Ottoman Intimacies, Balkan Musical Realities. Edited by Risto Pekka

198 MUSICultures 41/2 Ottoman Intimacies, Balkan Musical way; indeed, the discourse here, and in Realities. Edited by Risto Pekka some later chapters, seems almost as lab- Pennanen, Panagiotis C. Poulos and yrinthine and contradictory as the topics Aspasia Theodosiou. 2013. Helsinki: themselves. Nevertheless, there is never Foundation of the Finnish Institute at any lack of information to process and Athens. xxx+173 pp. ideas to consider. The chapters are grouped into JUDITH COHEN three sections: “Imperial Musical Worlds York University and their Peripheries,” “Ottoman Pasts, Representations and the Performing Arts” The musical world of the former and “Ottoman Echoes and the Current Ottoman Empire and the Balkans is a Mediaspace.” One might quibble about complex one, inextricably linked to such whether “performing arts” and “medias- different phenomena as the intricacies of pace” should be in different sections, but, Ottoman and Austro-Hungarian history, then again, one can always argue for re- and the current appropriation of “Gypsy arranging sections and chapters—or for music.” The essays in this volume, which not having any sections at all. originated in a conference held in Athens Cem Behar opens the first section in 2010, explore aspects of the edgy re- with a discussion of how orality and lit- lationships among Ottoman and Balkan eracy are interwoven in sometimes unex- musical worlds, and the “intimacies” of pected contexts, reflecting on the absence the authors with their topics often offer of “original” or “global” versions. Perhaps valuable insights into these and many Maureen Jackson’s fine volume (Jackson other issues. 2013) on Jewish paraliturgical singing Walter Zev Feldman opens the in Turkey had not yet appeared when he volume with a brief, thoughtful fore- wrote his chapter; several issues that he word, drawing on his expertise in discusses also appear there, though in dif- Ottoman and Balkan musical traditions, ferent contexts, and one can imagine a as well as political, historical and social fruitful dialogue. contexts, to situate the areas and cul- In “Solemn Songs for the Sultan,” tures under discussion within his reflec- Darin Stephanov offers a fascinating tions on empires and their legacies. More glimpse of how praise songs and prayer detail and discussion of these and related lyrics were intended to bring the non- questions are offered in the longer in- Muslim population into the field. Risto troduction by the volume’s co-editors. Pekka Pennanen discusses the fruits of his Here, music is situated within a complex minute perusal of archival documents, historical/political/social context—or guiding the reader through intersections set of contexts—establishing an almost of music and musical symbolism, history, palpable atmosphere, of the shifting, con- politics, nationalism and local and global tradictory relationships which constitute perspectives in Habsburg, and anti- the Balkan “realities” of the collection’s Habsburg Ottoman Bosnia. Ottoman title. It is difficult to discuss Ottoman, and Orientalist music and musical occa- Balkan and Roma issues in a really clear sions, Bosnian Muslims, Catholics and Book Reviews 199 Orthodox Christians all appear in his nar- diction (109). As a small side note, from rative, though curiously the Jewish popu- personal experience with the family, I can lation does not. suggest that her description of the Roma The middle section consists of only chalga star Azis and his partner (114) is two essays. Tatjana Markovic explores only one of several contradictory images romantic opera, and its depiction of the the singer has chosen to project, and not Ottoman “other.” “Multicultural Balkan the one his parents described to me! identity” in film is discussed in Nevena Vesa Kurkela narrates and reflects Dakovic and Marija Ciric’s chapter, which on the emergence of “Chalgatube,” an reflects on identity and in-between-ness, Internet channel sponsored by gambling and is also one of the few chapters to take interests (126). He argues that these up the issue of gender roles (92). videos evoke, and in a way, are a subsi- In the third and last section, tute for, the old mehana, tavern, with live Panagiotis C. Poulos’s discussion of music music and dance. Kurkela also discusses in non-Muslim Istanbul includes reflec- the development of chalga—from cas- tions on architecture, nostalgia and cos- sette culture through DVDs to streaming mopolitanism. His apt quotation from and p2p file exchange—and muses on Amy Mills about Greek and Jewish mi- the meanings of terms such as “popfolk norities becoming “beloved” and “present” chalga” (“… ‘folk’ here mostly denotes only when they have departed (57) is audiences and, only secondarily, music”; fitting here, but the long and central 127) and “Gypsy chalga” (129), and their Jewish presence in Istanbul is relegated relationship to the concepts of westerniza- to a footnote (56, n. 20). I was mildly tion and orientalism. His “Afterthought” bemused by Poulos’s choice of adjectives notes that in 2011 Chalgatube disap- such as “bizarre” and “curious” (52, 53), peared, and reflects on the ephemeral rather than less value-laden terms such nature of the Internet, speculating that it as “unaccustomed” or “unfamiliar,” and might soon resurface – indeed, as I write couldn’t help wondering whether “cul- this in 2014, “chalgatube.org” is cheer- tural intimacy” had perhaps temporarily fully playing on my computer. let him down here. Nevertheless, there is Aspasia Theodosiu brings us to the much to learn and reflect on in this essay. urban area around the northern Greek Carol Silverman leads us through city of Ioanina, specifically a suburb markers of “Roma” and “Gypsy” identity, where Roma live in a “double marginali- especially in Bulgaria, with her character- ty,” a state of “disheveled alterities” (138). istic acumen. She discusses developments She is concerned with issues of identity, such as the use of more—and fewer— exoticizing and branding, as well as ap- and more again—“eastern” markers, propriation and erasure. Theodosiu ably the increasing use of electric genres and discusses the elusive genre fantasia and its hip-hop, collaborations with musicians relation to the Turkish cifteteli, and offers from outside Bulgaria, combinations with an interesting discussion of local musi- village styles and more. Silverman effec- cians’ notions of a “selfish” and a “profes- tively explores themes such as “nesting sional” mode of playing. orientalisms” and representational contra- I was surprised that Rosemarie 200 MUSICultures 41/2 Statelova’s slim, deliberately provoca- many roads, paths, lanes and intersec- tive volume on “the seven sins of chalga” tions of the narratives in these essays. In (Statelova 2005) is referred to only fleet- each case, however, their authors shed ingly in the collection, and that issues of light along the way, often in places where gender are given little specific attention, one might not expect it. At times, to me aside from Theodosiu’s footnote that at least, the focus on cultural intimacy, Roma (instrumental) musicians are all in a development of Herzfeld’s concept male (150, n.103), and in the chapter on (Herzfeld 1997) seems apt, while at film (92). The long and complex history other times it seems a trifle forced— of Jews and Jewish musicians in the both its use as a part of the framework Balkans is likewise seldom mentioned, for this volume and in specific essays. and never really discussed. While Martin Then again, the term “realities” with Stokes’ work is mentioned by some of respect to Balkan and Ottoman history is the authors, his focus on the “intimacies” perhaps even more problematic. Perhaps of the collection’s title, in the context of the best way to engage with these very Turkey (Stokes 2010) would have been engaged essays is to turn the theoreti- useful to at least the discussion in the cal aspects of “Ottoman intimacies and Introduction; perhaps it was not yet avail- Balkan realities” into experiences which able when this volume was in prepara- offer their own intimacies and realities: tion. by listening to some of the music under On a practical note, I was not active- discussion. ly looking for small errors, but enough jumped out at me to be mildly annoying. They include the occasional verb which REFERENCES doesn’t agree with its subject (“… the imagery … contrast with …” , xxiii), Herzfeld, Michael. 1997. Cultural confusing “complement” with “compli- Intimacy: Social Poetics in the Nation- ment” (64, 82), awkward phrasing such State. New York: Routledge. as “up myself ” (63), “different to” (149), Jackson, Maureen. 2013. Mixing Musics: a number of different verb tenses mixed Turkish Jewry and the Urban Landscape together (“they played and sing,” 60), and of a Sacred Song. Stanford, CA: several others, especially in the penulti- Stanford University Press. mate essay. Thorough proofreading would Statelova, Rosemarie. 2005. The Seven have taken care of these. Sins of Chalga: Toward an Anthropology All the authors discuss issues of of Ethnopop Music. Sofia: Prosveta, identity or identities, marginalization 2005. in many permutations, and in general Stokes, Martin. 2010. The Republic of complications and contradictions. Even Love: Cultural Intimacy in Turkish those of us accustomed to both moving Popular Music. Chicago: University of about physically in the Balkans and Chicago Press. former Ottoman Turkey and Greece, and to reading, writing, talking, singing, etc. about them, might get lost along the .

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