Stigmatized Melodies: Comparative Analysis of Turkish and Greek Policies Regarding “National Music"

Modern idea of nationalism narrates us similar stories with different actors in diverse geographies. Even though each case has its own particularities and it is really hard to generalize any social reality, such narratives mainly point out the power relations between certain groups, institutions and nations. This time, the story of nationalism recites us a harsh chapter from Turkey and Greece. As there is an adequate research on comparing and contrasting the nationalist movements in Turkey and in Greece, it is effectual to focus on a more particular case which aims to discover the commonalities and contrasts between these two neighboring states: national musical policies. Adopting historical analysis as the methodological technique, this research is developed on the question of “How Turkish and Greek scholars and law makers constructed cultural continuity and applied such a thesis on musical policies, in defense of their national identities between 1923 and 1945?” First chapter of the thesis gives us structural information regarding our exploration such as the research questions, working hypothesis and methodology. Following this a theoretical discussion regarding modernity, state and culture as well as a historical discussion noting the 1923 Lausanne Treaty and its demographic outcomes are marked. In the second chapter, ideological grounds of the Turkish national identity is focused with specifically analyzing ideologue Ziya Gökalp’s conceptualization of culture (hars) and civilization (medeniyet), and the characteristics of the Turkish Theory Culture are explained. In the third chapter of the thesis, diverse approaches in reading the Modern Greek history are noted, while a specific attention is given to the cultural continuity thesis of the “Hellenochristian Civilization Thesis” coined by Spyridon Zambelios and Konstantinos Paparrigopoulos. In the fourth chapter of this work, in light of the theoretical discussion noting the modernization approach, we will be focusing on the intellectual approaches regarding folklore and national music. Following such discussions, we will be observing the practical outcomes of such “modernizing policies”, such as censorship on radio stigmatizing Ottoman art music as well as promotions of ethnomusicological research, glorifying the rearrangement of the folkloric tunes in Turkey. In the fifth chapter, we will be identifying the Greek case, reading the intellectual discussions on folklore and music as well as the practical outcomes of a specific period of the Modern Greek history, with the creation of a censorship committee and regulations of the cultural institutions. Particularly, 4th of August Regime of Ioannis Metaxas, promoting the “3rd Hellenic Civilization” of the cultural continuity thesis mentioned in the second chapter, will be highlighted. Finally, in the sixth chapter, conclusions will be pointed out, with a comparative approach, showing us the ideological and practical similarities and contrasts in these two countries.