such music, it seems to me, but I can't see any particular 
relationships or common tunes with Greek music, at least with 
contemporary muzica lautareasca---actually I hear more similarity 
with older urban Serbian or Bosnian music (such as triple-time 
sevdalinki and cinteci de dragoste). But there were substantial Greek 
communities until recently in Romania, so maybe some of the Greek 
tunes in klezmer music can be explained that way. The other influence 
could have been klezmorim who settled in Constantinople and Smyrna 
following pogroms in the latter 19th century. But, hey, this is all 
speculation, anyway, right?

Paul Gifford

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