17 th Century
Ottoman Music by Dimitri Cantemiroglu 17 th Century Ottoman Music by Dimitri
Kandemiroglu *1673 Dimitrie Cantemir
(Romanian: [diˈmitri.e kanteˈmir]; 1673 -- 1723) was twice Prince of Moldavia
(in March--April 1693 and in 1710-1711). He was also a prolific man of letters
- philosopher, historian, composer, musicologist, linguist, ethnographer, and
geographer.
His name is spelled Dimitrie
Cantemir in Romanian, Dmitriy Konstantinovich Kantemir (Дми́трий Константи́нович
Кантеми́р) in Russian, Dimitri Kantemiroğlu in Turkish, Dymitr Kantemir in
Polish, Dimitrios Kantemiris (Δημήτριος Καντεμίρης) in Greek and Demetre
Cantemir in several other languages.
Musicology Soviet stamp devoted to Dimitrie
Cantemir, 1973 (Michel 4175, Scott 4132).
Some of Cantemir's compositions are part of the regular repertory
of Turkish music ensembles. In 1999, the Bezmara ensemble have recorded an
album, Yitik Sesin Peşinde ("In Search of the Lost Sound") from the
Cantemir transcriptions using period instruments. In 2000, Golden Horn Records released a CD
exploring Cantemir's compositions, European composers of Cantemir's era, and
folk music of Moldavia.
Featuring solo improvisations on
kemençe (Turkish bowed fiddle) and tanbur (Turkish long-necked plucked lute) by
famed master Íhsan Özgen and early music ensemble Lux Musica directed by Linda
Burman-Hall, the project fulfills an ambitious endeavor by Özgen and
Burman-Hall to meld early European music styles and instruments with today's
Turkish art music styles and instruments, with Cantemir as their
touchstone.[5] In 2009, Alia Vox
published a CD and booklet of music performed by the Hespèrion XXI ensemble and
invited musicians under the baton of Jordi Savall.
The recording and booklet both pertain to
"The Book of the Science of Music" by Cantemir and the Sephardic and
Armenian musical traditions. Seven of Cantemir's compositions are
included in the recording along with other Turkish, Armenian and Sephardic
music. [6] He had around 40 compositions
in the Ottoman music of which few are performed today, but his greatest service
to the Ottoman music is the fact that he helped survival of 350 instrumental
pieces by recording them in a certain notation (the ebced) script he developed
in his work Edvar which he presented to Sultan Ahmed III.
Music of Dimitrie Cantemir on youtube
